hello all I have a few questions about my controller enclosure that I'm building. 1) I bought this spindle and pwm (Spindle Speed Control & Quiet Cut Spindle) my question is that I want to add a potentiometer that I can mount to the outside of the enclosure to control the speed, what kind of potentiometer do I need to do this? when I search potentiometer on eBay I see different ohms ratings etc. how do I tell which one that I need? Also does anyone have any links to how to hook a potentiometer up to this controller. the video on the website only shows how to use the on board potentiometer 2) fans, do I need a fan for each of the power supply or do I just cut an exhaust into the enclosure for the fans that are on the psu. also what type of fan do I need for the controller (panucatt gradus m1 pro) 3) I ordered 24 awg wire ul1007 but it turns out that my steppers have 22 awg ul1007 wire. is the 24 awg ok for this or do I need to match the 22? 4) does anyone know what gauge the wire is on the quiet cut spindle? so that I know what wire to use to wire it up.
I use a 'quiet cut spindle' similar to the one you are using. (1) I find that it is best to use the PWM signal from your controller for speed. That way you can set speed in your CAM program and have repeatable results. But I'm not sure how to pick a potentiometer if you go that direction. (2) I don't use an extra fan for the PSU. I rely on the built-in one. (3) The important thing on wires is to check DC voltage and current specifications. Make sure you are well under that. Usually you can find these specs from your supplier. You don't have to have the same gauge wire everywhere. If you don't want to solder different gauge wires together, use a Wago lever nut which can attach wires of almost any gauge to other wires of almost any gauge with a secure bond. -Jonathon Duerig
1) I'm team PWM as well, by far. But the page says the pot's on board. Maybe it's the little blue trimpot? I assume the video intro has more detail. If you can desolder that and break it out, you can also read the casing or measure it to get its value. Or just make a little knob that extends through the case and interfaces directly with that trimpot. 2) As long as your PSUs aren't running overly warm, cutting a vent in the enclosure should be fine. 3) Wire gauge corresponds to current-carrying capacity. Check an online guide for the DC current capacity of your 24ga wire and make sure it's above the current you're planning on running your steppers at (set by the trimpot on the driver boards). 4) No idea, but dividing the wattage by the lowest voltage it'll take- 12v in this case- should give the highest current level it should generally see in use. The wire gauge from the chart you found above that'll comfortably carry that should be what it is. Odd not to have the gauge printed on the wire. It may be in square millimetres rather than AWG, though.
so my understanding is that since I will have 48v for both the steppers and the spindle then a wire rated to 300 volts should be good. here is the wire that I purchased both the 22 and the 24 show the same specs so it should good to go if I am understanding correctly what about fan for the controller. what type of fan is commonly used for that. just a pc style fan?
Just to add to and stress some of the things already said... The 300V rating is the insulation rating, nothing to do with the gauge of the conductor. Using smaller wire will "work", but using small wire will get more voltage drop with longer runs due to resistance.. Wire is sized (gauge) for the current load, not the voltage, the insulation thickness and type is a concern for the voltage. Ampacity is telling you what continuous current you can run (doesn't matter the voltage) without cooking the insulation due to heat (with a large safety factor), useful info up to a point. If it was mine i would not use less than 18AWG (Shielded!) on the steppers (easy to find 50' on ebay) and 18 or 16 AWG on any power wires. 16 for the spindle, 14 would be even better (less power lost to heating the wire), those spindle controllers are noisy, but finding shielded above 16awg is tricky.. twisting the pair might be enough for noise. Make sure to use the drains on the shielded wires to a star ground setup. 22 and 24 is fine for things like limit switches and the step signals out of controllers to drivers. my 2 cents Cheers
I imagine finding above 16 is hard. finding 16 awg/2c shielded is hard. almost every offer on eBay/amazon etc is for at least 100" and well out of my budget lol. the best I found is this OMNICABLE 16 AWG SHIELDED STRANDED WIRE CABLE -2 CON. - 5 FT LENGTH SHIPS FREE | eBay on ebay. does this wire look sufficient for the spindle?
Yep that's the stuff. where are you located? you can get it at homedepot if you are in the US by the foot.. But that ebay seller is a good price. Another option is to use more of the 18-4 and use 2 for negative and 2 for positive.. lots of high end speaker wires made like that.
ill have to check out homedepot I looked online but they were high didn't consider that if I went in I can get it by the foot. Didn't think I about pairing the 4c either thats a good idea but ill stick with two just makes my ocd demon happy lol. I picked up some 18 awg/4c from amazon it has 4 wires and a little bit of a unwrapped wire. I am assuming that this is a ground. So I was thinking that instead of a 4 pin aviation plug should I get a 5 pin to ground out the ground wire from this cord.
The bare wire is the shield drain, some connectors allow for that connection on the body of the plug such as though a clamp or a screw terminal. Or you can extend the drain and connect it to the chassis of your cabinet, which should be grounded.
I don't see anything like that on the aviation connectors that I am looking at on eBay. when you say chasis are you talking about the controller enclosure or the machine itself, if the machine how do I ground that?
the Chassis = Enclosure.. the clamp for the wire strain relief with the two phillips screws, clamp the drain wire, then the drain is conducted through the metal of the connector and into the enclosure which you can tie all your earth grounds. Or avoid connector!
thanks did not know that you could clamp it there. What I still don't understand is what to do with the other end of the wire. so I have 40mm coming off the stepper, I will join the 4 wires to the cable but then I still have the shield drain left on that end on the other end of the 12foot cable I can clamp the end of the shield drain to the aviation connector but what do I do with the drain on the other end of the cord?
You typically only connect one end of a drain, so nothing on the motor end... I did extend mine and terminated at a motor bolt, but not really required.
I think I will do the same, just seems cleaner then leaving it there. if I do that do I have to ground the machine or is the bolt itself a ground? sorry for my ignorance never messed with electronics like this before.
that makes sense, which bring me to my last question, how do I ground out the chasis? Also what are some good affordable options for the enclosure its self. I looked at aluminum enclosures but the largest that I can find in my price range is 12x7x4 but my two psu's are 8.5x4.5x2 so that will barely hold the two of them. I was thinking to make it out of plywood but that doesn't sound safe (although I have seen lots of them made out of wood)? what are most people using?
Lots of people use old pc cases, just use the ground from the psu and connect to the chassis.. or if the psu chassis is already connected to ground and the chassis is bolted well to the case then it’s all set, verify with a meter
This is mine Plastic enclosure with a metal mounting plate that everything screwed to it. Still got to ground the mounting plate and chassis of the Sphinx But it’s a nice fit and works well.
Got it from an electrical wholesaler (farnell / cpc) It’s deep enough to fit the power supplies on their side so you could put them side by side on their sides. I’ll take some measurements of it tomorrow if you like.
That would be great thanks! My concern with stacking them placing side by side like you said is that it would block the fan output for one if them. The fan is on the top
Bow before the solder king fore I let knowledge be known. Much of what your asking is hard to answere without knowing what it is your using. Stepper wise nema 17 will be fine running on 24 awg. although you may want to look into shielded cable. of a lower guage for optimal results and expanability. You need to look at what amperage your motors required and buy wire suitable for that rating. GORE ® High Flex Cable Design Tool above is a link for the most simplistic chart i could find for you. Fans are great but if you dont need them dont use the. Your going to fight dust . if your going to use a fan use a filter as well. Im not saying air flow isnt important. but it is important on how you do it. I would have an exhaust fant with a passive intake all filtered. Spindle is 48v 400w so ohms law indicates that this spindle will use close to 9 Amps so you need to use 16 awg wire for the spindle. Familiarize yourself with ohms law electricity is no joke and you can burn down your house or kill yourself. Ohm's Law
