As some may have seen from my other thread, I have been designing an enclosure and just got my X50 WW. My spindle and VFD have been sitting here collecting dust while I try to locate PROPER shielded 16/3 and 16/4 cable…to wire the VFD to the spindle, get power to the VFD, and to create some shielded circuits inside my enclosure.
Amazon results turn up aluminum wire that is copper plated, won’t take solder, and isn’t very flexible. And they all have PAGES of terrible reviews to match. Most everything else I find on Google seems to come in $200 50’ rolls.
Fellas, tell me there’s a way to do this correctly without spending another $400 on two rolls of cable…
For those curious, the spindle qnd VFD were bought in a combo off Amazon. Huanyang 1.5KW 80mm spindle, matching VFD, fish tank pump (), and hoses.
Checkout corvetteguy50 on youtube. He has a ebay styore where he sells the wire. His videos go pretty indepth, albeit slight long and redundant at points, still extremely informative and helpful none the less. He also replies to emails and questions in the comment section almost immediately. I purchased a 16/4 shielded cable from him for $80.
I emailed them 2 or 3 days ago, no reply and no contact number to be found. I have all the stuff sitting here to build that exact setup but the cable anyway. Ordering 20’ of shielded VFD cable from McMaster today so I can just get on with things. Thanks fellas.
Not to take away from Vince’s sale, just know if you do buy Vinces cable from that ebay store, you have to solder the connector on, and its very important to get that right. Mistakes here can be very dangerous for you and your equipment. Vince is very helpful and generally responds to emails same day, he helped me through my process and setup, and I upped my soldering game, but just be prepared to take on that challenge. He also sells good solder and flux to use. Daniel over at PWNCNC seems to be selling everything already prefabbed for you, which is really great if you just want to throw it together. I personally like to build it myself, that way I have a intimate knowledge of everything incase anything goes wrong.
Appreciate the heads up. But soldering is my game, and custom wiring is a service I offer through my business. Everything from circuit board work up to large gauge high current automotive stuff. None of my current suppliers sell VFD cable though.
I actually ordered and received the EBAY kit a few days ago. And he upgraded me to a higher quality and much more flexible shielded cable free of charge. As stated earlier in the thread, I already have all the other stuff in the kit. But its hard to turn down a kit this complete when he sells it for less than the price of cable alone. And his customer service is outstanding (). I mean, he emailed me and gave me the option of the new cable or the previous cable I had actually ordered. Not a lot of business owners left that are decent enough to extend the offer of an upgraded product until the old stuff was gone.
The other place though, STILL hasn’t even emailed me back.
Hope to be finally setting up my machine this coming week. Can’t wait to hear that spindle spin up for the first time.
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Aiph5u
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So here’s an idea I wish I thought of before I soldered everything together was adding a 2nd aviator connector at the VFD side, for quick disconnections as well as a female plug/switch combo for easy power cord disconnections. I plan to add this in the future. Probably with a ground block on the side to tie in all my grounds. This way, to remove the VFD it’s quick and easy. Hell might even be a good idea to throw a wireless on off switch, something you’d use for dust collection.
Just came across this and I was looking at Chainflex as well. Which series are you using? CF31 they say is for VFD but as far as I can tell it has a stiffer wire in it (less flex) but otherwise seems to be the same as CF6. I’ve also seen CF881 recommended here. None of these are double shielded, they seem to be braided only. I’m seeing recommendations (e.g Corvetteguy) and manufactures that you need a mylar film as well for different frequency of EMI. I’ve also seen recommendations that there be a ground wire between each of the power conductors, not just one wire.
I’m also in Canada and igus seems to be the only good option I’ve found that doesn’t involve cross border shipping.
During my Masso ATC build, I probably read all the articles, and watched all the videos that you did
Much of the best practices I felt were geared to more industrial installations, but I did try to follow them with an eye to their practicality, and sometimes cost.
I chose to forego the route of the 3 symmetrical ground wire approach to mitigating common-mode currents, but did look for a cable with double (braid/foil) shielding. That is why I chose the Lapp Olflex cable - Igus does not to my knowledge have a similar series. I also chose one that had a shielded pair of signal wires inside - which had a particular use for my ATC application - and 14 AWG for futureproofing. It is big and heavy, but so is the Igus energy chain I bought for all the hoses (water/air) and cabling my system needs, so it works with my design.
I ordered from Digikey Canada, not inexpensive, but an investment in a properly set up system. All my other Igus communication/data cables are shielded.
Thank you for the info and leads. I’m happier with this OFlex option.
I think I’ll buy signal cable from them too just because I avoid extra shipping costs. I just need to figure out what to buy. It’s incredible how many choices there are when you are just buying wire. I’m more accustomed to household wiring and common wires like ethernet and speaker, etc. This EMI issue with the VFD is new to me and man does it complicate things. My CNC is in my basement and somewhat away from other stuff except my main ethernet switch is on the other side of the stud wall. I don’t want the CNC having problems and I don’t want it causing problems.
Digikey Canada ships from the US. Do they cover all border crossing fees or will I get hit with customs upon receipt?
I also have my CNC in the basement. It, and my VFD enclosure, share the same wall as my network cabinet. I have not experienced any issues that I am aware of. I have everything shielded and in metal enclosures so I am sure that helps.
As far as I know Digikey, and some other major distributors, take care of the import fees from US to Canada. They do not charge too much either for shipping, and are fast as well.
Tom
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Hey Atroz,
What to select is one for power and that is shielded. Often this is to find in a category “for motor”. Also choosing a cable for power chains means you will have no sorrows if you install it on moving parts (as in a CNC).
I think Tom used one with an additional signal wire because Tom’s spindle has a temperature sensor.
I use LAPP ÖLFLEX® CLASSIC FD 810 CY, in the strength 4 x 2.5 mm² (LAPP #0026271) for the 2.2 kW spindle or 4 x 1.5 mm² (LAPP #0026251) for a 1.5 kW spindle (=shielded 3+PE).
Therefore the reference to “16/3” in the topic’s title is dangerous: NEVER connect a spindle without a PE wire! Shield cannot replace a PE wire!
Note that if you bought a cheap chinese kit, usually it comes with a so-called “aviation connector” and it is expected that you make the spindle cable yourself. I strongly advise against trying this. These connectors are not made for the use in power applications, and the problem with them is that their strain relief clamp usually will not allow cables of more than 7.8 mm wire diameter, which limits these “aviation connectors” to cables that are underdimensioned for the spindle’s current. The LAPP Ölflex spindle cable shown above (LAPP #0026251 for 1.5 kW spindle) is 9.9 mm in diameter and the LAPP #0026271 for 2.2 kW spindle is 11.8 mm in diameter (nearly half an inch), so no chance to get such a cable into such an “aviation connector”.
Therefore for these cheap chinese spindle kits, I strongly recommend NOT to try to make your spindle cable yourself, especially because on top of it all, the connector is not made for crimping the wires onto it, but it is a connector to be soldered. Since the connector and the cable both have a high mass, a soldering gun for electronics will not be enough, you will at least need a 80 W soldering gun with temperature sensor. Therefore what I recommend instead is to buy Daniel Moran’s @PwnCNC ready-to-use spindle cable here.
E.g. the spindle connector for my spindle has contacts that get crimped, which is the usual way wires are connected to contacts in the industry. The connector is the
Generally,
Note that the threads quoted above contain much information. You are not the first forum user to ask “Which spindle cable should I use?”, it’s a frequently asked question and many answers already dealt with that topic in the past.
IMPORTANT NOTE: I would strongly advise against making your own spindle cable without reading this document:
Ah I forgot, note that if you want to use a 110 V spindle, you got to know that there will flow double the current (in A) than as with 220 V, for the same power! Double the current means double the cross-section area of the wire. Therefore everyone tries to avoid running high power applications on girly power.
Note that many chinese spindle suppliers label their spindle as 2.2 kW spindles while in real it’s just a 1.5 kW spindle, as explained here!
For the hobbyist like me, it is important to note that this cable uses the H17 connector, which is what you need if you have purchased either the 1.5 or 2.2kw HuanYang spindle and VFD. Chris at PwnCNC is incredibly helpful. He responded almost immediately to several inquiries from me and sent me a few replacement magnets for free for my Dust Boot v10 that came with one missing. If you decide to purchase anything from PwnCNC, please use the discount code JEFFGALIN to get 5% off. I very seldom write reviews for purchases much less market for the seller, but I was so impressed with Chris and his one-person business that I am making a point to drive business his way.
This cable is not the super flex custom-built one that Vince (Corvettguy50) sells, but it is less than half the price of Vince’s. I have replaced the standard drag chain on my Elite Journeyman with Befenybay R28 Internal Size 18X50mm 1Meter Length Black Plastic Flexible Drag Chain Cable Wire Carrier Inside Open Type for 3D Printer and CNC Machines (18mmX50mm-Inside Open) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B085T7CLMG?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1. I bought 3 meters and used all except about 7 inches of it. This way, I can house all wires, including the spindle, and cooling hoses without using hose clips on the less sturdy original drag chain. I have not yet received the spindle cable but expect it to work perfectly with my setup. I will update if there is a problem when it arrives.
I do not have a 3D printer, so I crafted all the attachment parts for the larger drag chain out of 1.5’ angle and a bit of flat aluminum from Lowes. Had those lying around from other projects. I also built 4’ hose clams from a piece of 4’ PVC I had lying around. I have attached pics for anyone interested. I used aluminum pop rivets to connect the two braces that have two pieces of angle aluminum joined. I used the drag chain base that came with the Journeyman. It is just bumped out to accommodate the wider chain.
Hope this is useful to others like me who don’t want to build their own cables.
cheers,
jrg
), and hoses.
Therefore the reference to “16/3” in the topic’s title is dangerous: NEVER connect a spindle without a 
IMPORTANT NOTE: I would strongly advise against making your own spindle cable without reading this document:
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