Mini Gerbil3 ploblem doing a burn
Hey all, I've finally got my MG3 installed and K40 working sort of. When I try to burn a filled image file with Lightburn 1.2.01, it will do about a quarter of the file and stop. with an error message:
"ok
Starting stream
Layer C02
Job halted
Stream completed in 0:15
ok
ok
ok
ALARM:3
Reset while in motion. Grbl cannot guarantee position. Lost steps are likely. Re-homing is highly recommended.
ok
Grbl 1.1f ['$' for help]
[MSG:'$H'|'$X' to unlock
ok"
Then it will not fire the laser again unless I turn everything off and wait awhile then restart everything. Sometimes it will repeat the same thing and sometimes it will move through the file without firing the laser tube.
If I run the same file in "Line" mode it will burn the whole file but if I try to run it again the laser doesn't fire but it moves through the file.
Help I'm at witts end and I really need to get this working!
George
Hi George,
Sorry for the delay.
This is an unusual problem. I'm not really sure about the part about 'Line' mode - I'll ignore that for now and focus on the rest of the problem description.
From the error description and the intermittent nature it's likely that the reset line is being triggered inadvertently. This could be an interference issue. For example, depending on where you have your controller installed, and whether there are insulated cables nearby or draped over it, there is just enough signal in those cables to falsely trigger the reset wire.
So please send several photos (at different angles) to show where you have your controller installed, the K40 power supply and all nearby wires. I can spot interference issues pretty easily and can advise how to reposition things to avoid it.
A second issue, often in combination with the first, is that you have a major electrical pulse load on your wiring. It could be: a pump, air compressor, garage door, even a washing machine. Such devices, if operating on the same circuit of your house/garage wiring, could be triggering the reset. So some detective work is needed to determine the offending equipment. Apart from not operating them at the same time as the laser, you could move it to another circuit on your switchboard, or install a power filter.
Regards,
Dan