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Thank you for all the help over the years you have given me.

Thank you for all the contributions you have made here on the forum over the years.

Your support has been excellent!

Hello,
I am trying to set up my LinuxCNC control system with a Mesa 7I96 using pncconf. I’ve seen in several threads that there is an "external controls" page in pncconf where you can configure things like handwheels. However, I am unable to access this "external controls" page. What am I doing wrong? Could someone help me find it?
Thanks,
Hans

Hello,
i have install LCNC with a 7I96 for a lathe. There a two mpgs connected the first mpg on pin 0 + 1 and the other mpg on pin 2 + 3 from connector
TB3. Is there a sample for the hal-file to use the mpgs for nturning in manual mode?
Thanks
Hans

Thank you for approving it, tommylight - and for being upfront about it being paid software. That's exactly how I wanted to present it.

If anyone has questions, finds a bug, or thinks a cycle behaves wrong on their machine, please post here - I'll answer and fix what I can.

I have approved this, it is for payed software with a trial version, so if anyone has anything against it, let me know.
Thank you.

chattr +i foo.hal

That prevents linux itself from modifying the file (even as root) until you -i it.
But as Rod said, once you start manually editing it, you can't use the wizards any more.

I've got some general observations which you may or may not already know, and some specifics from my setup which does basically the same thing.  Note: I'm not an expert, I just spent a lot of time trying to wrap my head around how this all works

Remember that #5063 is in the current WCS coordinate system, NOT the machine coordinate system, and not always G54.  To get the machine Z, you need to undo this correctly. Also note that the current location after a probe hit is NOT the same as the location stored in #5061 et al.  The probe needs some time to stop, so it's always past the probe point when you read "current position".
As for probing for tool length, it turns out you don't need ANY of that.  All you have to do is probe the toolsetter, and offset the tool length by the amount the probe is off by, in a known coordinate system.  I dedicate G59.3 to be "where the toolsetter is" and, in G59.3, do this:If you don't want to do that, you need to know the machine Z of the toolsetter (which you do) and do the math to undo the probe point (undo the WCS offset and tool offset), then set the tool length to be the offset from where you expected the toolsetter to be.
Remember that "machine Z" = "probe hit Z" + "WCS Z" + "tool offset Z" so you need to know which WCS and tool offset is in effect when you probe.  Yes, keeping track of which way to apply the offsets can be tricky.  Remember that offsets are always added to where you want, to get where the machine goes.  A longer tool as a more positive (usually "bigger") tool offset to move the spindle more in the +Z direction ("up").
Remember that you're not always in G54.  You can use #5220 to compute a parameter for the current WCS.  Your current WCS Z is #[ 5200 + #5220 * 20 + 3 ]
I use G70 and G72 to save and restore the machine's modal state during tool changes, so I don't mess up a running program by changing something important and not setting it back.
Also, you most certainly CAN probe the toolsetter with the 3d probe to calculate its length.  I do this all the time.  You just have to make sure the probe "hits" when either probe is tripped, as one will trip before the other but you don't know which.  You don't need to use the 3d probe's length in your tool length offset, the 3d probe is just another tool.  Reference off a known fixed location in machine space (your spindle_setter_z), not some other tool's arbitrary offset.  The 3d probe has its own tool offset when it's loaded, just like any other tool.

It is scary because laser is FAR more dangerous, and the videos I see online of the home built stuff shows that people are not taking that danger very seriously at all. Mayyyybe they have the correct safety glasses, but I feel bad for anyone who walks unknowingly into the area when the machine is operating.

Hi all,
Due to personal reasons I'm stepping down as Administrator/Moderator on this forum.
I hope to continue to try giving support to users here but it might be on a somewhat reduced level and only on topics that I have taken a particular interest in over the years (eg custom kinematics, machine simulation).

Thank you!     

Hi all,

I run a small CNC lathe on LinuxCNC, and I got tired of writing the same turning, threading and grooving code by hand. So over the past months I built a desktop tool for it: you fill in a form (diameters, lengths, feeds, speeds), watch the toolpath in a 2D preview, and save a ready .ngc file for the machine.

What it does - 12 cycles:
- OD turning, facing, boring, grooving, drilling, cut-off
- Taper (OD/ID), sphere (including concave profiles, e.g. a pulley groove)
- Chamfer / radius (OD/ID, front/back)
- Threading: OD/ID, right/left hand, multi-start, adjustable lead-in / run-out
- Tapered threads
- Archimedean spiral (face spiral groove)

Things that were important to me:
- Live 2D toolpath preview before you save anything
- G7/G8 (diameter/radius mode) with one switch for all cycles
- G32 or G33 threading syntax, with a configurable pitch word (I/K/F)
- Coolant M-codes, tool number, comments, M30 - all can be turned on or off to match your habits and your postprocessor
- mm and inch; English and Russian UI

Most cycles (turning, facing, taper, sphere, threading, boring, chamfer/radius) have been proven by real cuts on my machine, not just air runs. Tapered threads and a couple of others so far only have air / single-block runs - feedback is welcome.

To be upfront: this is paid software. There is a free 15-day trial, no key needed. After that it's $25 for one month (no auto-renewal), or $60 for 3 months and then $20/month. Linux .deb (Debian 11+ / Ubuntu 20.04+, amd64) and Windows.

Site with screenshots of every cycle: turngcode.com
Trial download: turngcode.com/en/trial/

I know there are free options too (NGCGUI, Probe Basic conversational, etc.), and they are great. This one is aimed at people who want a complete set of lathe cycles in one simple form, with a preview, without writing subroutines.

Happy to answer questions, and I'd appreciate honest criticism.

so #5223 is being used in my remap,is it something that I config wrong in the remap or down.ngc ?

Darrell wrote:

Or just delete it I suppose. Doesn't work anyway.

Oh, please don't delete it yet, this looks like it has a lot of potential.

 Ive been trying to figure this out on my own but I am not getting any luck, after using my 3d probe to find Z0 on work piece (down.ngc) then call for T5 M6 for example (tool_change.ngc) both move with no errors but the calculation is off at the moment after T5 touches off the tool setter tip of tool is below Z0 (123 block) but if i move past the 123 block the spindle nose will Z0 off the 123 block.When i calculated the 3dprobe length I touched off spindle nose off the block then used 3d probe to touch off the block to get it length, but the spindle nose distance is moving over to the tool length (I think) dont know what else to do.


 

 

You can try using a USB WiFi dongle, but that is also "hit or miss", so it might work fine or might not work at all or might work intermittently.
I've had very good luck with USB to LAN adapters, so far out of over 10, all have worked fine for connecting to Mesa boards.
This also gives you 2 options for Mesa so you can test what works better for you.