Driver not sending power to motor

CNC Machines Shapeoko
1

I have contacted support already, but since it’s the weekend, I figured I’d see if I’d get some answers here quicker.

Good afternoon, I was having issues with the left side of the y axis chattering/slipping on my Shapeoko. After plenty of troubleshooting and looking on the forums, I determined that the problem was not with the belt, pulley, or motor, but a problem with the wiring.
More specifically, at the connector from the motor to the wires that go to the controller.
So what I did was basically cut off the connectors and “hardwire” the wires. And now the “Y1” driver on the board does not send any power to the motor, I switched the other motors to this same driver and vice versa and still nothing on the “Y1”. All the others get power, including the one’s wires I messed with, on another driver.

Now my question is…
I’m afraid I shorted/ fried this “Y1” driver with all the fiddling I did with the wires, is this a possibility? :triumph::triumph: If so, what’s the remedy? Replace the whole board? :weary:

2

As noted on support, the fix here is to replace the entire board (the stepper drivers aren’t really repairable) — if you don’t already have a BitRunner connector you’ll need a “CM Board with Enclosure” for $149.

3

hmm :unamused:

Is that bit runner connector the only difference from an older board? Is the board the same size and all the rest basically the same?

For future reference, is my suspicion correct that somehow the wires shorted and fried it?

4

Since you didn’t mention it did you use a meter to test the wires or was it more it doesn’t appear the connectors are bad? Not criticizing or second guessing just a question. Murphy’s law always applies when we attempt to correct things.

Will said it best, replace the board. Good luck

5

Depends on the specific version of your board — improvements over time:

  • better EMI shielding
  • expansion adapter (used for the PCB Riser Board for inductive homing switches)
  • reserved and other connectors the accessories
  • BitRunner connector — the latter requires a hole for it in the enclosure, hence the need for a new enclosure if your board doesn’t have one
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6

The main difference between the older boards and the new ones are the addition of the connector for the BitRunner and the older boards had a large heat sink attached to the rail. The new boards replace the old one piece case with a new two piece case, removal of the large heat sink and adds thermal tape to the base of the two part case. So if you have the one piece case you may need to upgrade to the newer board and two piece case. The new boards have the BitRunner connector and the old one piece case does not have a hole for that connector. If you have a nibbler tool you can cut out a hole in the old case for the BitRunner connector but that is not easy.

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7

Exactly what I was thinking, feels unnecessary to pay 50 more dollars for the enclosure.

8

If it’s not a warranty replacement situation, you could look into any number of replacement controllers. A lot of GRBL based controllers out there that run the spectrum of low cost and form factor. Something like the CNC Xpro v5 is a bit more cash, but looks like a nice complete package. I have no direct experience with it.

Or abandon GRBL, something like Centroid ect.

9

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