I won’t have my spindle in hand until the spring, but I am trying to be all read up and ready when it arrives.
I see that the VFD on the Redline has a removable DRO unit and manual control. My question is, what is the scenario where I would want manual control vs speeds in the program??
It might seem a little pointless, but there will probably be a situation that you’ll find it handy eventually.
I’ve used it to manually modulate the rpm when side milling maple. 1/2" bit, 2" deep…couldn’t get away from the chatter. So I varied the rpm up and down slightly as it was cutting, to prevent the “chatter wave” from developing. As soon as I hear the screech about to begin, I dial it down a couple hundred rpm (gently) then back up again and so on. Basically just keeping the frequency “confused” so it can’t settle in.
By the way, my issue was poor quality tooling and being in a big hurry. I don’t recommend doing this but it got me out of a jam and shows that you never know how or when that little dial will be extra helpful.
Sounds similar to what I was thinking about, gradually inching up or down the speed to find the “sweet spot” on a particular material.
Keep in mind that when the vfd is in manual mode, the controller can’t affect the spindle. So if you need more over-ride than the on-screen control, you’ll have to stop and switch it.
OK John, thats the kind of thing I needed to know. But I don’t follow. So does the VFD manual mode not have full speed range control of the spindle? I get that the controller is not involved, hence the manual part, but I got the impression the manual adjustment knob in the DRO was kind of the equivalent of a router speed controller.
You’re correct, I just wanted to point out that it’s one or the other. Also if you’re absent minded like I am, remember this…
I turned on the spindle in manual mode to warm it up one day, had lunch, returned to shop and began running a program. The spindle was already turning where I needed it so I just hit start. I began working on other things and almost 2 hours later I heard the spindle running. It shouldn’t be running, that was a 20 minute run time. I had forgotten that I had it in manual mode so it kept going when the program was done.
Oh, I could definitely see my dumb a** doing that.
As to warm up I was planning on using the Gcode in the Redline manual to have a program I run before starting work. That way it is both accurate and idiot resistant
The Masso offers a significant advantage by allowing on-the-fly adjustments. In my setup, I use a PwnCNC spindle with the VFD mounted on a shelf below the table, which makes it inconvenient to make manual adjustments. I handle spindle speed and IPM the same way—directly through the Masso.
I recently encountered chatter marks on the outside of a box I was cutting. Initially, I assumed the issue was the bit, so I replaced it, but the marks persisted. I then tried a final pass at 0.02 inches, yet the problem remained. At first, I thought the issue might be the material—a cherry tabletop made from old wood—but even that didn’t explain it. Finally, I switched to climb milling, and that completely eliminated the marks.
It goes to show that every situation is unique, and sometimes it takes experimenting with multiple variables to find the solution. Apologies for veering off topic, but I thought this might be helpful!
Mick,
That’s why I was wondering where the utility in the separate DRO unit on the Redline comes in, since the Masso has on-screen on-the-fly overrides.
I’ve been wondering because I am planning the table and enclosure and not sure if I want to account for mounting that DRO box somewhere more accessible than on the side of the VFD box, which I plan on mounting under table. I see that it can be piggybacked on the Masso screen, but that starts to look kludgy to me.
So I’m trying to figure out if I even need to be concerned with regular access to it at all.
I’m starting to get the impression it is sort of a vestigial feature for Elite machines and only really necessary for the BB controller. Amirite?
I want to have speed override to 150% like what masso has in the readme as a change for over 1 year in firmware release V5.1 am I the only one that wants this?
The only issue I have where it’s mounted is I’m not able to hear the spindle wind up. Between me being 63, ear protection and dust collection I have to bend down to see it’s spooling up. I’m not complaining. Sometimes I hear it but, now it’s just a habit. You can always move it later.
Definitely! Also cutter comp! But I think we’ll be long gone by the time 5.1 gets out of beta.