I would also like to preface with that I am not totally against change if it is for the better!
@clemsontravis @Tricktuning Mach3 gcode files will not run in FireControl but all old g-code programs would need to be re-posted anyway because the CrossFire PRO has a Z-axis with an Initial Height Sensing function (and THC if you have it) that needs to be in g-code. The CrossFire PRO electronics will not run with Mach3.
We understand that the transition for some customers that are used to using Mach3 will take some time at first, but we strongly believe that our software is much easier and more intuitive to use (if you already use Mach3 and are familiar with it, using FireControl will be a breeze). We’re always striving to make the user experience the best for our customers and we feel that FireControl with our own integrated THC software and electronics takes us to the next level.
1 Like
New software sounds great! One question about the THC, I notice in the video that the torch touches down and pushes the metal down as it does. At what point is it checking the height? It seems like if it reads it at the touch down, it would be off because the metal is lifting back up after the torch raises.
Thank god I don’t have to use Mach3, that was the one thing I was dreading, and having to pay for the pleasure. I held off on adding it to my order as I was thinking of replacing the control side before spending money on Mach3.
Will be interested to see what the patent has in it, as I’m pretty sure most of what you describe could be done with other motion controllers already, well the better ones, that allow you access to the axis control loops. Anyway not taking away from what you have done, the all in one solution is much better than the add on approach you had originally announced. I wasn’t looking forward to fiddling with knobs and presets. This is great news.
The new GUI looks good, with a nice clean simple layout.
I’m impressed and more excited than before to get my Pro.
Nice work!
2 Likes
Great news. I’ve never been overjoyed with Mach 3.
2 Likes
Will fire control work with newer windows 10 computers as I have yet to get it working on my computer
Software sounds great. But not have the ability to use mach really sucks. In some cases where sharing tap files is necessary. As I deal with some companies that will not share a dxf
2 Likes
The deflection your seeing before each pierce is the initial height sensing function. What happens is the torch tip touches the material but the lead nut continues to drive down which causes a continuity switch to trip. The lead nut then returns back up to make continuity again and the machine Z axis is zeroed at this position. The cut height is then referenced off of this initial height sense (Z=0 is the top of the material).
The material deflection that you’re seeing is because the slide has a 1/2 lb of spring pre-load and the torch adds to the weight of the slide as well. For thicker material this won’t have an affect but on the gate panel video above this is 20 gauge steel and so you’re seeing some deflection. In the post processor before you post a program, one of the settings you can adjust is called “IHS Spring Back”. For thinner material, you set this parameter to the expected deflection of the plate so that it can compensate for this in your cutting height. For material material >14 gauge this number will almost always be 0".
2 Likes
So does this no longer work with mach3? That was actually the feature that made me choose your unit over a wright CNC.
2 Likes
@Tricktuning With Initial Height Sensing and THC, you would still need to repost a program even with Mach3. If you’re already making these changes ‘by hand’ in notepad to a customer sent .tap file, then you can also edit this file to meet the formatting requirements for FireControl. FireControl can open a .tap file it just needs to be formatted correctly.
@twopecker The CrossFire PRO will only run with FireControl and not Mach3. We understand that the transition for some customers that are used to using Mach3 will take some time at first, but we strongly believe that our software is much easier and more intuitive to use (if you already use Mach3 and are familiar with it, using FireControl will be a breeze). We’re always striving to make the user experience the best for our customers and we feel that FireControl with our own integrated THC software and electronics takes us to the next level.
2 Likes
@langmuir-mike well touche. It would need to reposted for that reason.
So are you guys going to provide some kind of post processor that works with SheetCam and what not at some point.
Please don’t take this question the wrong way, but I have to ask it. So what happens if Langmuir closes the doors one day? That is the only positive here for Mach3. The fact that so many machines out there do use it. The other positive is that any question or problem you have with Mach 3 can be found using google. Now we all have a proprietary software that is being use by one company and will roughly have 2000 users (for now and i don’t even know if that number is accurate). Support will be limited for a while.
@ggschaff1 Yes it will work with Windows XP all the way through the newest version of Windows 10 as well as MacOS. That was always a problem with Mach3 for us; sometimes it was hard to get it working with certain people’s computers and setups and we were always fighting that. Now that we are making our own software, we can control compatibility much better!
@clemsontravis Yes we will have a SheetCAM post as well as a Fusion360 post to start and we can look at making posts for any other popular CAM software’s that people want to use that already support CNC Plasma functionality.
As for the software support, we don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon but we can understand your concerns. In the event that we aren’t around, we would absolutely open source the software at that point. Overtime as the community of users grows and we implement more features into our software, we truly believe that we will have the best package for running a CNC plasma table on the market 
6 Likes
Honestly the issue is when you have 2 tables (I’m not referenceing the 2x2 crossfire) and now there will need to be 2 separate files made for the same parts…
1 Like
The software does look good. But I agree it has to be able to scale and rotate or it will be a real pita.
3 Likes
@langmuir-mike I get it but I still get concerned when people try to reinvent the wheel when it is unnecessary. If the FireControl turns out to be a failure then we all have paperweights until someone figures out the fix. I understand you will open source the programming but I am not a programmer and then I will have to depend on individuals that are not companies.
I guess I will sit back and watch these forums for a bit. I am curious to see if any orders are canceled. I understand wanting to better the community and the industry, but this is still a risk for everyone of us that bought the table if it fails. Not sure if it is a risk I want to take as of now. I’ll give it some thought.
I am impressed with the changes, a more simple interface with better overall control is always a positive. What are the system requirements going to be for fire control? How difficult are limit switches and other modifications going to be to add as inputs to the software? @langmuir-mike
Great news! Thank you so much for the update!
I’m with you I feel that mach should have still been a option to run the machine considering that it’s kind of a standard. Torcmate has been like this with it on software and everyone I know with a TM wish they could run mach. This information honestly should have been disclosed when the pro went public. If mach wont run it now that means they knew it then.
1 Like