Stepper controller to manually input a specific degree

[m_c]

I don't really see much point in using the above methods when you can just use a computer you found in the skip, connect the parallel port a cheap stepper driver and run it on mach3 / linuxcnc. You don't even need a breakout board if you use an opto isolated driver (e.g. m542) and the parallel port is old enough to output 5V.

Convenience. With a standalone controller, you just need to plug it in and go, with none of the faff involved with setting up a computer. Then when you're finished, you can unplug it, put it back on the shelf/in the drawer and forget about it.

[Jonathan]

Convenience. With a standalone controller, you just need to plug it in and go, with none of the faff involved with setting up a computer. Then when you're finished, you can unplug it, put it back on the shelf/in the drawer and forget about it.

Yeah obviously it's more convenient, and if it's cheap then fair enough... but spending upwards of £192 on the DivisionMaster for convenience is the wrong priority in my opinion.

[Web Goblin]

A stand alone control system is what I'm after and it looks like this will do the trick. Just had a rake about in the loft and found my old picstart programmer but I dont have the correct pic at the moment so cant try the program yet.

[Jonathan]

It shouldn't take much work to get it to run on a different PIC, but still probably not worth it...

[irving2008]

I did actually rework it to run on a different PIC ( IIRC from F477? to F452?) for my own, unfinished (and likely to now remain so), 4th axis. As I recall it was a case of changing header and fuse files and recompiling. But for the fiver or so the right PIC costs you're right it isn't worth it. (before anyone asks the files are currently inaccessible to me as pc in storage).

It shouldn't take much work to get it to run on a different PIC, but still probably not worth it...