Step 36 - Software Toolchain Part 3 - The toolchain concept

Happy Halloween! At this point, you should have the control software that is described in Software Part 1 or Software Part 2. Software part 1 shows the process to install Mach3 and Software Part 2 shows the process to install a Linux control software application called EMC2. If you're still unsure what I'm talking about, then here is my detailed explanation of the entire workflow. Later posts will go ito greater detail and tutorial on each program.

The entire link from the design all the way to the motors and motion goes like this: First you need to design something. Lets say you want to cut out a square piece of wood that is 3/4" thick, 2" in length and 2" in width. You will first design the square in a Read on...

Maker Faire Experience

You know that feeling when you're just a little person arriving to Disney? My Maker Faire experience was better, even going through a serious illness. Indulge me for a moment while I have a flashback. I find myself continually browsing the internet, pulling up my feeds, printing the latest posts and reading the information like my wife would admire platinum on her finger. And all focused on technology, building, hacking, modding, robotics, mechatronics, mechanics and electronics. This faire is that and more! If you have a chance to travel the world and see something, see the Maker Faire, and if you're a frequent visitor to this website, I'm sure you wouldn't regret it.

Apparently, the Maker Faire will exhibit twice a year, first at San Mateo, California (near my stomping grounds at Berkeley) in the Spring, and second in Austin Texas in the Fall. Austin is nice and sunny that part of year, and San Mateo is nice all year-round which is located in the Bay Area, near San Francisco and Berkeley. Read on...

Builder's Spotlight: Dave C.'s CNC

Dave C. is building his CNC Router with patience and method. He is equipped with some nice tools to make sure the form and mechanics are perfect. When he first told me he was working with these power tools, I was very jealous and I wanted some fancy power tools for myself.

Dave's CNC machine is another alteration in the works. The bed of the CNC machine is stiffened by steel. He is using cross dowels for all of the connections. The rails are mechanically fastened to the rail support pieces. And he is using some Read More...

CNC Demonstration 1: Routing the P.COC Logo

You've got to be asking yourself, what is a P.COC logo? First of all, P.COC stands for Project for Complete Open CNC, and it also sounds like Peacock (the bird with beautiful feathers that open up, get it??). The graphical part of the logo uses a screw as the body of the bird and nuts to symbolize the feathers. My wife thinks it looks like the sun and I should lose the screw. The logo symbolizes the philosophy behind all that I do here, volunteer my time to show how to build a completely open source CNC routing machine. I have also designed a logo to be cut out on the CNC Router, and how cool would it be to initiate my demonstrations with that logo. Read More...

Step 35: Software Toolchain: EMC2 Under Linux

Before I get farther in the software toolchain for the Windows operating system, I will cover the primary software for Linux. If you are partial to Linux, or you think Linux is some kind of animal and don't know what the heck I'm talking about, this alternative software toolchain may interest you. This tutorial would not be complete without covering the open source side of CNC computer controls. You may find that using EMC2 (the CNC control that runs under Linux) may be a bit more problematic than Mach3 since there is limited CAD (design software) out there for the Linux operating system. Read More...

Builder's Spotlight: Lucan's CNC Router

I was doing my usual research around the net, you know... to pass some time very late at night, and I came across a member of cnczone.com building one of Joe's CNC machines, and to my surprise, he was using the design from this site. I was very proud to say the least. This CNC router is setup very nicely, with a vacuum attachment and a few other interesting modifications. Lucan has also been cutting out an enormous amount of parts on this machine. He is in real production.

Since Lucan has had a bit of experience on this design and build, I asked him to give me some feedback as to any possible limitations of the machine, and all that he has learned. I also wanted to know Read More...

Mach3 and LazyCAM sales

To further my efforts in this arena and help support this everything CNC project, I am adding the Mach3 and LazyCAM to my stuff for sales repertoire. Many viewers write me and ask which software package I would recommend. I can tell you that this is a totally non-biased answer because I was a die-hard EMC2 user until I started to play with Mach3. Don't get me wrong, I still like EMC2, but Mach3 saves me so much time, especially with LazyCAM. Read more...

Jacob R.'s CNC Router Machine AutoCAD Drawing File

Thanks to Jacob R. we have an AutoCAD drawing file that contains the measurements and elements that he used on his machine. The link to the file is on his page here.