motion control - advice please

[dazp1976]

Getting the Mesa you want in the UK will probably be tricky or end up with a heafty import charge.
See how you get on with Linux, you want to be really sure it's for you before committing. I'd want the 7I80HD I believe.

I must sdmit, I have not tried using Mach3 turn with my UC300eth. I use the ucbb with mine on ports 1&2 for all the axis signalling.
Now, for the input ports however. I use these for signalling:
https://m.aliexpress.com/item/4000386156984.html?
My controls use 24v for relays, sensors, servo, etc.
A 24vin>5vout, 24 channel, npn, plugged in to the inputs on ports 4&5.
You can also opt for a 5vin>24vout 8 channel version to use on the outputs of ports 4&5 if wanted.
There are plenty of different types of these plc boards around fairly cheap.
I'm saving port3 for a high speed version later on.

[opentoideas]

More great info - thank you

well I have the LinuxCNC CD burned and been into the live version to check latency which seems ok. time to swap HDD and do an install and see how it works....

as I have both a lathe and mill to control UCCNC not having a turn component is a bit of a showstopper for me. I know its in the works but I also appreciate there is no timeline and it may never happen so for now it looks like Mach3 or LinuxCNC are the options - I would rather spend the time familiarising on a single control option rather than using 2 different ones as the potential for human error switching between them is high - its easy to forget lol

while I like the comfy Windows environment its not like this PC will be doing anything other than machine control so Linux may not be so bad...

getting any motion control in the UK seems to be difficult and while I have licenced Mach3 it came with the mill so its not like I have invested in it and I have to learn it as well.

I probably have a few weeks of messing around to figure things out before I make the purchase so any and all feedback is great. so many options!