Glass scales help please

Martin w

Martin w

Well-Known Member
My glass scales are not reading on my boring mill except Y axis. It’s a very old read out and has round connections not the standard 7 pin connections.
Do they make adapter fittings? I can buy scales fairly reasonable online but it’s still a lot of money if I have to change out everything Because the plugs are different. 20240228_182405.jpeg 20240228_182349.jpeg 20240228_182324.jpeg 20240228_182423.jpeg
I’ve tried taking a Q tip and alcohol to clean under the rubber seals, but it didn’t help. It’s not the display because I can change out the different axis and Y works on all three .
X axis is 1500 mm and Z is 1000 mm .
Thanks
Martin
 
mickeyf

mickeyf

Well-Known Member
A couple of thoughts.
So the Y sender works on X, Y, or Z display? Have you also tried swapping all of the cables, or did you just plug the cable from the Y sender into the other displays? I'm guessing the cables have the same connector on each end?

From the photos, your display looks quite ...um, elderly. From Matt's post on HomeShopMachinist, I note that he not only replaced the sending unit, but decided that his cables were too old to be reliable. Your problem *might* be entirely in the elderly cables. If you have the technical specs, i.e., which signals are on which wires in the cables, it would be simple to either make an adapter or replace the cables entirely using connectors for a newer style display. Or you could just make new cables for your existing display by tracing the connections of the current cables, after first checking the cables for open faults by testing each pin end to end for continuity.

Also, possibly helpful:

Quality Measurement systems Quality 800 DRO Dying

Hi all, The Quality Measurement Systems Head, Quality 800 DRO, is dying on one of our Harrison M300 1340 lathes. It is the Display unit that is dying. I saw on more modern DRO heads, where adapters could be purchased to convert the round pin connectors to a D9 pin arrangement. My...
www.practicalmachinist.com
 
Martin w

Martin w

Well-Known Member
mickeyf said:
A couple of thoughts.
So the Y sender works on X, Y, or Z display? Have you also tried swapping all of the cables, or did you just plug the cable from the Y sender into the other displays? I'm guessing the cables have the same connector on each end?

From the photos, your display looks quite ...um, elderly. From Matt's post on HomeShopMachinist, I note that he not only replaced the sending unit, but decided that his cables were too old to be reliable. Your problem *might* be entirely in the elderly cables. If you have the technical specs, i.e., which signals are on which wires in the cables, it would be simple to either make an adapter or replace the cables entirely using connectors for a newer style display. Or you could just make new cables for your existing display by tracing the connections of the current cables, after first checking the cables for open faults by testing each pin end to end for continuity.

Also, possibly helpful:

Quality Measurement systems Quality 800 DRO Dying

Hi all, The Quality Measurement Systems Head, Quality 800 DRO, is dying on one of our Harrison M300 1340 lathes. It is the Display unit that is dying. I saw on more modern DRO heads, where adapters could be purchased to convert the round pin connectors to a D9 pin arrangement. My...
www.practicalmachinist.com
Click to expand...
Thank you, I will test the cables this weekend for continuity. Maybe the cables got pinched when they lifted it. They broke the table locking lever. I had to braze that when I got it. I have had this machine for 3-4 years now. I don't have digital readouts on any of my machines except this one. The Y axis readout seems very accurate. My eyes are having a hard time reading the dials anymore. The travadial was removed long before I bought it. Probably when they installed this system in 1978? The ways are excellent, and a new elevating nut and rod were installed before I bought it.
Martin
 
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