This all started when I needed to replace the brushes for my Makita router, the RT0701C. I bought cheap ones from Amazon, thinking that brushes were brushes.
Once I did that, I started having problems. The Z-axis motor would cut in and out on tool paths I have cut before, and I found that excessive vibration would cause the power cords to vibrate loose. Some weather stripping and electrical tape resolved the problem for a moment. Then I was doing a flattening path that I had done before. It was a G-code that was set as a single path. Would set the tool depth. Then readjusted my zero to the depth I want to cut, usually about 0.040 inches during the run. Halfway through, I got a Z-alarm, and the machine shut down. I cleared the code, thinking it was an error, jumped to a couple of lines before, and started again. It ran about another quarter way through the path and threw a code again. I shut the machine down. Oiled the ball and screws in case of binding. Cleaned everything up. Cleared the homing channels and checked for pinched wires. I fired everything back up and jumped to line about 2 lines before where it had cut out, and it threw an alarm about 30 seconds into carving. Wondering if I had lost some communication through wires, I checked continuity on all my Z-axis wires, and everything checked good, even wiggled and waved them around to make sure I had solid connections, and still had solid connections throughout. I swapped the Z and X stepper motors to see if the problem stayed at the Z-axis or moved with the motor. When I moved it to the X-axis, it moved with it, so it made me think that the problem was the motor. I contacted Onefiniity, and they believed it was the stepper motor going out as well. I ordered a new one.
When it arrived, I replaced the X-axis stepper motor with the new one. Keyed everything up, and as soon as the router kicks on, even manually, not just for a tool path, an alarm is triggered for X-axis alarm. When I moved the motors, I reloaded the tool settings and also upgraded the software to the latest v5.12
This led me to believe that the brushes I bought were not of proper quality and causing high interference and creating Electro Magnetic Interference. I purchased OEM brushes from Makita and replaced them, hoping that would resolve the problem. However, after replacing them, I still get the automatic X-axis alarm.
I am at a loss as to what the issue is now, if anyone has ideas. Is my whole router causing EMI? Why is my alarm now still on the X-axis with the new Masso stepper motor (did loading the tool setting just not take, and I need to load it again)? I am getting frustrated and getting gray hairs.
