New Deckel FP2ANC

[jefFP2ANC]

Hello everyone,
two months ago i came across a Deckel Fp2A Contour 3 Dialog 4 (Grundig).
I've been dreaming of a CNC machine for hobby use for a few years and took my chances with this one.
Knowing very little about the subject of CNC it has been a nice learning experience.
All the books including technical schematics came with the machine.(in German)
I'm belgian (flemish), and luckily with a bit of creative reading , the german language is understandable.

After reading some topics on this beautiful forum, it is time to make a first post.

About the machine:
it was originally bought by the belgian defence forces, was sold off at auction and was again auctioned off. The guy i bought it from is a engineer who rebuilds milling machines.
He gave this one a good cleaning and maintenance and used it barely for two years at his home shop.
It has 512 !! spindle hours.
I got a feeling i'm extremely lucky since it has the 2212-900 dividing head on it.


There is however no regular table, nor do i have the counter support beam or counter center holder for the dividing head.(looking for these)

Anyway, i'm now looking to connect the machine to a pc, since i have solidworks.
When searching the forum i found numerous helpful topics about this subject,
so i will now attempt this, and will post any questions here.
Best regards from belgium, jef

edit, the machine is not mounted to the ceiling

 

[Degull]

Very nice!! Congrats on the new machine! Please make a video of it running and post for our viewing pleasure!

 

[jefFP2ANC]

I will surely post some videos, i will find a way to make them smaller..
first small batch is in bronze, for making kindling with the cordless drill (t was Christmas time and made these to hand out)

 

[DeadMahoDude]

Those splitting screws seem like the perfect task for that NC dividing head.
Likely one line of G-code
After you collect a couple of NC deckels, this would be the perfect backup machine for such tasks...

 

[jefFP2ANC]

Yes, i'm just beginning to learn G code, and was pleasantly surprised.
I hope i can make room for some more Deckels, but for now i've got my hands full.

If anyone has any documentation, or a picture of the hydraulic drawbar of the dividing head?
The hydraulic connection is there on the bottom of the dividing head, but the drawbar is missing.
I would love to make it so i can put the 3 jaw etc on there (on the short cone)with the drawbar instead of bolting (now there is a flange inbetween).
best regards jef

 

[Martin P]

Hi,
I have never seen a Dialog control machine with an hour counter. Probably installed by the customer.
Your SW level is very very old, like the very first one. Normally they were updated several times, but being a government machine that did not happen.
Did they at least activate the graphics?
The NC indexer with hydraulics is very rare. I'd appreciate a picture of the drawbar.
The indexer could be purchased without overarm. Does it have the locator pins?
Overarms and tailstocks are rarer than the indexer itself.
Also, what chuck is on the indexer. It seems to need a very unusual chuck with front mounting bolts, which I could never find (used).

Nice score, keep it forever.

 

[jefFP2ANC]

Hello Martin,
For clarity the hour counter is on the side of the electrical cabinet, not on the Dialog control (console).
I can get simple graphics, very similar to the ones on the flip booklet on the console.
Have you any idea if that would make things impossible to hook it up to a computer for uploading programs? (i'm looking into this, but am also al little hesitant since i dont want to mess things up. i'm new to this and very happy the machine works as is.)

Well i have no drawbar now, so i cannot give you a picture for now. But i am keeping my eyes open and looking for one.

The indexer has locator pins indeed. I dont have a need for the overarm and tailstock yet, but i can see it happening on some rainy sunday morning.

For now there is a modified (drilled through front to back) röhm 250mm chuck on there, but it is not mounted directly on the indexer. there is a face plate inbetween (universal mounting plate...).

This is a dream come true, so i will indeed keep it forever and pass it on.

 

[Martin P]

Of course you can connect to a computer, that has nothing to do with graphics.

The connection is under the console.
There are lots of threads here on how to do that.
When the machine has sat for so long, make sure all the oil fittings let oil through. I have a machine here right now that sat for 7 years and the central lubrication valves were all stuck not letting any oil pass.

 

[jefFP2ANC]

I Still have the machine, has worked some, no issues.
I have replaced the batteries just to be sure. Oiling is OK, thanks for your sound advice Martin.
Not connected to the pc yet, since i have learned some gcode, and the things i make are really not complicated.
And now for the big exciting news!
Also bought another Deckel! FP4NC Dialog3
I'll make a post about it, and not wait so long to reply
best regards

 

[AlfaGTA]

My 2 bits worth is that the FP4NC was one of the best tool room CNC mills ever......Too bad its a D3.
FP4NC with D4 and DNC option is the bomb....
Cheers Ross

 

[jefFP2ANC]

Hi Ross,
the machine comes from a school and is in excellent mechanical condition.
There are some electronics problems, solved some, some persist, i will make a post but am still documenting.
Replaced all batteries, and i can move it with the pendulum, but the buttons on the control panel do nothing.
The idea is to use a CS-lab controller and retrofit this Deckel. But it would be nice to have it fully functional before the retrofit.
The Fp2 works fine, so there is no pressure in converting this one, but it would be nice.
Best regards jef

 

[AlfaGTA]

i am sure you know this already, but the axis move push buttons only work when the control is in mode 5 or 6.
be sure that your feed ove ride knob is turned up. If its all the way to the left (down) you will have zero feed.
Cheers Ross

 

[jefFP2ANC]

Thank you for your time Ross, but i made sure the controls are in the proper setting,
i'll make a detailed post now, since there are other factors coming into play .
greetings, jef

 

[jefFP2ANC]

Link to the new thread

Deckel FP4NC troubleshooting - console buttons not working

Hello, i bought a defective FP4NC. It was claimed it would not startup because of defective screen. After putting it in place, we hooked up a secondary tv to see what is happening. The existing tv was all compressed vertically. (i will order the TDA1170s chip and replace it...

www.practicalmachinist.com

 

[liuhaosd]

Hello everyone,
two months ago i came across a Deckel Fp2A Contour 3 Dialog 4 (Grundig).
I've been dreaming of a CNC machine for hobby use for a few years and took my chances with this one.
Knowing very little about the subject of CNC it has been a nice learning experience.
All the books including technical schematics came with the machine.(in German)
I'm belgian (flemish), and luckily with a bit of creative reading , the german language is understandable.

After reading some topics on this beautiful forum, it is time to make a first post.

About the machine:
it was originally bought by the belgian defence forces, was sold off at auction and was again auctioned off. The guy i bought it from is a engineer who rebuilds milling machines.
He gave this one a good cleaning and maintenance and used it barely for two years at his home shop.
It has 512 !! spindle hours.
I got a feeling i'm extremely lucky since it has the 2212-900 dividing head on it.


There is however no regular table, nor do i have the counter support beam or counter center holder for the dividing head.(looking for these)

Anyway, i'm now looking to connect the machine to a pc, since i have solidworks.
When searching the forum i found numerous helpful topics about this subject,
so i will now attempt this, and will post any questions here.
Best regards from belgium, jef

edit, the machine is not mounted to the ceiling

Hello!
I also have an FP2A Contour 3 of the same model
Similarly, I am also connecting the machine to the PC, and I am using SOLIDWORKS to generate the tool path using CAMWORKS. I have made many improvements regarding the post-processing of generating Contour3 or Dialogue 4. We can communicate this point, and I am afraid that the EPROM program of the CNC system may be lost over time. Recently, I have been preparing to backup the EPROM. I have looked at the pictures you sent, and the version number of the CNC system is the same as mine. I hope there can be a connection,
Thank you!