I’ve used 3Dprinters for a long time, but this MPCNC thing has me totally lost. I still do not understand the sequence of Estlcam and Repetier. I also have no idea how to prep something to cut it out. I know I have to home the device but where this happens is a loss to me. Both of these apps are soooo confusing and non intuitive. I’ve read many posts, but really need a MPCNC for dummies video. Do they exist. Piecing multiple out of context posts, internet searches, etc has me to the point where I’m nearly ready to sell this thing. I’m a technical person, but this is a loser for me.
The basic flow is: CAD (make the design) → CAM Turn the design into gcode (EstlCAM for most folks) → Transfer the gcode to the machine, (Repetier-Host OR place on SD card and put into the controller board ) → home the machine (this squares the axes and sets the machine 0,0) , and move the tool to the work area origin (then reset the machine coordinates so it starts your operation at that point, which does not need to be the machine homing 0,0).
The transfer process can also be done with wifi and the machine can be connected to a PC or other computer and the gcode transferred over USB.
Glad you’re asking questions! It’s not a problem here! We are a great community that wants everyone else to have success with these machines.
Create or find a vector graphic (DXF, SVG are common)
CAM that work to produce g-code
Deliver the g-code to the machine
While it has a few additional tricks, Repetier-Host’s primary purpose is to send the g-code to your machine. Personally, I avoid Repetier-Host and just use an SD card to run my jobs. This keeps my laptop out of my dirty shop.
Estlcam takes your vector graphics and creates the g-code. It takes the place of what a slicer does for 3D printing. Given the number of different router bits and materials, CAM is more complex than a slicer, but conceptually it fills that role.
Create your own crown g-code file using Estlcam, using the instructions Ryan provides. Run the file using a pen to verify.
Create your own g-code file starting from some simple vector file and EstlCAM…a heart for example. Run the file using a pen to verify.
Install your router. Setup feed and speed for the bit you want to use in Estlcam. Using the same vector graphics as #3, carve the graphic in foam.
Adjust the feeds and speeds and run the job from step #4 job in scrap wood.
The biggest mistake we see of people starting out is not setting the origin relative to the stock. There are multiple ways of accomplishing the task. One way is to position the router bit at the job origin and then put a G92 X0 Y0 Z0 at the top of the file is one way.
Disclaimer: Not all CNC work uses vector graphics, Relief carving is more complex and uses either 3D models (STLs) or grayscale height maps.
Hey guys, thanks for the help. I understand the fundamentals of the machine know what your code is, do a lot of graphic design, build vector graphics all the time. My real challenge is figuring out how the hell the two windows apps that do the majority of the work make this stuff happen. I have a shaper origin I’ve used for two years so I’m familiar with file formats, design etc.
I just really struggle with where the two apps start and stop. They both seem to do the same thing. I’ve seen posts about creating macros, etc. where?
With p 3d printers you define home once and place accordingly. It seems that I have to set home for every job and that confuses me. I can control the device sometimes with reveries and other times it doesn’t work. All the while, the gui on the tft attached to the board always works.
I just don’t see how to consistently produce work with the apps.
Ps, did the crown and that worked. After that nothin.
In estlcam your drawing home position typically defaults to lower left. You can move the origin if you want. You home your cnc to wherever you mount the lower left of your workpiece so everything is relative to that home point. That way you don’t have to measure how far from home you screwed down your wood part. 3d printing doesn’t matter as long as it sticks. Sometimes you don’t have a board the size of your work area. I made a cribbage board out of a small piece of oak and mounted it on the table, then set zero on it’s corner and cut.
Import the vector art into ESTLcam (usually an SVG file).
In ESTLcam tool chest, create a tool entry for the bit you will cut with.
In ESTLcam, click whether you want to cut a hole (inside cut), a pocket (inside also, but not all the way through), or a part (outside cut), or etc. There is also a choice for “drill” and for “engrave” (which can either follow the path directly — neither inside nor outside — or can be inside or outside as you choose), and even for v-carve work (like a pocket, but the height varies as needed to cut the pocket with a V-shaped bit). The inside/outside offset will be based on the tool you created and chose.
Click on a path of your imported artwork, and it assigns the tool you chose to use, and with an offset (or not) based on the cut approach you chose. You can then add a total depth for that particular cut path, and whether or not to use a finishing pass, and you can also dictate where tabs go (or not) and how wide and thick they are. You can later deselect/select that path or others to make changes. Cut paths are logically distinct from the original art, but take their shape from the original art.
Click to output the GCode file for your cut. “File > Save CNC Program”
Put the outputted GCode file on an SD card and carry it to your CNC.
or … Use a communication tool / control tool (of which I think Repetier is one, but also ESTLcam can be one too) to both jog/move/control the device for setup, and to deliver the cut file to the CNC device.
There are probably lots of videos on YouTube on doing all this! Hope this helps!
PS: the drawing creation of the vector is considered CAD (computer aided drawing), and the prepping for the GCode cut file is considered CAM work (computer aided manufacturing).
With any kind of technology I’m struggling with, I start with the simplest working example I can find, and build from there. Let me suggest a simple starting point to help you move forward.
Using an 8 1/2" piece of paper, draw a rectangle about 1/2" inside on all the edges of the paper. This rectangle will represent your “stock.”
Tape your paper to your spoilboard aligning the X axis with the long side of the paper.
Before turning on the electronics place your pen point on the lower left corner of your rectangle with the pin tip just above the paper. You care going to be physically moving the router, and you will twist the lead screw by hand. You are not going to use the electronics to move your router (they should be off).
You need to scale the crown to fit inside the rectangle on the paper. A size of 10" x 7.5" is roughly 250mm x 190mm.
You want your zero point to be in the lower left a bit beyond the crown.
As mentioned in Ryan’s writeup, you want to specify 1mm as your cut depth so the pen is lowered 1mm at the start of the job.
As mentioned in the writeup, you want to “File>Save CNC Program” to save your g-code to your windows hard disk.
Put the file on an SD card. The control board requires an SD card 16GB or smaller formatted to Fat32.
Turn your electronics on.
Put your display in Marlin mode. I suggest Marlin mode since the coordinates being displayed will come from Marlin. When using the TFT or Repetier-Host, the coordinates can deviate from those used by the control board. You can ignore the flashing question marks. Note that the coordinates are (0,0,0) with the router bit at the start point of your job.
Put your SD card in the display and run your job.
In these steps you did not need to: 1) home your machine, 2) set your home position relative to your stock, or 3) run Repetier-Host. The only learning curve is Estlcam.
Once you’ve successfully executed the above steps, you expand your situation:
Do the above steps, but instead of running off the SD card, run your job using Repetier-Host.
Do the abve steps (with or without Repetier-Host), but use some other DXF or SVG instead of the crown.
In my mind, you’re trying to learn and succeed. Things like the docs are trying to get you there. If we failed, the forums fill in the gap.
The coordinates primer, the gcode primer, they are helpful but they can be overwhelming. It’s a choose your own adventure doc. Sometimes that means people get a little lost. No big deal.
I’ve never judged anyone for not reading everything. As long as you are trying, you’ll get excellent help in the forums.
I have been following along and I love this thread, wish I had something to add but you are in good hands with this bunch. I don’t think I have anything to add other than once you get over this hump the first time it is all much easier.
Hi @willie and welcome to exactly where I was not so long ago. I am no more than a beginner and like you, for a time was completely overwhelmed by the new logic process.
Heck when I read some posts round here and the acronyms start to fly, it is a bit like being in a room with Mum and Dad spelling words they don’t want me to understand when talking in front of me.
My solution was to forget entirely about Repetier - I figured I could use the controller on my printer so the CNC one should not be too hard, and apart from repeatedly crashing things about after accidentally hitting “home” a zillion times that worked for me. Despite the documents mentioning somewhere (and possibly quite correctly) that it would be easier to drive the thing with Repetier - leaving out one layer of complication worked for me.
Next was my mental block with Estlcam - again there’s nothing wrong with that particular bit of software, and had I been able to get it to run on a Mac without layers of emulation I would probably have gone that way - it’s a language everyone round here seems to be born speaking. Instead, I found Kiri:Moto’s interface worked perfectly with my brain - it requires exactly the same inputs but it’s curious how much and interface can affect the way we use things.
Anyway FWIW that got me over the hump (and reading the documents a zillion times) and while I’ve barely used my machine, I now have the confidence to know I can!
Cheers and good luck with the coming hours, because that’s all it will take!
Willie, I’m in the EXACT same place! I’m an engineer and use CAD nearly daily, but getting from drawing to cutting… I’m lost. I came here to make the exact same post! Thank you. There was a disconnect I was having with Estlcam to Repetier, now from Mike’s comment I understand that Repetier is just the communication tool to the MPCNC. That helps. Am following this post closely!!
After just completing my Primo, I’m in the same place as Willie. My only critique after completing the process is the flow through the documentation. It seems that once construction is complete the documentation gets rather jumpy. For instance the “Software workflow” that Mike posted a link to above I had never seen. Please don’t let this critique be any judgement, I’m a total fanboy of the whole process, support, design, etc!
Not at all. Once the build is complete, that is when the use cases start to diverge. Always looking to rearrange the docs. I have a “new to CNC” page needing to get done. That should at least add a roadmap full of links.
