VCarve Pro & Mach3 question

[Jodi Sands]

Hi all!! My fiancé just bought a cheap Chinese CNC engraver/carver. I have a 60Wlaser but he wants to expand our business to incorporate a CNC and bought a cheap machine to get the hang of it. So here my dilemma. We bought VCarve Pro & Mach3. I cannot for the life of me figure out how to get something we create in VCarve to open and run in Mach3. I can get the file to open in Mach but it won't run. I click the "load G code" button, select the file I want to run and it all comes up on the left side of the screen but there aren't any numbers associated there, just words. What format do you save from VCarve? I've been using the default .crv fomat. Should it be done as a .dxf?? I personally am clueless with the CNC programs and terminology, the laser is MY baby, the CNC is the fiancé's thing. He has little to no computer knowledge so I'm tearing my hair out trying to figure HIS out so I can try to explain it to him. I use Corel & Engravelab for the laser but I can't find any similarities between those and the VCarve/Mach3.

I'm sorry to sound like an idiot but I'm at a loss and I don't know how to make the 2 programs talk to each other.

Thanks!!!

Jodi

[John McClanahan]

Mach is not ready to run when first installed. You need to set up the ports and pins, any limit switches and the E-stop. You also need to tune the motors. Mach has some good tutorials that will help get you started.

Did your part load into Mach and show up in the window in the upper right of the screen?


John

[Jodi Sands]

I'm pretty sure he set up the ports and pins. I know he had a bunch of stuff he had to go in and enter the numbers. I have no idea what the other part you talked about is? He might, but I have no clue!! LOL

[Jason Beam]

Hi Jodi,

The vcp files aren't for mach3 - what you need is gcode. You've bought a great package of software in vcarve pro. I highly recommend you check out the video tutorials on Vectric's site ... http://www.vectric.com/products/vcp/process.htm

But what you need to do is create the toolpaths, then SAVE the toolpaths using the "Save Toolpath" button in the right panel (it looks like a blue floppy disk). Choose your post-processor (I use the Mach2/3 Arcs (inch) post processor). That will save a txt file that you can bring into mach3 and see the toolpath in the mach3 panel.

[Jodi Sands]

Mach is not ready to run when first installed. You need to set up the ports and pins, any limit switches and the E-stop. You also need to tune the motors. Mach has some good tutorials that will help get you started.

Did your part load into Mach and show up in the window in the upper right of the screen?



John

Are the "Ports& Pins" settings specific to each machine? He is entering all the numbers he got from the manufacturers site and nothing is happening. I'm so sick of his computer and machine that I am seriously ready to run it over with the car. We have spent darn near $1k just getting the computer cleaned and upgraded and had the parallel port installed, software and HOURS of my time. The computer tech that installed to port says it "LPT1" but when I try to change the name of the port in Mach 3 it won't allow the change and defaults to a different number.

[John McClanahan]

The LPT port needs to match in both Windows devise manager and in Mach. The port number isn't important, as long as they match. In Windows devise manager, take the LPT port settings off of automatic and set to manual. That way the port will always be assigned the same settings.

The ports and pins settings get the signals from Mach to the machine, assuming Mach has loaded a G-code file and is ready to send it to the machine.

I know this doesn't help you much, but I went through many of the same struggles when setting up mach the first time. Hang in there!


John

[Scott Shepherd]

V-Carve is just the software used to create the tool paths. It's files are meaningless to Mach 3. Like Jason said, you need to run the code through a "Post processor", which V-Carve has in it. You need to setup V-Carve as to which post processor you want it to use, and then when you create the tool paths and "Save Toolpath", it will generate the g-code that works with your machine. That's the critical step it sounds like you are missing. Once you pick the right post processor, then it should work just fine.

[Mike Heidrick]

Id use the mach loader and create a profile and edit that. Save after all changes made. After changing ports and pins and saving you must restart mach for them to take effect. You should be able to control your machine with jogging and basic gcode typed into midi before you even worry about files you create in vcarve. Work on getting the machine moving and try the sample roadrunner gcode file that comes with mach - cut it in air . I am assuming you have the full licensed version of mach3? Not all add on parallel port cards work with mach. I got mine from cnc4pc - they guaranteed it would work with mach.

[Chuck Saunders]

Jason's post is the answer to your question