Apologies if I have got the wrong section for this question,  I wasn't sure where to ask.

I was wondering if it was at all possible to get a very old (1986) Matchmaker 600 cnc mill working with mach 3?
Would I need to update the drivers, and if so what do I need to look for?

Thanks

Rusty

Suggest you post some basic info about  the mill electronics ie; type of motors, any external controller, break-out boards,
etc.

RICH

Assuming servos rather than steppers then it will almost certainly have servo amps/drives that require an analogue command, ie +/- 10v.
There are several external  controllers that can do that, they are
CSMIO/IP-A
DSPMC
Galil
Kflop with Kanalog

I have only used one of the above, that being the CSMIO/IP-A and I am extremely happy with it, it is simply the best controller I have used with Mach.
Here is a video of the first job I did after the conversion.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JS9mh_iMing

Hood

Hi All,

This is what I know at the moment

The stepper motors are Superior electric steppers, DC, 2.1v 9.2A with 200 steps per rev. The drives are Digiplan cd40's. Please note that this machine operates with a positional feedback loop

As for the break out boards i'm unsure, the current controller is a micon 850 with an rs232 interface and 4th axis capability, I assume the boards were created by the same company.

Hope this helps

Cheers

It looks like the drives accept Step/Dir signals so should be a relatively easy to integrate Mach as far as that is concerned. However feedback loop is not an option with Mach and the parallel port, possibly Galil and Kflop can.
Having said that, closed loop and steppers are basically a waste of time in my opinion, others may disagree
One other thing you may find is the I/O on your machine is 24v, so if wanting to use the parallel port then you will have to convert it to 5v.
Other option is the CSMIO/IP-M controller, its meant for basic machines and has 24v I/O

Hood

Thanks Hoop

Could I simply remove the positional feedback loop to make it work with Mach3, or is it a functional part of the machine operation (by the way, Im pretty new to all this)

Would the CSMIO option also handle a 4th Axis if I introduced this?

Many thanks

Yes, no need to connect the feedback if not required.
Your drives look like they are differential Step/Dir signals, that means for every positive pulse there is a negative one, it is much more resistant to noise and it is the best. The CSMIO can output differential Step/Dir signals so that is fine.
The CSMIO/IP-M is 4 axis so you will be fine there. It also has analogue output so you can control a spindle if you have a VFD on it.
Hood