Carbide Motion wanders

Using a Shapeoko 3XL:
In Carbide Create I laid out two 6 inch circles with a 2.5 inch square cutout in the center. One circle was placed in the lower left-hand corner, the other was placed in the upper right. The Tool paths were set for a 0.25 inch straight End Bit to cut the square cutout, then the circle on one piece, then move to the second piece to repeat the cuts. The material was soft wood, 15X15 inch and 0.69 inch in Z. The Simulation looked fine. I exported the G-code and loaded it into Carbide Motion. After setting the zero point in the lower left-hand corner, I began the cuts.
Outcome: First piece cut perfectly, second piece began to cut and then the tool began to wander all over the place. I shut down the machine.
What went wrong?

Perhaps the material was uneven and closer to the router in the second location so the first cut was deeper than your specified depth per pass. Could also be a pulley set screw is loose and it worked itself loose over the course of the cut. Or some other possibility.

What was your depth per pass and speeds and feeds?

1 Like

Thanks so much. Problem was material placed too high (Y) on platform - above max travel of spindle…lot of real estate up there - my mistake. I’ve found that most problems are due to my lack of experience and with time (and sleep) my brain has worked through several sticky situations - even allowing me to out wit Fusion 360, Carbide create, Easel, and Carbide Motion. Again thanks for your suggestion. JLS