With the basic pneumatics tested and working, I am able to load tool holders, manually for now, and therefore am able to start calibrating and testing precision and accuracy.
I checked for a coplanar set-up using my fishing line method and all looked good.
I then used my cardboard and pin method to check the accuracy of the movements, and so far it looks like the mm in the MDI match the actual mm distance moved (tested X and Y axes for now).
I used my cardboard and pin method for marking points, along with the 3:4:5 ration rule for determining squareness, and happily all looks to be accurate (I did it over 30, 40, and 50 cm distances between pin marks, but unfortunately only have a ‘non-precision’ ruler to test with).
The last tests were to see the repeatability of homing (not crucial for most operations) to get an idea of the general ‘health’ of my new mechanics and table. I was pleased to have the pin return to match the starting hole in the cardboard each of the 5 times I tested it.
Much more to complete, but moving on now with a bit more confidence with respect to axis movements.
I realize that this thread is somewhat antiquated but I must know: after over a year with the Masso G3 controlling your Onefinity, what’s your final thoughts on it?
I see that you’ve posted quite an extensive build log to the point at which you successfully gained control of the machine. As I’m also considering going for this controller upgrade, I’m curious as to how it’s worked out for you.
I will say from the start that I have never used or owned a CNC before my 1F, so have no experienced machinist perspective on the functionality of Masso. I am also just completing my upgrade to an ATC spindle, so have also not used my Woodworker of Masso together very much yet.
With that said, I am very much pleased with both the controller and the company.
The controller is well documented and has been very easy for me to set up. The list of current G and M codes currently supported is, for my use case, extensive. There are many hardware options and upgrades available as well.
The company is active with support on their forum. They are responsive to their community of users, often asking for and taking feedback into account with respect to adding or improving features. In the short time I have been with them, there have been several improvements to the software, and they have added new products as well. Currently I believe improvements and additions to the tool change logic are in the works. Experienced users share shortcomings, such as a feed rate override that is only from 20-100% vs over 100%, but again they are listening to the use cases and I am sure have it in mind for future updates. I like that they are thoughtful in how they choose to use the finite processing resources available to the controller, so that any additions are truly of benefit to day to day CNC work and will benefit the greatest number of users.
I should be back up and running in a week or so, and I will definitely continue to provide updates, especially with respect to actual milling.
Thank you for the update. It’s awesome that you’re still as enthusiastic about the controller as you were a year ago and you’ve effectively sold me on it.
That’s not to say that I don’t appreciate Onefinity’s add-on controller but, the more I browse these forums, the more I’m coming to understand that the stock controller is pretty much stunting the capabilities of the machine. This Masso G3 controller is next on the list of upgrades, as soon as I upgrade the Z-stepper… because the stock stepper now loses its grip in the slightest breeze due to the approximately 3x weight gain of the 2.2kw spindle upgrade.
I’m definitely looking forward to your subsequent posts on this.
