When used correctly, the Langmuir Systems MR-1 CNC Gantry Mill will offer you years of safe operation. However, like all other automated and industrial type machinery, there are important safety considerations and precautions that must be followed in order to avoid injury. Study these safety warnings carefully before assembling and using your machine.
Electric shock can cause serious injury or death. Cables, points, and connections in the Electronics Enclsoure contain high voltages. To avoid injury, adhere to the follow precautions:
The MR-1 and its enclosure are not designed to protect or contain explosions or fires. Electrical fires can be caused if the machine is assembled or used incorrectly. To avoid injury, always adhere to the following precautions:
The machine may operate at any time, automatically, and without warning. To avoid injury, always adhere to the following precautions:
Milling creates chips and other airborne debris that can cause eye injuries. As well, fixtures, tooling, workpieces, or other items can become projectiles during the milling process. To avoid injury, always wear appropriate PPE and adhere to the following precautions:
This machine can create pinch points while in motion during normal operations. To avoid injury, always adhere to the following precautions:
The milling process uses high speed spindles with attached tooling to machine metal. As a result, both the spindle and stock material can be very hot after cutting which can cause burns. To avoid injury, always adhere to the following precautions:
The milling process uses sharp tooling and produces sharp swarf/chips. To avoid injury, always adhere to the following precautions:
The machine and milling process can produce noise that can exceed safe exposure limits. Sound emission levels vary depending on machining processes so be sure to adhere to the following precautions:
Use the following MR-1 Assembly Guide to put together your machine.
View the Control Computer Setup section of this guide and follow along to set up your Mini-PC.
Download and install CutContol, the software used to control your MR-1.
Download the MR-1 Break-in program from our Downloads page and run it using CutControl.
Use the MR-1 Cutting Parameters to program and cut your first part on MR-1.
The Langmuir Systems MR-1 ships partially assembled. Therefore, this section serves to provide all of the pertinent information and instructions needed to fully assemble your new machine.
Your MR-1 is delivered in a single crate that includes the Base MR-1 Machine and all add-ons and accessories ordered at the time of purchase. An in-depth description of what is packed in the crate for the Base Machine is provided here. All Sub Boxes, Assemblies, and hardware is clearly labeled and verified before shipment. Please use this as a reference for the rest of the assembly.
The first step in MR-1 assembly is attaching the legs to the chip tray. Next, you'll be preparing the machine base for concrete.
Next, assemble the internal structure of the MR-1.
The concrete pour is a critical stage of the assembly of your MR-1. You must watch all videos, gather all required tools, and fully understand the entire process before attempting. Once the concrete is poured, any mistakes made cannot be fixed! The process is outlined in the following videos:
In addition to this video we have provided a text checklist to use as a reference during this step. This guide should not be used in place of watching the above video but only to supplement the video during the concrete pre-pour process.
Before beginning to pour your concrete, please watch and understand the following video:
Concrete Bag Weight | Suggested Starting Water Mix per Bag |
---|---|
60lb Bag | 5 pint Water / Bag |
80lb Bag | 6.7 pint Water / Bag |
Next, we'll be attaching the Y-Axis carriages to the linear bearings.
Next, we'll be attaching the X-Axis Gantry beam to the Y-Axis carriages.
Next, we will be installing the Spindle and X/Z Carriage assembly onto the Gantry.
Next, we'll be installing the motor mounts and ball screws necessary for X-Axis Motion.
Next, we'll mount the electronics components onto the machine.
- Remove the lid of your Electronics Enclosure by unscrewing all of the sheet metal screws.
ATTENTION: 2 High Powered Drivers are required for the Y-Axis. The Y-Axis will immediately bind when operated with a single upgraded driver and be thrown out of square.
- Carefully remove 3 green terminal blocks that are installed in the driver by gently pulling on the terminal block straight out, not pulling on the wires.
- Using a #1 Phillips Screwdriver and a ¼” Socket, loosen the 2 screws securing the driver to the enclosure. Remove driver and set screws/nuts aside.
- Find the 4 wire terminal with unbraided wires. Colors will vary based on which driver is being updated.
- Using a small flat screwdriver loosen the terminals securing the left two wires on the terminal block as shown. Pull the wires out of the terminal slots.
- Reverse the position of the 2 wires so that the wires are in the opposite terminals. In the example above, the green wire should now be on the outside of the terminal block with the red wire next to the blue wire. This may vary depending on which driver you chose.
- Move the machine screws out to the next adjacent hole on each side to accommodate the larger driver (circled in red).
- Thread the nuts on a few turns and leave dangling loose as shown.
- Install larger driver by pushing the screws into the slots on both sides of the driver, secure the fasteners and reconnect the terminal blocks as shown. The driver should be oriented so that the driver fan is pointing upward as shown.
If you are installing the Computer Stand, the bag titles may be different.
If you are installing the Computer Stand, the bag titles may be different.
The following video covers the process of wiring the machine to the point that it can be run. The video will involve wiring the optional Control Kit, but the steps are applicable for laptop/desktop users as well.
In this video we're going to install the limit switches, the hard stops, jog the machine, use indicators and precision blocks to adjust alignment, and do coarse and fine adjustment of the limit switch stops.
In this video we'll cover cable routing and management.
In this video we'll cover homing your MR-1 for the first time as well as setting your machine Soft limits.
After assembly of MR-1 is complete, it’s important to perform a series of checks on your machine to ensure that assembly was done properly and that everything on the machine is tight before making the first cuts.
In this video we demonstrate the steps needed for lubrication and maintenance of the MR-1 motion system.
In this video we'll cover loading a tool into the spindle to face your baseplate.
The following video covers the process of facing the baseplate of the MR-1.
In this video we cover the steps needed to inspect the Z-axis alignment of your machine and make fine shimming adjustments as needed.
In this video we demonstrate the steps needed to measure and set the pitch travel compensation for your X, Y, and Z axes.
The MR-1 spindle has two positions; UP and DOWN. The Spindle ships in the DOWN position from our factory so that an end mill can be used to reach the Base Plate for facing. In this video, we demonstrate the steps needed to adjust the spindle position to the UP configuration.
In this video we demonstrate the steps needed to mount our Low Profile Modular Vise onto the MR-1 base plate and square the fixed jaw to the X-axis.
The MC4000 Windows 10 Control Computer is part of the Control Kit you may have ordered with your machine. It comes ready to go with all of the hardware you need to run your MR-1 CNC Machine but there are a few software setup tasks required before you are ready to cut.
Your MC4000 PC should be connected to power and the HD touchscreen monitor via HDMI and USB. The included HD Touchscreen's touch capability requires USB connection to the MC4000. The MC4000 must also be connected to the Electronics via USB. If you wish to utilize the wireless keyboard pendant you may also plug in the USB dongle at this stage.
Boot up your MC4000 and you will be presented with the standard Windows Out-Of-Box Experience and user creation as with any new Windows PC. During this proccess you will be asked to accept the Windows EULA, select keyboard layouts and to connect to the internet.
Our recommended setup procedure for the MC4000 is to use an offline user account. This is a user account that is not connected to an online Microsoft account. To do this, when prompted to connect to WiFi click the ‘Skip Step’ button in the lower corner. You can of course use an online Microsoft user account if the location of your MR-1 has consistent internet access.
You will create a user name, password, and account recovery hints.
It is also recommended that you do not sign up for or agree to options for Office 365, Cortana, or any of the privacy settings as these can take up valuable system resources.
Once your Windows account is created and you have set up your PC with a user account, you will need to connect to the internet. In order to download the software and latest driver updates necessary for operation, you will need to connect your PC to WiFi or to a wired connection via the ethernet port.
Download the latest version of CutControl using the ‘Download CutControl’ Shortcut on your MC4000 Desktop or by navigating to the Langmuir Systems Downloads page.
This is a Windows setting that will make the CutControl experience with your MR-1 CNC Mill better by eliminating the hover square over your touch point on your HD Touchscreen while continuously jogging.
Your MC4000 Control Computer should be acting as a kiosk and should never ‘go to sleep’. Verify all Sleep settings are set to ‘Never’ in Settings > Power & Sleep.
Langmuir Systems provides customers the following Cutting Parameters Quick Reference Chart to use when programming cuts on MR-1. We believe that these values are a good, conservative starting point and we strongly recommend using these parameters when first cutting parts on MR-1. If you wish to push the machine beyond these starting values, we always recommend first making test cuts before running a new program. If you have any questions please reach out to tech support We are here to help!
This Cutting Parameters Quick Reference Chart is also available as a downloadable PDF.
Download the latest version of CutControl by visiting our website and following the onscreen prompts to install CutControl to the controller computer. If you do not have internet setup on your computer, you will need to save the installer (.MSI) file onto a thumb flash drive and then install this from the flash drive. Use the CutControl Guide to learn more about the software used to control your MR-1.
Verify that all connections to the CNC electronics box are correct. If your machine is touching any of the limit switches, manually push the machine of the switches so that all limit switches are open. Next, turn on the machine by flipping the power switch at the rear of the electronics box. You should hear power transmit to the stepper motors and a light humming noise from the motors is normal.
Open CutControl software. The 'MR-1' Machine should automatically connect in the top right of the screen. Verify that the machine USB cable is plugged into both the computer and the electronics box.
Before jogging the machine, a homing operation will need to be performed. Once everything is clear, press the Homing button in CutControl. Note: If an alarm is popped during homing when the Y1 and Y2 limit switches are triggered it is possible that your gantry had a substantial racking before homing. Perform the homing procedure again if this is the case. Another cause for the alarm is that your Y1 and Y2 stepper motor plugs are switched at the electronics box. Y1 should control the motor on the left side of the gantry and Y2 should be on the right side.
Follow the Spindle Break-in instructions to download and run the Spindle Break-in program before any cutting is performed on the MR-1.
Use the provided Cutting Parameters to program your first parts and cut them on the MR-1.
In this video we demonstrate the steps needed to setup and operate the Langmuir Systems Digital Touch Probe.
In this video we demonstrate the steps needed to mount and operate the Langmuir Systems Automatic Tool Setter.
All Langmuir Systems products are covered by a 12 month limited warranty on hardware and 6 month limited warranty on electronics. The terms of the warranty are listed below:
All products sold directly by Langmuir Systems are eligible for return and refund. The terms of the return and refund policy are listed below: