In my quest to take my time and measure twice and cut once, I’m asking for help on my first cut. Just the quick f- bomb bottle opener. I get no arc at all. What info can I provide to get help figuring it out.
Which plasma cutter are you using? Is it wired up correctly? If you short the end of the torch fire cable that plugs into the electronics box will the torch fire?
I am using the HT 45XP with the CPC Cable i bought from LS. I looked twice at the diagram and everything looks to be connected properly. To be honest, I’m not sure how to short the end of the touch fire cable…
First, if you copied the bottle opener software from a website it may not contain the correct g-code for the Firecontrol to understand. If you processed this in F360 or Sheetcam using the LS FC plugins you should be good. If not, the g-code processor is a separate issue which this forum has the answers to but for now below are some steps to try.
The LS controller that your torch trigger cable plugs into provides a set of relay contacts the software uses to fire your torch. To check the machine disconnect the torch trigger cable at your Plasma Cutter and try this. Put a piece of steel on your table drive the torch over the top of it in an area you don’t mind piercing. Be sure to drive it down to say 3/16" above the plate. Next turn on your cutter adjust the air pressure and try firing the torch by hand by squeezing the trigger. Got fire? Good. Next, drive the table over a little bit(1/4") to a new spot and take an insulated wire, strip the ends and bend it into a “U”. Touch the two terminals in the plasma side connector(being very careful not to touch anything else.) This should fire your torch. If you did this step and the torch fired it isn’t the plasma cutter. Reconnect the cable to the plasma cutter and disconnect the torch trigger cable from the LS controller. Run through the above step again touching the two cable end terminals together with the wire(again being careful to touch just the terminals in the cable.) Next open Firecontrol and load some g-code file(bottle opener, whatever???) Plug the cable back into the LS controller and drive the table to a fresh spot on your plate. Now try the manual torch firing toggle in Firecontrol. If it fires you should be good to go. If not the next step will probably take a second body. Take your ohm meter and check continuity at the LS Controller torch trigger connector while someone manually operates the manual fire in Firecontrol. If you pass all these tests and it still is not firing it’s either a g-code problem or something in the controller. Be sure you have the latest software and firmware updates loaded. Beyond this, you should discuss next steps with Mike or Daniel. Good luck
1 Like
If it’s a machine torch, check the button on the side of it.
1 Like
Thank you for troubleshooting help. It’s skill 0dark30 here. I will give this a whirl in a little while and report my findings. Fingers crossed!
Good thought! It is a machine torch. I’ll peek at that as well.
Here’s a good .tap file for you too. Load this in Firecontrol and it should cut. Save you a software trouble shooting step.
poop emoji.tap (5.5 KB)
1 Like
Thanks, Jon. I’m caffeinating and headed to the garage shortly…
So. I do have the Machine Torch for my setup. The switch was off and I thought maybe that was it. It was not. I do get air and some movement but still no Arc before it errors out. Just wanted to give an uneventful update and I am getting started with the troubleshooting.
I couldn’t upload the picture. However, I am getting a slow blinking light on my HT. The manual says it is TSO. Torch stuck open. The nozzle and electrode are not touching after a start signal is received. May be getting close to the issue. What might I not be doing correctly with the consumables?
Graduated to cutting and on to the standard lost arc part way through the f-bomb and poo emoji.
Arc voltage lost error occurs only when the system is sensing less than 10 volts. That is caused by two things- one is that the plasma cutter is losing arc The other is that the there is a connection issue with the THC and/or associated wiring that is causing an arc voltage sensing problem.
Try the cut again and see what it shows for live volts during the cut. Thats the first step to troubleshooting.
I just sat down to try again and those were my thoughts as well. I’ll let you know my progress.
Back to nothing at all. Don’t even hear air coming out of the Torch…
Are your consumables getting stuck again?
I didn’t know that was a thing. I did literally just change them all out. I thought the retainer cap was a bit sticky. At any rate, I just changed everything and… here I go. Fingers crossed.
I got nothing. It will run the program. No air, no arc. And it will still say it loses arc about 3/4 of the way through. Frustrating. Thanks for being so patient.
Unplug the torch fire cable from the electronics enclosure and use a paper clip to short the contacts on the end of it. This should fire the torch. If the torch does not fire, its likely a plasma cutter related issue or an issue with the torch fire cable itself (although not likely the case).
I’ll give it a try. Is a manual fire in order for this process?