Spindle not wanting to start

[CullenS (Cullen Simpson)]

I installed the PWNcnc 65mm water cooled spindle a month or so ago and reconfigured the VFD for the auto start option. Everything was fine and a I used it for a couple of weeks on various projects.

I had the machine off and unplugged for a couple of weeks due to issues from hurricane Helene. Saturday I powered back up and tried the quick actions for spindle warmup but it would not turn on. I tried a simple test cut on air and the same thing. I eventually switched the VFD to manual, cycled through some speeds switched back to auto and things worked as usual.

Same experience Sunday.

I usually turn the VFD on before turning on the CNC and initializing.

Is there anything I should do differently after a prolonged outage?

I have posted in the PWNcnc forum as well. I am not sure if it is a failure of the board or CM to send the correct signal initially or if it is a failure of the VFD to recognize it.

I did try entering commands in the MDI interface when it was in this state and still nothing.

Once I switch to manual and “exercise” the spindle I can switch back to auto and everything works fine. I have not tested yet to see if a reinitialization within the same session causes the problem or if it’s just after an overnight power cycle.

[CullenS (Cullen Simpson)]

I just did some messing with it and it looks like the display on the VFD is showing 5 +/- v all the time even with the CNC turned off which surprised me. Maybe I am misinterpreting the value.

I will mess around with it later. This time I did the manual spin up and then tried from Carbide Motion and I got nothing so it may be more perplexing than I had hoped.

I will keep trying to find a pattern

Any ideas on a diagnostic process are appreciated.

[CullenS (Cullen Simpson)]

I think I finally found the issue.
The connection from the VFD to the control board was a little loose. All my other theories were red herrings.