Uc100

So, I'm finally upgrading my workhorse office laptop and will have an old but functional Dell Latitude Win 7 machine spare as a result. In the workshop the CNC machines are controlled by an even more venerable Dell WinXP desktop through the parallel port, and I'm wondering about moving the laptop to the workshop and replacing the XP machine, controlling the machines using a USB motion controller. I aim to stick with Mach 3 because it works, I understand it reasonably well, and I've written some useful extra macros for tool setting. I'm interested in people's experience to help with this decision. Another option, though more expensive, would be an Ethernet controller.

1. Will the UC100 work OK with a Win 7 laptop (obviously I'm no longer using a parallel port and would need the appropriate plugins)?

2. Does the UC100 support the probing input properly? That's very important for me for tool setting, for both mill and lathe.

3. If I decide to ditch Mach 3 at some stage, has anyone experience of the UC100 with other CNC packages such as Mach 4?

Yes, I will ask the UC100 supplier the same questions but interested in customers' experience in the real world.

Thanks in advance for any help

Hello John.
It might be worth your while getting onto this forum.
https://www.forum.cncdrive.com/viewforum.php?f=1 lots of useful info there.
Cheers.
Andrew

Thanks Andrew - good suggestion.

real world- the uc300 eth is a superb controller. i would definately spend the extra and get ethernet version.
i have 3 machines running with it. (and 3 previous customers retrofits running it too) much better using the uccnc software too . its very similar to mach3 to use but without its flaws.
i have just ordered another 2 full systems for next machines to be retrofitted over xmas break.

Are you using the UB1 BOB with the UC300? I'm currently using a CSMIO-IP/M which forces me to use Mach3, but I have sometimes wondered about moving to UCCNC. If I then used a UC300ETH/UB1 combination, I think it would be pretty much electrically compatible with the CSMIO, differential stepper driver signalling and 24V I/O operation, etc. I believe that it can also manage slave axis homing, which the CSMIO-IP/M cannot do.

I use the new uccb 24v io boards (cncdrive)
Very easy and very robust
Can handle 24v and 5v inputs

johnhaine: the uc 100 is only a single port- so your restricting the amount of io you have available- if you require probing etc.
uccnc has 2 probe inputs available.
the uc300 eth runs faster, supports encoder threading and has 5 ports of io available plus analogues. (this is what id recommend)
i use the 300 on the fast routers and the mill. (rigid tapping and atc , probing etc) all work great!

the uccb from cnc drive handles both 5v and 24v io. so makes wiring etc a doddle . it also has very fast opto isolators.
http://shop.cncdrive.com/index.php?categoryID=86.

Thanks everyone for your replies - quite a lot of food for thought!

If I was you, I'd get the UC400 or the UC300ETH. The UC100 works, but it is a USB based, which you might experience problems with. Probing works with any of them, so that should not be an issue. I thing UCCNC is better than Mach3 or Mach4, but that may depend on what you are planning to do and how your machine is.

I am using UC300ETH, used UC300USB as well, but the ETH is much better.