converted carvewright machine control with mach 3 software

[cncjunky]

hi
is anyone in the forum ever converted the carvewright to control with mach 3 software, i looking for a servo controller and let you guy know how it turn out...

[Jeff_Birt]

While I'm a big fan of Mach III, having converted and built several machines that use it, and I hate being a wet blanket and curbing someones enthusiasm; I think trying to convert a CW to run from Mach III would be a big step backward (IMHO).

Hardware wise, to make it work you would need a motion control card capable of driving servos and capable of using an auxiliary encoder for at least one axis. Then it would have to have sufficient (and proper) I/O to make use of all the sensor in the CW machine. I'm working on an old Bridgeport VMC at work, converting it to Mach III and the 'econo' motion control card alone was more than $1200. Through in all the other accessories you need to use with it and your up to more than the cost of the whole CW machine.

Mach III wise, you would no doubt wind up having to write some plug-ins to get everything to work properly.

Usage wise, you would have to use some commercial CAM program to generate the G-code. I use SurfCam at work with all the bells&whistles, it's about $17,000 per seat. There are lower cost CAM packages but to get one that does 3D your going to spend more than the whole CW machine costs. Price aside, commercial CAM packages are very hard to use to do 3D stuff. Not impossible, but there is a VERY steep learning curve.

The great thing about the CW system is that is is very easy to use. While one can no doubt come up with several 'restrictions' or things you would like to be able to do on it like you would with a conventional CNC machine, in truth the biggest restriction on using the CW still lies between our own ears. We are limited much more by our own creativity than any limitation the machine places on us. Just look at all the wonderful creations by folks like liquidguitars and Michael Tyler.

Could the machine and/or software be improved? Yep, just like everything else in life. Would you be gaining anything by using Mach III to control the machine rather than it own control/software? You would learn a lot, no doubt; but int eh end you would have a machine that would be harder to use and it would still have all the same physical limitations.

Good luck if you decide to proceed, let use know how it works out...

[cncjunky]

i am curently using comercial multicam 4x8 router table with Mastercam x2 software for my work. the reason i bought two of this machine because i see an advantage of this machine. the portability and it can cut board up to 12' cool i wish they could taken off the limitation off the lenght of the board also be able to set zero point manually. it a wasted of time to have the machine have to measure the lenght of the board, so far for the type of work i use i already gone through two set of traction belt. Jeff you are right about the 3d feature of this software are great like no brainer could use it. but the down side in the 2d design. i don't know it's me not used to the software or the software just too confusing to use. the ony reason i trying to convert this machine to Mach3 control software is i could use any software to design the parts and total control of the machine. this the only wish list i have with carvewright. in the next update version of this software they could allow import commonly use vector file format like DWG,IGS . Then see this machine in a hand of many comercial CNC user.

[Dan-Woodman]

If you tell the machine to place on end it will not measure the length. And your not limited to a twelve foot board. The limitation is weight, 20 lbs. and software . The wood you are using is probably more than 20 lb. That may be why your tearing your belts. Also if you run out of software on your twelve foot board,just start another and continue. Are you using outfeed and infeed roller stands.
later Daniel