Oh Blimey I bought a CNC Lathe !!!!

[Pete W.]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ............................

Steve, why do your eyeballs look like big yellow spirals?

And why are they going round and round????????????????????????????????

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz ....................... 

[vtsteam]

 

[awemawson]

Well this project has truly gone full circle and come to a happy ending 

By one of those amazing co-incidences it has been bought by the fellow who sold me the Chipturn CNC Lathe that was the predecessor CNC lathe project to this one 

It's being collected by a professional equipment mover on Thursday next (22nd) and I'll post some pictures of the operation - mean while I need to clear a bit of space for their wagon to move in the farm yard.

[John Stevenson]

So what's next then ?

[awemawson]

So what's next then ?

Well short term it will be that 6 foot flail mower that needs loads of TLC, so in terms of the freed up space, hi-tech will be replaced by low-tec but after then I'm not entirely sure. I quite fancy making a multi-axis CNC automatic tool grinder if ever I can get my head around LinuxCNC. It probably needs at least 5 axis control if not 6 

[Joules]

You mean one of these with a Dremel on the end.   It will be LinuxCNC controlled, eventually. (maybe not my lifetime)  And other than doing candy floss and making cocktails, tool and cutter grinding was the one useful thing I could come up with.

[mattinker]

Fun while it lasted! An interesting voyage and now, the end of an era! I'd love to see you "do" a CNC tool grinder. I feel confident that you'll get your head round EMC2, another interesting voyage for us to follow!!

All the best, Matthew.

[awemawson]

Well today was the day for the machine to go to it's new owner. Big lorry with Hi-Ab ordered for 11 am so Phil (new owner) turned up a bit earlier to start getting it prepared.

Firstly the Swarf Conveyor, which incorporates the coolant tank, needs pumping out. This holds 205 litres of soluble coolant, and the only practical way to pump it out is to use the 'wash down' pump I'd installed. Towards the end we had to tilt the tank to keep the pump submerged - got most out then dumped sawdust pellets in to soak up the rest so it doesn't swill about on the lorry.

[awemawson]

Then the Hydraulic Power Pack could be disconnected and wheeled out side leaving room to start jacking the machine onto skates an roll it out.

[awemawson]

So that wasn't too bad - a few moments when I did wonder if thing could go badly wrong, when one of the professional movers had his upper torso under the machine 

[awemawson]

Then they had to pack it all onto the flat deck of the lorry - there was no spare space !

[awemawson]

So this leaves me with a few acres of space - all ready for the next project 

In fact the next thing into the 'project space' will be that 6 foot heavy duty grass flail that needs a rebuild.

Slight misgivings parting with the Traub - but it has been an interesting thing to get my teeth into, and it's very satisfying to think it will now go on to have a further productive life, whereas it was destined for the scrap yard before it fell into my clutches.

[Spurry]

Good ending to an excellent tale. Well done Andrew on your final result, accompanied by the very clear pix, (at an appropriate resolution.  - Sorry couldn't resist. )
Pete

[NormanV]

A question that has bothered me from the start. How was it that so much was wrong with it? I can't understand how it could have been used with all of the faults that you had to rectify. Was it a cascade effect that was initiated by one fault?

[awemawson]

Yes Norman - it was a cascade - entirely placed at the door of the previous owner who shouldn't be let loose with anything more complex than a dummy 

A servo amplifier had failed, he delved in not knowing what he was doing - tried (as far a I can tell) to link out the fault bit on the interface that prevented the machine starting up, and managed to put power (probably 24v) onto one line on the back board that was common to many cards in the controller.

When i got it, the controller was out of the machine, and MANY wires were adrift - also there was evidence of several 'repair attempts' where wiring had been replaced but not done correctly. Result - machine kaput and makers agents wanting an arm and a leg to sort the mess. So it sat unused for quite a long time that resulted in intermittent relay contacts. Eventually I realised that one address line on the controller had been zapped, and 'buffer/driver' chips for that bit on several cards were blown. This was lucky as spares of those cards eluded me. (some popped up on ebay a few months back, but I don't need them now  )

Having got it running I've performed extensive burn in / soak tests so hopefully the new owner won't have any of these issues, and he has more sense than to dable dangerously.

[Pete W.]

Hi there, Andrew,

Congratulations on reversing entropy!  I've enjoyed watching the Traub Saga and I look forward to your next project.

   Why did I think of you when I read this news item?
 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3803261/That-s-one-way-work-Crafty-tradesman-turn-excavator-water-skiing-ride.html

A diversion for your holiday guests perhaps?

                   

[bpuskas]

We have TRAUB TND 300 CNC lathe (2 axis) with System TX8 controller. Computer type: FCA330HLX-VThe following problem has occurred:At start-up in the morning, the Part 2 system button on the control panel illuminated. So far, No. 1 has always been lit. For some reason, we can’t get out of No. 2. The keyboard works, but Even if I press the button, it doesn't turn it off.
Can a parameter loss be the cause? How do I turn off System 2?Is there a way to fix this error?
Error code H012 - 2 Teilsysteme angewahlt
Thank you in advance for your response

[awemawson]

I'm afraid that I sold my Traub several years ago and all the documentation went with it.

I always found the Traub help Desk very helpful, especially so after I sent them a bottle of Whisky following a particularly knotty problem solving session !

It's so long ago I've no longer got their contact details, but I'm sure Google will find them