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I look forward to your working unit..:-)

As for the z-axis, the precise control may not be necessary if a proper floating head is used for constant milling depth... drilling is a no brainer...

Typical 4-colors inkjet printers have 1440/2880dpi resolution and most have their nozzles staggered. I would expect a 1440 dpi printer to have optical encoder that is 1440/4->360lpi and the 2880 dpi...

Nice test there... inkjet works in 'clean' mode... our cnc does not... dust/chip will be flying all over the place... the encoder will have to be protected from it... :-)

While it is technically possible to do it, the main problem is coupling the flimpsy plastic optical slot inside the mouse to anything else. Another issue that the optical encoder on the PCB has been...

If you get clean 5V signal then all is okay for your to start experimenting... you may need to provide 5V pull-up resistors for some parallel port...

Hi All,

All you want to know about the DIY laser burner is here http://www.laserpointerforums.com
The forum is very active. Check out the Experiments & Modifications section.

Regards,

Hi Steve,

Here's my plan... since I don't do such models, your feedback on my approach is critical... the programming part is easy :-)

I'll used a PIC microcontroller coupled with the...

Hi Steve,

I agree with Russel that a micro would do exactly what you want. I would use the LMD18200 H-bridge with 3A max current. Voltage control using PWM so you can vary the speed of the...

Hello Jacob,

Yes, I'm using tap water as coolant. I added the automotive radiator coolant additive to the water to give it some anti rust property.

I do not blow out the water after every...

I've got a smaller unit... only 850W... got it locally here, not from homeshopcnc...

Specs should be similar although mine doesn't have the grease/lubrication inlet... I believe the minimum...

Mr Wild,

The DVD burner laser option also triggered my laser interest earlier... however, even over driving them (which will reduce the life of the laser) you possibly get around 400mW of...

Looking forward to see more information here on the thread... been looking for low cost laser to add to my growing number of toys...

Here's what I used for semi precise workpiece alignment... Modification information is here

Will something like this works for you? It's basically a non-permanent sticky pad (think Post-It note) meant to hold down plastic sheet for engraving...
More details here

I have two programmers... latest from this site...
So far so good... just be careful when using it... not well protected like the original stuff...

The zip file contains
- the PCB design and components placement
- sample label above (with the mistake corrected)
- the hex file to burn into the PIC16F628

Did the label works last night... The label was printed on color laser printer and subsequently laminated on one side with laminating machine... Punched the LED holes with paper puncher... The...

Somebody ask me for a little more detail on the setup at my blog, so here I go...

4 top right hand switches are connected to PIC, i.e., Axis +, Axis -, Axis Select, Jog Mode
4 PIC outputs are...

My current thinking on label and buttons mapping...

Speedre,

I don't really know the actual name but here's the description from Digikey...
SWITCH TACT SPST 12MM MOM N/O The TACT stands for tactile...
I just browse in parts store here and...

Mr Chip,
Checkout my new pendant in progress on this thread...
Decided to do away with the potentiometer plans... not required after testing the design without it... Still thinking on suitable...

In the process of building my own homebrew pendant to work with Mach3 on my small Sherline mill. It uses a PIC to simulate the quadrature signal normally associated with regular MPG... Tested the...

Hello all,

I own a Sherline mill for months already. It always bothers me whenever I have to center the spindle to a marked point... I never seems to get it to be accurate... I have edge/center...

Hi dex918,

Please recycle (nuts)... take the encoder only, pass the rest to the cat :rainfro:

I still want to make another pendant using PIC microcontroller with just switches and...

For pendant or MPG use, you can just use the mouse center wheel encoder... details on this thread http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=51494

Just bear in mind that it's not suitable for...

Mr Chips,

Here the wiring diagram... hope it's correct... I didn't use it to wire... drawn from memory :rainfro:

I connected the pendant to the 2nd parallel port where Mach3 allow pin 2-9 as...

Here's the outcome... a pendant that can be operated single handed...
The 4 buttons are used as follows:
1. Axis toggle (X, Y, Z)
2. MPG mode toggle(velocity, step/velocity, single, multiple)...

Wow... so many interest huh... My apology for this delayed response. Was on the beach last weekend so didn't managed to get anything done...

First, some comments...

1. Peter: I'm aware of...

I'm in a process of building a MPG pendant for Mach3. Not willing to pay high price for the industrial encoder, I crack open an optical mouse and found that the center wheel encoder can be easily...

Probably the stepper motor is not wired correctly. Take one pair of the stepper motor wires and flip the connections, i.e., if original wiring is 1-2-3-4 then wire it as 1-2-4-3 or 2-1-3-4


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