Light Machine Corp. Benchman XTr (retrofit)

In your machine, +24V is generated in the external power supply. It comes onboard on J17.
J15-35 is connected to +24V whenever the machine is turned on.
If you don't have +24V there relative to TP12, there's your issue.

Very carefully disconnect the wire from J15-35 and re-measure the voltage there.
Check the continuity from J15 to the probe connector.

Try using a jumper from TP28 (+24V) to J15-36 (U12-4) and see if that triggers your probe input.

It has been so long since I have actually been in front of one of these machines, my recollection is a bit foggy as to the actual operation. There is I believe a toolchanger.ini file that has all the parameters in it. The numbers are in encoder counts so change them slightly and see if the change is in the correct direction. It was an iterative process to get the exact values required for proper operation.

Again, Intelitek may be of assistance.

Parts and a question.

I got hit by the Dallas Tornado last October and so was unable to really do much of anything for a long time. The last repairs are finally getting done. Then there is this pandemic...

In the interim I had to gut my Benchman XT. (Very long story...too long) So I have several parts if you happen to be looking for some. Since it is garage cleaning time, I'd like to have these find a good home in a needy machine. If you have a part you need, let me know and I'll see if I have it.

I was actually very happy with the Benchman XT but now I am looking at a Benchman MX. For some reason, there is almost no information about this machine on the internet or the Intelitek website. It is supposed to be an upgrade to the XT but somewhere I read that the MX uses Steppers instead of servos. Does anyone have any information on this?

Steve,

The MX machine is the next iteration of the XT. It was designed to be more modular so that the customer would select options and the build would be simplified and build time reduced. It also was designed to be compliant to the CE standard for non-US customers. It is definitely a servo machine. Since I left Intelitek, they stopped making their own machines and started re-branding someone else's. The MX was a nice machine.

I'm sorry that you had to gut your XT.
For the last few years, I have been helping folks keep their XT machines running.
I may be interested in some of the parts you have, particularly the electrical components.
The PCB assemblies, the Nextmove card, the Nextmove cable.
Let me know what electrical parts you have that are available.

Don

Hi Don.
When I received the Benchman it seemed that the Nextmove card was the casualty that made it a surplus unit. The Nextmove cable was the second casualty as it seems that no one valued it to give it "respect". I believe I correctly repaired it (Having worked at HP for years) but Light Machines, probably inadvertently, made that system difficult to work with at best. Bottom line is that the computer and Nextmove were trashed years ago. It caused me so much grief I was rather gleeful to dispose of it.
Anyway, I had planned to replace the controller with the Linux based system but due to repeatedly being delayed on my order, I ended up using the Kmotion system. That means I pulled out the old systems and ended up with a very accurate system. There was at least one quirk I was aware of that was a software issue I never completely solved.
PCBs I have are ; 4000 series Encoder/breakout board - Power supply input PCB with the voltage switch. (these two I don't know if they work. ) The Lambda power supply - the Electro Craft DDM-019 - servo control boards (these I know work). I may also have some encoders and various parts I pulled for luck like the flood pump. I'm sure there's more but I'd have to look if there's something specific.

Which I better in your opinion the XT or the MX?


Steve

Steve,

While the two machines are technically extremely similar, I think the MX beats the XT simply in terms of maintenance.
The MX machines are much more accessible for cleaning, adjusting, setup, etc. having doors on 3 sides vs the XT which only has access from the front.
Both machines were Nextmove based, but the MX was a new from the ground up mechanical layout. The XT was an iteration of the even older 4000 series.

The 100-pin cable was always an issue with those Nextmove machines. Unfortunately, I inherited them and had no input on their development.

Thanks for the list of parts you have, but unless you are literally going to scrap them, I am not interested. Your machine is one of the older-vintage with the stacked machine board and encoder-breakout board. (Closer to the 4000 systems than the MX systems). One of my first tasks at Intelitek was to redesign the XT into a single board system that was universal across the existing options.

I have seen many used XTs for sale, but have yet to see a used MX. If you can find one it would be a good investment.

Greetings All,

Tons of great information in this thread. Thanks to everyone for that.
I am re-building a Benchman XT with the 7500 rpm spindle, and the spindle bearings are shot.
I wish to replace the bearings, but my difficulty lies in removing the spindle from the housing. The collet and drawbar have been removed as well as the left-hand-threaded collar on the top of the spindle pulley. That’s as far as I can go. The spindle pulley is keyed to the shaft below the left-hand-threads on the shaft. However, the spindle pulley will not budge. Either the pulley has welded itself to the shaft, or I am missing something about how the spindle is assembled. Anyone have ideas on how to proceed? I appreciate any help you can offer.

Thanks,
Dan

Hi Folks, firstly great to read through this thread! Such fantastic info.
I picked up an MX not long ago and this really helped me understand the machine. Hey it only took a year, but here we are. I know this is my first post, but I've been having an impossible time with my MX figuring out configure any I/O connections. It's one of the main reasons I (drove over 30 hours each way, Oh Canada) to pick up the Mill. Can anyone familiar with this machine help me out a bit? Apparently I need a "Canbus i/o module" which I can find online, and I'm guessing connects to the parallel port in the back of the machine. If there's anyone out there that can give an overview of what it takes to get some I/O's/Pneumatics running from my MX, I'd be forever in your debt. Heck I'll even send someone some money if they can help a fella out, I just don't even know where to start.

Note: I know it's reasonably simple with Mach systems for general I/O, but the MX and software appears to be far more complex, unfortunately.

Thanks very much if someone takes the time to read and help. I have notifications turned on for this post.
(added a photo for fun, trochoidal milling 1" steel, awesome machine)

Great Question, Tommylight. Thanks for the reply. I thought the same until I found out that I/O Canbus Modules were an option for the machine. Now that being said, is that Module just an insulated I/O breakout board? I'm not sure, and I have spent hours and hours or searching for anything intelitek related about the matter, but came up fruitless. I called Intelitek, but they do not support this machine anymore nor do they give wiring diagrams. There is someone there that I can speak with, but $350 ish CAD per hour for an hour or two is a little steep. I'd rather not go down that road here in 2020 if possible.
What I do know is this:

- The parallel is the only open port on the board besides the canbus port (which I'm assuming is to program the board). The serial port is for a 4th axis.
- Intelitek told me the machine is capable of I/O inputs and outputs.
- None of the other Intelitek mills from the time say anything in their manuals.
- The spec sheet lists "Canbus I/O Modules" as an option for the machine.
- The Interface from the mill board to the CPU is a 100 pin cable

What I don't know is:
- How to even start testing the parallel port without some sort of diagram. Without damaging anything.
- If intelitek requires additional software to run an I/O board within the software. These were build modularly, but within my software, I don't even have options to install an air vise, bigger ATC, automatic door opener, etc. that were all options with this machine.

If I had answers to these two questions, I could at least make a bit of progress. Here is a photo of the port/board. Thanks