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sketchucam help to mach3 ,beginner help?

Discussion in 'SketchUcam Help' started by terrance, Jan 23, 2016.

?

do i use sketchucam to drive my machine or do i load the file to mach 3? guidance needed.

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  1. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    new to sketchucam and sketchup ,i would like to cut some things in wood on a cnc router , i can use mach3 to run the machine,do i get rid of mach 3 and connect sketchucam? is it a driver too?where can i see the preview cut window with toolpath after the g code generation ,it looks like a great software but i need some help .draw the model -->generate gcode ---> ?----> ?
     
  2. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    Thankyou Swarfer in advance i found the video you made nice work.
     
  3. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    woohooo generated a gcode happy happy happy now make it for real load g code file to mach3 right?
     
  4. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    yes and saw the toolpath wow i almost had an orgasm woohoo
     
  5. swarfer

    swarfer Moderator Staff Member

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    I guess you're good then. Sketchucam only generates Gcode so you will need a control program like MAch3/LinuxCNC/GRBL/TinyG etc to actually use the Gcode to drive the machine.
     
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  6. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    Thankyou swarfer im from jhb i admire your intellegence level.
     
  7. swarfer

    swarfer Moderator Staff Member

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    not that clever, just an ordinary programmer and diy handyman (-:

    what router have you got?
     
  8. terrance

    terrance New Member

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    hi swarfer i have a homebuilt router table my 2nd try 1000 -500-300 this time with real decent spindles.couldnt afford a ready build i actually work as cnc technician but have mostly mechanical knowledge ,and learnt a bit of wiring and electrics at work and college but it wasnt easy getting it all together internet was a huge help.now im stuck with the 500 line problem of mach 3 so am looking to linux for an answer but i really like the mach 3 setup and functionality. thanks for the guidance.
     
  9. swarfer

    swarfer Moderator Staff Member

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    Hiya
    LinuxCNC is very easy to install, just boot from the DVD and click install. (easiest if you get a new HDD, remove the windows one and just install to the new one. then you can always swap drives if you want to go back to windows - you can set up dual boot, but that is a bit advanced). It will find your network and such all by itself, but a wireless net might be a problem requiring manual setup.

    After that you will want to read the manual a bit, and in particular look at the 'stepconf' section. There is a program called stepconf (iirc) that will help you set up your pinouts for your breakout board, just write down the pinouts that are working in Mach3 and use those.
    Also use the tuning section to set up the gear ratios for steps per unit and speeds.
    Somewhere along there is will save an icon to the desktop that will start the Axis interface with that ini file you just created and your machine should work. Note that you can create multiple ini files and start with any one of them, so you can try different setups.

    About the various interfaces: you can look at all of them in the sim mode and see which one you like. The Axis one is the 'standard', and there are variations of it that allow you to add Python scripts etc for special functions. I recommend just using the plain Axis interface to get going, and once you have a stable working machine setup, you can move to an interface of your choosing. Just about all of them can be used via the network, so the machines PC does not need a screen at all, you can do it all remotely, if needed(not recommended though :).

    For example I have a machine in mind that will be both lathe and mill, with a stepper motor driving the lathe head. But by changing ini setups I will be able to have it as a lathe spindle (continuous run mode) or as a C axis, (angle set mode).

    There is a good wiki and various forums, and an IRC channel on freenode.net should you need real help for LinuxCNC, every problem you could have has already been discussed (-:

    have fun
     

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