In CM “Quick Actions” there is a button for “Spindle Warmup”. What is supposed to happen with this action? I see a countdown running that’s a bit over 5 minutes long, but nothing is happening with the spindle. Should it be spinning during the warmup, or is something else “warming up” before it will spin? (probably obvious from the context of my question: the spindle is NOT spinning during the warmup countdown).
-M.
The VFD spindle should be spinning — make sure that it is plugged in, powered up, and all the buttons are set to enable it.
One thing to check if it’s not working is that Carbide Motion is configured for a VFD spindle in the Setup Wizard:
Turned out I’d forgotten to power on the VFD controller after moving it. I got fooled because the red light around the button comes on even if the main power supply is off. Now I know to check that!
Thanks!
-M.
Out of curiosity, what is the value performing the spindle warmup operation? Should it always be done before a job? The makerspace I belong to has a ShopBot that requires a spindle warmup (and that’s just a regular router) but I’ve not really understood the purpose of the warmup.
Warms up and distributes the grease/lubricant.
If I use my spindle several times a week I don’t run the warmup. If it goes over a week or more I do. However I live in central FL which is usually warm weather. If I was in a cooler climate north I would probably run the warmup more frequently. It’s to redistribute the grease as Will points out above.
Hot or cold temperatures and i always warm up in the morning…or night. Its a good thing to do and get in the habit of, but im a newbie. The stone shop i worked in always did a warmup process. That was about a $30k spindle.
Great info – thanks everybody!