7.2 Upgrade arrived need help though.

[drodda]

I am trying to install my upgrade. I got this about a week ago and I read the installations instructions with the upgrade it it listed everything that the instructions mentioned. So I thought I was good to go.

Tonight I unpack and lay everything out and I only received two springs and turnbuckles and I have not gotten any heat sink compound in my package.

Of course I waited till tonight so there is nowhere open to get this stuff here locally. Unless wal-mart carries it.

Is there any substitution for this stuff? I.E white litium grease or something?

Why did they only send two springs? Do I need the third one or just the two on the X carriage?

[gene]

Dave
I dont think theres any difference in the springs . As far as the heat sink , i would stop and wait until tomorrow and get some , You can always do everything else and come back to that part later? if you have an alpha , take the three screws out of the main board to plug in the 3 ribbon cables , there are two rows of pins they go on and the one to the right back is a bear to get to if you dont. good luck on the upgrade , i know i like mine ,

[cnc_works]

Most places that sell computer parts sells thermal compound to go between the heat sink and the CPU. I'm sure it would work fine.

Donn

[pete]

Gene - are you sure the heat sink compound is not in the box - a little tube as I remember - and well hidden. Pete

[drodda]

I have dismanteled the box and every package in the box as I read somewhere that someone found theirs after they waited and went to the store the next day to get it. I would say I did not get any.

[jim_ludi]

Dave,

I just finished my conversion. I used Frank Leinbach's guide and it helped alot: http://www.talkshopbot.com/forum/messages/312/21937.html

Radio Shack has heat sink compound. I got two tubes for about $6. I didn't get any either.

I got three springs with my upgrade but they "looked" the same as the Alpha's. As you've probably noticed, the 7.2 motors are heavier than the 1:1 Alpha's so...

Be careful on the ribbon cable installation! It's really easy to shift the plugs off one row, as others have noted


I had a problem with the unit values too. None of the unit values posted on the forum worked for my drivers! I had to use a lower value to get the motors to travel the correct distance, so be sure to measure the actual travel distance and compare it against what you entered/desired before you start cutting. I'm guessing that there's a setting on the drivers that's causing the difference. I entered 12" but traveled 15", both X and Y. I wonder if I'm losing resolution with these values, so I'll investigate more on Monday.

As Frank noted, you can save a lot of time by using the old cables instead of routing the new ones. I had to pull "all" the cables out of my control box so I could re-route them - almost a day of lost time but it all looks much nicer/neater now


The 7.2 steppers sound much smoother and quiter than the Alpha's, and I'm looking forward to the increased resolution too. I think I'm going to be really happy that I made the change.

[drodda]

Well I am totally completed with the upgrade except maounting the drivers with the new heat sink compound. I will have to wait till the stores open up tomorrow to get some I guess? I ran the new cables also. It was drilled into my head by shopbot back when I bought my machine to never remove that heat shrink on the motor connections. So I just decided to re-run the wires instead. Took a little over an hour for the upgrade so far. I should be up and running by noon tomorrow once I get the heat sink compound.

Thanks for the help.

[harryball]

I've been running my 7.2 upgrade and it's a night and day difference. I know I've been a little quiet on the forums lately but I'm still here. Sorry to hear your heat sink compound is missing. Not sure what's in your area but our local Grainger had various types in stock.

Just remember to check your physical stop positions. The pinions are larger on the upgrade and I had to move mine out about 1/2" to still reach my original limit switches before hitting the stops.

Robert

[drodda]

I still ahd quite a bit of room from the pinions to the hard stops when the limit switch is hit. So I did not have to move mine. I found the Heat sink at Radio Shack also.

When I am in Keyboard mode my limit switches light up however the bot jsut keeps going past without stopping? Is this a new thing or is there a problem on my setup? They seem to work with the home routine but not in Keyboard mode?

[harryball]

It changed at some software revision, the bot continues to move past the soft switches in the newest versions.

RB

[drodda]

Why does it ignore the soft stops? Seems like a strange thing to do? Why have the soft stops at the non-homing end of the table if the machine is just going to ignore them?

[frank]

Hi Dave,

When you hit the target the first time there should be an X on the prox switch input on your position window in the control software. The switches are disabled to allow you to move off of the target. After moving off the target, make sure that you stop and that the X is gone. If the X is there it will not stop at the target.

[drodda]

I have always used the keyboard arrow keys to move my bot to the end of the table till it hits the proximity switch and stops. I then tap the keys till the machine goes past the Proximity switch almost to the hard stop. I then shut off the machine. Next day I pull my Y carriage against the hard stops to square my carriage before I power up the control box. I was caught off gaurd the first couple times after updating the bot and the machine went rather quickly into the hard stops. Maybe I am not understanding this but I have always been able to move off the switch after the machine stops first.

Not a big deal really and I appreciate the note Frank. I was just making sure that this situation was normal on the new software.

[fleinbach]

Dave,

I was setting up a shopbot for a local company several months ago when I ran into the same problem you described above. At least I to the best of my recollection I think it was the same symtom you described. The prox switch was lighting but the carrige continued to move right past it. I called Shopbot and do not recall who gave me the answer nor do I remember where to make the change but they instructed me to make one change and the problem was corrected. Now this was with the 3.5.3 version of the software so I don't know if there was any changes with the new software.

[drodda]

The #4 light is always lit up on the computer also? I don't see the X anywhere that Frank mentioned above. The #3 light does light when the proximity switch red led lights so I know the computer knows it is hitting the mark just not stopping anything. I geuss I will call Shopbot again tomorrow to check on this.

I received my new drivers today and have gotten them installed. The other problems that I had are resolved with the new set of drivers.

Although they never sent me any heat sink compound with the new set of drivers either. Ted owes me two tubes on heat sink now.