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completed installations

Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2010 2:18 pm
by rigidram
I felt it was time to make a post of completed installations so others could show off their hard work and give others incentive to keep plugging away at their retrofits. Here is my near mint condition series 1 Bridgeport CNC fully retrofitted to a cnc11 Ajax control. The machine has all the bells and whistles, NMTB 30 tooling, airspeed and brake, Exair cabinet cooler, Gerardi 6" vise (absolutely amazing vise) Ajax servo PC, encoders, cnc11 w/ dc3io, mpu11, encoder prewire, sem -59 2400 rpm motors, Hitachi x200 inverter, Ikey keyboard, bijur mist, dish in sump w/ single phase flood coolant. programming in intercon canned cycles is awsome! did a simple chopper axle flange in 45min. programming and 5 min per part, used to take me 2hr / part with set up and rotary table. by by rotary table thanks to Ajax.

Re: completed installations

Posted: Wed Dec 15, 2010 11:42 am
by diycncscott
Nice looking machine!

Re: completed installations

Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2013 1:04 pm
by Metalstech
Really AWESOME ! Rigidram
I too have a Bridgeport Series 1 rigidram Interact, 1986 model.
I've got mine running with, Copley 180Vdc Junis digital drives and Heidenhain ROD 426 1150 ppr encoders.
I'll post pictures soon.
John

Re: completed installations

Posted: Thu Oct 17, 2013 8:48 pm
by AMDlloydsp
Here's one recently done (July 2013). We'd been struggling along with a stock R2E4 Bridgeport. It crashed about twice a week. Then we took a lightning hit directly to the incoming pole, and it wiped out the controller. After looking around, Ajax seemed the best buy, and also the quickest installation. So:

We did the conversion in about three days of learning Ajax CNC, cleaning up the old mess, stripping components, and testing. The last photo still doesn't show all the cables and hoses laced up nice and pretty as they are now; but it was the last picture we took.

The entire right-side cabinet was removed, and the back cabinet is only half-full of the All-in-one board and VFD. It takes up less room, by a lot! The machine is WORLDS quieter (no more 'singing' PWM servos!), more accurate than before, and much easier to use! Great job, Ajax!

LS
old front view, before we moved it
old front view, before we moved it
old back cabinet, filled UP
old back cabinet, filled UP
AJAX all-in-one with VFD in only top half of back cab!
AJAX all-in-one with VFD in only top half of back cab!
new view with cables still be dressed
new view with cables still be dressed

Re: completed installations

Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2014 10:07 pm
by Mountainman
AMDlloydsp, what have been your negative experience with PWM servo drivers? Isn't that what the big boys use? +/-10VDC signal? I'm just learning as I go along.

Re: completed installations

Posted: Tue Oct 28, 2014 9:18 pm
by AMDlloydsp
Wow... sorry... I'm so seldom on-line, I missed this.

Actually, no problems, even with the old-style Bridgeport Textron PWM system, except that it was as noisy as heck. It "SANG" all the time, and would nearly drive you out of the shop.

The new servos I put on are AJAX's best, still driven PWM by the CNC11/AIO (but with a different 'hunting' algorithm), and dead-quiet. Now, when I hear a servo sound, I can expect it will be a bad bearing or belt.

LLoyd