MadModder

Haas use electric cooker elements (the spiral ones) stacked to give the required resistance

For Windows users looking for an alternative OS, in this case perhaps Linux, there are some websites that offer a 'Linux distro selector'. But that seems to be kind of a new thing - I don't remember Youtubers mentioning it as a supplement in choosing what distro(s) to test at the very beginning.

What I mean, would be similar to PC component selectors that some of the online shops used to have, at least in my country - where the user selects first, say a motherboard, and gets lists of compatible peripherals to choose from to build a working system.

An example: https://distrochooser.de/

Results on that site are quite clear, but terms like 'closed source programs', 'non-free licences', and 'free licenses', can be really confusing. One might expect that such are apps like Photoshop, which the user have to purchase separately.

Again, an example: Nvidia drivers and certain media codecs (used to handle different media formats, like videos) are not open source, but still they are free to use.

To me, as a home desktop user, that's an overly technical information. I understand that such terms are required to tell the user, what kind of licenses are involved. I'll bet it would help to tell, that even if this or that software is not open source, user doesn't have to pay to use them - in other words, to simplify the way the terms and conditions are expressed.

If one uses Linux for work - making money - that's when it may well be required to be aware of such things. Such users should already have understanding of how licenses work anyway.

But for new users, I assume, it's about getting the ball rolling to see what this new system is about, without needing to worry about pro stuff like licenses.

OK New Year - New Year Resolutions - try and make some progress on the poor old Beaver Lathe that's been rather bust for far too long:

Last year I was investigating problems with the Siemens Simodrive 610 AC servo crate - all was going well but then disaster struck - there was a massive glowing coming from the top of the crate of electronics like an electric fire element. Leaping for the power off I shut it down and limped away rather disheartened.

It transpires that there is a massive wire wound ballast resistor mounted in the upper works that is used to control excess voltage rise when servo motors over-run. It's 3.3 ohms rated intermittently at 30KW !! There is an option (G10) fitted to the servo crate that includes this resistor and a rather complicated card mounted on the 'Go' power supply card that switches it in and out of circuit. I can find virtually nothing on the web about this set up. On the 'Go' psu card there is a fast acting fuse (35ET) that blows when this fails and strangely in my spares I now have two of these cards with the blown fuses. I've recently acquired a 'Go' card that is allegedly good!

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OK deeper investigation required - so I pulled out the assembly that holds the resistor - sure enough it had melted and dripped down on to the chassis. Loads of measurements later I conclude that it is wound in constantan wire not nichrome from the diameter and my length calculation. A very expensve spool of constantan wire ordered up (?83 (UK pounds - can't find the code !) inc carriage and VAT)

The resistor is wound over ceramic insulators slid onto a perforated frame and is only held together by the wire winding. Today's job dismantle it.

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Of course a fair few of the ceramics were cracked - they got super-glue'd back together for assembly - no doubt it will stink when it first gets hot and burn off the glue but it's only needed to get it all back together.

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OK that's enough for today - tomorrow I start re-winding springy 0.9 mm constantan wire. It's 50 turns centre tapped - ends connected together forming one contact and the centre tap the other - so effectively it is four resistors in parallel.

I have not, dd. I have to admit that I'm mainly a manual machine person and get caught up in CNC every once in awhile when I have something very specific for it -- like lettering, or in a recent case, a milled out tiny yoke for a Scotch youke mechanism.

I was just thinking about what I really like is lathe work, more than milling. I'll go to great lengths to do something on the lathe that would be easier on a mill -- and I do own a round column mill. But It's a hike to get to from the house in an unheated shed, and like I said, I don 't really enjoy millwork.

The lathe was my first machine tool, and I built it from scratch, so I have a long term fondness for it. Actually thinking even more about it, I like casting even better than lathe work, and pattern making nearly as much as casting.

Okay, back to CNC, to me it's like a crossword puzzle -- I can get caught up in it temporarily, all the CAD, file generation, setup, etc. But for me it's mostly empty calories the only really enjoyable part is the result. While with pattern making, casting, lathework, it's the activities that I enjoy, at least as much as the product.

The other problem for me with CNC is that I tend to forget, and then have to re-learn all the details of programming, setup and operation. I just don't use it often enough to keep that stuff current in mind.

But I'm sure I'll return to it as I seem to circle back to most things I've done before, sooner or later, when a special need arises.

The quill is a cheap  Easson one but works ok.
The knee one is just over half of a broken Heidenhain that I was able to trim back and fix.
Both are 5um but the KQC box doesn't care what resolution (adjustable).

There seems to be some interest in making the thing read Mitutoyo SPC quill scales.
I may have to buy one to experiment. It requires an extra transistor to do the REQ output, and a couple of resister changes to sort out the logic levels, but looks easy enough to implement.