First, i would like to wish everyone & your loved ones a Merry Christmas & (soon) Happy New Year. Wishing all Safety n Blessings.
Guys i am New to the CNC world. I have had my Shapeoko XXL since Dec 4th and have not been able to start my 1st project yet. I have worked on it 4-5 hours almost everyday and have sent Customer service emails and left them my # for a call back n possible facetime call but i havent heard back from them in since Dec 23rd (5days). Probably busy because of Holidays. So i finally am here reaching out for any help i can get. I did not want to bother or take any time from anyone but i am at my last leg and have 2 days in my return window and I do not want to return my shapeoko if i dont have too. I really dont but if i have a machine that doesnt work then thats a “Double Whammy” on me. Well here is my issue and steps taken. Thank you again
Troubleshooting steps taken
Constant binding of y2 stepper motor while homing all planes.
V rollers adjusted to proper drag
Belts adjusted to proper tension
Gantry is squared, plum, and level
Switched out Motors and same issue.
I have unscrewed and rescrewed rails 5 times and checked and rechecked belts (i lost count). Honestly tried all steps above a minimum of 2 times.
Too me, It seems y2 stepper motor will not work in tandem with y1 stepper motor. Possible bad stepper driver on main board, or bad gcode for Esteps
No binding occurs when y2 belt is disengaged causing y1 to drive entire gantry.
If you’ve swapped the motors we can probably eliminate a bad stepper; with what you’ve said I would carefully check the wiring to each of the Y steppers from end to end. If you don’t find any problems you might switch the Y1/Y2 plugs at the control board to see if you have a bad driver, but I think that will cause the Y to run backwards.
When it binds, is one side moving better than the other? If so, that should localize possible wiring problems They are driven separately, but should move in step with each other.
Yes sir, i did all options you suggested. Also when i switched Y1 n Y2 on main board there was a homing failure. When i tried that i knew it was a long shot since the wires are labeled. Tried it in case of possible mistake in labeling of wires.
The Y2 is moving slower then the Y1 thus causing the binding. Also i confirmed the wiring is right because they are both spinning in the same direction.
Does the gantry move smoothly with the machine turned off? You have to move slowly or the steppers think they are generators and try to power the board.
Does it just move slower/fewer steps? That’s odd.
Can you get a video of the Y2 with a sharpie line (in place of your tape) across the pulley and shaft?
Yes sir, That same Y2 side is slow. I too believe it is the motor. Support reached out today so i hope they come to conclusion on the issue and help me. I hope to start my 1st project soon🤷🏻‍♂️. I hope
It was the controller board. Thanks to Will and the fellas on the carbide team for all the help. And everyone else who gave input on here. Really appreciate you all and am thankfull. So i was sent a new control board and wallah problem fixed. Hope this thread will help someone else with this issue in the future.
