re-named to 'Bridgeport EZ Trak Conversion.

[Topaze47]

First sub-panel completed today; an easy one - just an aluminum plate with two closed-loop drives attached. There wasn't any wiring to do since all the connections are made using the connectors on the drive. I did leave room for drives for the Z axis and the rotary table/spin rig.

I did hit a little snag, however. Bridgeport tack-welded some brackets to the back panel of the control cabinet, so now I have to deal with that, since they will prevent me from mounting two of my sub-panels in the most logical positions. I'll probably have to remove everything else, pull the back panel out of the cabinet in order to deal with the brackets. Grrrrr...

[Topaze47]

I was working on removing the obsolete components from the control cabinet when I had a thought...

When I bought my step-pulley mill, I needed 220 VAC for the Variable Frequency Drive because tmy attached garage only had a single 110 circuit. So I installed a sub-panel in the garage and ran it from it's own breaker in the main panel. The point is, I don't have to keep the step-down transformer in the control cabinet. I can run 220 VAC 4-wire (L1, L2, Neutral and Ground) directly to the EZ Trak and have 110 VAC without the transformer! See the diagram at https://photos.app.goo.gl/Sr1ApfqEAUrrohJn8

It there are any electricians out there, and you see anything dangerous or stupid, please let me know...

[tblough]

Exactly what I did on both my mill and lathe. Try to keep the loads on both phases balanced - don't put all of your 110V loads on the same side of the 220V circuit and you should be good. The neutral and ground should be kept separate within your cabinet like you have it. Neutral can be the same size wire as the 240 circuits. Even though it would appear that it could have twice the current as the 240V circuit, the two 120V circuits are "out of phase".

[Topaze47]

Tom,

Thanks for the quick reply; now I get to try to figure out how to get the transformer out without getting a hernia or dropping it on my foot. My guess is that it weighs about 50 lbs. I have a friend coming over this week with a suspicious stepper driver, so I will probably wait until then...

Cheers, John

[Topaze47]

Hurrah! The transformer is out, and I've removed the cabinet back panel and cut off the brackets that Bridgeport had tack-welded in place. Now all I have to do is grind the welds flush and clean up the residue of double-sided tape that they used to attach all of the plastic wire channels. The stuff has stubbornly resisted isopropyl and WD-40 so far...

I'm still working on the best layout for the new electronics, but now that the transformer and fused disconnect switch are gone, there's a lot more room.

[cncjeff1]

The best thing I have found for cleaning old adhesive, grease, ink, really just about anything is spray Brake Cleaner. I have been using it for years. It cleans everything and does not leave any residue. Acetone is also very effective, but problematic with some plastics. In every case, always test on a very small area. In a pinch, carburetor cleaner is also effective, BUT IT DOES LEAVE AN OILY RESIDUE.

[Topaze47]

Thanks for the tip; I think I have some brake cleaner around here somewhere...

However, a more pressing problem has cropped up - my 3 KW portable electric heater died last night. I've pulled the cover and the wire from the thermal switch to the heating element had burned off at the spade connector. It's a 20+ year old unit, but if it could have just lasted another month, I wouldn't have needed it...

[Topaze47]

Fixed! At least for now; although the spade terminal on the heating element was damaged pretty badly. I cleaned it up as best as I could and replaced the charred wires. Pictures @ https://photos.app.goo.gl/Sr1ApfqEAUrrohJn8 for anyone interested...

I've also added a picture of how I hope to arrange the control electronics in the cabinet - everything except the AC wiring - I'm still working on that; comments are welcome.

[suntravel]

Allways good to have a warm shop

You are sure the small steppers will have sufficient power for the Bridgeport?

Uwe

[Topaze47]

I'm not 100 percent sure, but according to the EZ Trak manual, the DC servos are rated @ 16 in-lbs continuous - 30 in-lbs intermittent - and 50 in-lbs for 2.5 seconds. I picked 2 NEMA 34 closed-loop steppers rated at 8 NM (70 in-lbs) and I can upgrade to 12 NM motors if I have to...