How does one set the Z setting when the toolpath is in the center of the material and you want to use the bottom for Z zero?
Your wasteboard should already be flat everywhere. Just set Z Zero on part of the wasteboard that isn’t under your stock. You don’t have to be at your X-Y zero when setting the Z Zero.
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I use center of material and bottom of material for 90% of my jobs. I mark the center of the material with an X in the center and then jog off the material and use my BitZero to set on the spoilboard (bottom of material). Easy. You could use the paper method but if you have a BitZero it is even easier. I started with just a BitZero and upgraded to the BitSetter when it came out. Those two accessories make my SO3 so much easier to use.
One caution: when you use rapid positions in jog you can use the X and Y zeros but if you do the Z+6MM make sure you have jogged off the material or you will crash your bit into the material if it is more than 6MM in height.
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not completely sure of the process. I can set X and Y from the jog. But when I then try to
set Z using a position outside of the material. How do I not miosalign X and Y?
Once you have ‘set’ the X and Y zero, the machine remembers where that was. You can jog away from it as much as you like, and the machine tracks how far you moved, and can return to (0,0) (or go to any other position).
To see this, try the following:
- Set your X-Y zero to some location.
- Jog around a bit, move anywhere you like.
- On the ‘Jog’ screen, there’s a button called something like ‘Rapids’. Hit that, and one of the options will be to move back to X-Y zero. (I don’t have CM open in front of me, so I don;t remember the exact text). Hit that, and the gantry will move right back to your X-Y zero.
So, it’s OK to jog outside the stock and set your Z. Just remember to set only Z - don’t zero out X-Y again.
Each zero of X Y and Z are separate from each other. As @mhotchin said once set it is set. So if you set x and y and move and then set Z each one is set.
If you have a BitZero you can set X and Y and Z but that would be on the lower left corner. Then if you jogged off the material and set a different Z zero the X and Y are still set on the lower left corner. Only the Z changed. Same if you were to jog and set a new X and/or Y the other two settings are not affected.
If you have a BitZero then you put the edge over the lower left corner and jog the bit within 6MM over the circle on the v1 BitZero and attach your magnet/clip to the router bit and start a probe. You tell CM the size of router bit you are going to use for the probe. The CM application will move off the BitZero and move down and over to touch one side of the BitZero. Then the bit rises up and over to the front edge and moved down and then over until it touches the BitZero. Then the bit is moved over the top of the BitZero and comes down and touches the top of the BitZero. Now your X and Y are set to the corner of the BitZero and on top of the BitZero for Z. Inside the CM software it knows how high the BitZero is off the material and offsets and sets the Z on top of the material.
If you want to use bottom of material you jog off the material and place the BitZero directly on top of the spoilboard. You jog over the BitZero and within 6MM of the top of the BitZero. You attach your magnet/cip and do a probe. In this case because you did a Z only probe CM knows how tall the BitZero is and offsets that height and sets your Z zero with the top of the spoilboard (bottom of material).
There is a v2 version of the BitSetter and that procedure is different than the v1. The v2 uses a 1/4" pin and does its zeroing of X and Y differently inside of a circle that is part of the BitZero. When you do a configuration in CM you set which version of BitSetter you have and it will not change unless you go in and change it.
The manual option is to use a bit that you know the size. So a 1/4" bit for instance you can jog it off to the left side of the material and jog it over until it touches the side of the material. That is not your X zero it is 1/8" (half the diameter of 1/4" bit) so now you jog your bit back up and move it over 1/8" so the center of the 1/4" bit is over the edge of the material and then set the X zero. Then jog the bit off the front edge of the material and lower the bit and then jog over to the material until you just touch it. Now you are 1/8" from the center of the front edge. Raise the bit back up and jog back in the Y direction and after jogging 1/8" set the Y zero. To set the Z jog up on top of the material (for top of material) and jog down to the surface with a piece of paper under the bit. You jiggle the paper back and forth while jogging down until you feel the bit hit the paper and stop your jiggling motion. Then you set Z zero for top of material. If you want bottom of material jog off the material and jog close down to the spoilboard and put your paper under the bit and giggle it back and forth and jog down until the paper is trapped and you cannot move it any more and set Z zero.
The BitZero is easier to use than the manual method but the BitZero or the manual paper method both work.
If you have a v1 or v2 BitZero you can use it to set zeros at prescribed locations. Z can be set any where you want but X and Y can only be set a prescribed locations in CM.
So I gave you a long explanation but over think it. Watch some SO3 videos on youtube and you will get it.
Thanks for the reply. At my age I can’t over think anything.
I am 70 and did not learn how to use my SO3 overnight but now it is easy. You just have to do it. Rome was not built in a day but it was built brick by brick. You can do it if I can do it. Although knowledge is first in first out so all my new knowledge in is pushing things like talking and walking out the back.
I can’t remember when I was 70.
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