Tom,
I am confused. :) You say "VHB tape is used, just fasten at the ends as per plans.". Is that VHB tape is just used at the ends or use screws. The plans show screws. However the plans show screws for X and Y, but according to Gerald that was just put there for those that did not want to trust the tape.

For the part you are confused about. I am referring to the welding of 10-40-434(Motor Plate Lug) to the spider. What I am concerned about is getting it in line with the slide. The stepper attaches to this plate and in turn drives the rack. If the plate is not oriented properly, then the stepper is out of line and in turn the drive gear is out of line with the rack.

DB,
The z is fastened by screws counter sunk in plate and tapped holes in the rack.
Alignment is critical, but the limited flex in the z-motor plate allows for some adjustment to keep it in plane.

Thanks Sean, that is what I needed to confirm. Screws will be used for the rack on the z-axis.

How did you deal with aligning the stepper motor plate for welding?

Sorry DB, I couldn't answer, I was on my way to Boy Scouts.

Stepper motor plate rests in the little laser cut tab for positioning.
Then - I used 90 degree magnets to hold in place while I tack welded it up.
This does NOT require a bunch of weld, if you do, you risk the tab rolling over and not being in plane.

Z-Axis mounted
 

Got the z-axis mounted up today. Just loosely mounted at this point.
Prepped the x-racks for welding on about 6 more inches of length.
Also drilled and tapped the pinion gears for set screws.

Also got some insulating shoulder washers on order for mounting the control panel to the frame. I want to be sure the only ground path is through the ground cable and not through the frame.

In the same picture to the right is a crane I built for moving my 12 foot long pieces of sheet metal around when I am working on the plane. You can see a video of that at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1NmzrdELsc

Yesterday, the control panel was mounted to the end of the machine. Also worked on mounting the cable chains.

We had another big blast of cold from the north today. I do not think the little heater in my shop will make a dent in keeping the building warm enough for me. I do not expect to really make much progress today.

Nice use of everyday available equipment in making your material handler. Please remember with any lifting equipment that it should be designed with a 7:1 safety factor. Some only use a 3:1. I used to inspect hoist and cranes and had to inspect after accidents that sometimes caused very bad things to operators and bystanders. So please make sure all your i's and t's are accounted for. Most things can be prevented but the most important things you cannot always get back.

Nice video and ingenuity and maybe spring will come soon so you can continue with your build process.

Thanks Pete.

By my calculations, with the current counterweight, I could lift up to 500 pounds vertically before tipover. Of course the bigger moment arm is horizontal, which I estimated around 50 pounds applied at the very top could cause tipover.
At most the static loads I am dealing with are around 100 pounds vertical. The sheets are not real heavy, just really big. Dynamically, I am moving real slow anyway. My biggest concern when using the crane is not busting out one of my fluorescent lights when initially lifting sheets out.

Nothing is worse than fluorescent lights breaking, they are a mess to clean up.

Not to mention breathing the dust from them...

Looking good.
Keep up the good work.

After drilling a few more holes, I finally was able to install the electronics into the control panel today. The trays for the cable chain were welded, painted and installed. I also installed some cable duct to hold cable running from the control panel to the chain and similarly for the gantry.

I also purchased a panel for holding the VFD. That was painted, but I will wait until next weekend to mount it. I am still trying to decide on how best to safety the spindle while doing drill bit changes. While the chances of the spindle starting up are small, the consequences of a spin up while changing bits is not.

While I am deciding on that issue, I am now in a position I can start pulling cable and hooking up steppers. I may not even wait until next weekend to do that. I have been waiting a while to see the beast move on its own power.

See this post about vfd spindle safety option

I am using the Huanyuag VFD. After looking through the docs, there is a way to configure some of the inputs for emergency stop and reset. I would still much prefer a mechanical break in the connector as opposed to a soft break.
What kind of button are you using for the VFD stop?

Using a safety circuit as it is designed by the manufacturer like how the Hitachi VFD is safe. The process they even recommend is a redundant safety protocol by using a safety relay the requires the input to be reset before it will activate. No different than light curtains or light barriers used to protect people from being smashed by machines. By use of a maintained switch, you have to reset the circuit for it to activate.

First thing is you do not what to break the load lines at all unless it is set up with a MOL (motor overload) function. The bus usually required the load to be connected even if the VFD is a rest. If it has a MOL then you can break the lines and trigger it at the same time. You could also break the incoming power (not recommended by most manufacturers) but only if the vfd is not running. Just leave enough time between power up and tool changes for the VFD to come back on. Estop by killing all power even while running is considered the exception because it is the safety of the operator that is the most important, not the machine.

All this being said. Mach would really have to malfunction for it to run up in the middle of tool change. However if there is more than just you there, it is a good idea to plan on someone else hitting the start button or freak accidents like a can falling over and depressing the start button.

I am all for extra safety but I leave the choice up to you.

DB so far this what I've come up with for the Huanyuag VFD, set VFD code pd046 to 13 (emergency), connect (i think) rst to whatever output on bob (I'm trying to figure out too other things at this time but I think this a starting point) Maybe this will get you thinking in that direction. As usual the chinese manuals leave a lot to be desired. Good luck

Just checked my hard copy manual and what I have matches yours for the stop information. 13 is stop and 14 is reset. I was looking at a pdf earlier that apparently is not current.

I think this corresponds to what Pete linked to for the Hitachi in his previous post.

Makes you wonder if they write the manuals off the top of their heads. Now that's got me a little bothered. Although Pete is absolutely right, good advise for sure.

Starting to wire things up
 

Got the VFD mounted today. Attached is a pic of the current state.
Still procrastinating on welding the racks and attaching them. I will probably wait until the very last on those. I will continue pulling cable, start testing steppers, hooking up proxy sensors etc.

Joypad versus pendant
 

I am curious as to what peoples thoughts are regarding a joypad versus a pendant for controlling the Mechmate. CNC pendants seem to be more traditional, but it seems a joypad would be more convenient to use.

Alot seem to use wireless Xbox controllers, there are drivers available on the Mach site. I know I will be using one when the time comes.

I rely on a wired joypad. Wired.. because an emergency stop needs to be wired imo... and wireless can act up, and if it does can ruin your job/machine/body...
Great program to use is joytokey, you can hook up any key of your keyboard.

The visual feedback on a pendant is nice though. Then again you can buy a lot of joysticks for a pendant like that.

Pete,
I did not realize that. At least the cheap ones on ebay, did not seem to show a display.

The wiring continues
 

Continued pulling cable this weekend. The X1,X2 and Y steppers are wired and cables pulled to the cabinet. Also The X1,Y1 estops and proximity switches are wired in. I need to pull and attach cables for the X2 proxy and the Z-stepper. After those are pulled I can start wiring things up in the control panel. I hope I do not need to pull anymore cable. Things are getting a little cramped in the e-chain.

I also had to make some brackets to hold the connectors for the steppers. The bracket can be seen attached near the stepper below. In the center of the picture is a jig I threw together to hold the plug side of the connector so I can solder it. It is an extra cable gland that fortunately fits and a wooden dowel on the other end holds a neodymium magnet.

I also ordered a cnc pendant off of ebay. After watching a few youtube videos of those in use, I decided that a pendant would give me more control than a joypad.

You are close!!
Looking great!!

Yeah, Looking real good!:D

Cable trying to pull out
 

I have continued with wiring today. I worked on getting the proxy switches and switches terminated at the terminal blocks.

I have noticed that one of the stepper motor cables is trying to pull itself out. As I move the gantry back and forth, the X1 stepper cable(the one of the e-chain side) starts working itself out. The other cables seem to be stable. X1 was the first cable I ran, so it sits at the bottom of the cable run.

Has anyone else run into this problem? Should I try using something like talcum powder to lubricate the cables inside the chain so they slip past each other a little better?

Cable tie the cable to the cable chain

Is tying the cable to the cable chain a standard procedure?

It solved my problem :)

On the industrial machines I've used, the cables are tied where they enter and exit the chain, not within the chain itself. Typically the end pieces of the chain have provisions for tying the cable to them.

I normally tie them on one end only

First Stepper Motion
 

Did more wiring today. Ran the wiring for the 120V E-stop circuit. I am waiting on hooking it in until I get some DIN rail mountable fuseholders.

I could not wait any longer though and decided to see a stepper move for the first time. Video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7Q_hzK4hm4

The only thing that caused me problems was getting the step pin and the direction pin reversed in the mach3 configuration. I really need to get those X-Rails welded!

Just couldn't wait could ya?:)

Couldn't wait on the remaining three steppers either. :) Hooked those up last night. Got to see the Z-axis move up and down for the first time. I also hooked up the pendant. That is going to be nice to have. Might have a go at attaching the Y-rack tonight so I can see Y move.

Pretty cool feeling, huh?
Bites of the elephant....congrats!!

Assemble the quartet!

Getting there!

That's funny, Ken...:)