MDF CNC Router plans / parts for home build beginners

[irving2008]

Its a nice idea Steve, but if this is CNC for beginners then my 2p is that this complicates things - the device you show is still only a controller, you still need the stepper drivers, and I would argue most who are interested in building a CNC machine have access to a PC.

I think concentrating the electronics side on either sourcing a cheap driver set or, complementing the intent of the design, a cheap, easy to build, set of drivers would be better value. There is a wealth of knowledge about EMC and MACH3 and, esp in the case of EMC, there are a lot of cheap PC available to run the free software. Indeed, for real low cost, EMC2 (free) on a PC sourced from eBay has got to be a better option - there's a good selection of P3 and P4 systems which would run EMC available for <£100 and some as low as £30.

[Wobblybootie]

Steve, I know it would involve more work by yourself and those who could assist you but why not offer both the Pendant and the EMC2 options. Let the folks choose.

I for one like the idea of the Pendant (I am thinking of the dust problem which would not be so much of a worry for those who will be machining metals etc.) It may not be something I can implement straight off but to have the option would be great.

[John S]

there's a good selection of P3 and P4 systems which would run EMC available for <£100 and some as low as £30.

Agreed you only need to look around.

I just bought a stack of these for an average price of £38 and these were complete systems with TFT monitors and a licensed copy of XP

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=170476010886

That's cheaper than a copy of XP. Nice thing was they were only 15 miles away so well worth the trip to collect and save shipping.

[irving2008]

Agreed you only need to look around.

I just bought a stack of these for an average price of £38 and these were complete systems with TFT monitors and a licensed copy of XP

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=170476010886

That's cheaper than a copy of XP. Nice thing was they were only 15 miles away so well worth the trip to collect and save shipping.

And with XP SP2 going out of support now and Windows7 SP1 due soon, there will be a lot of ex-corporate desktops coming available in the next year, perfect for EMC2/Linux or MACH3/XP...