How do you align your axes?

LowRider CNC Advice
#1

how do you align your axes?

i mean Y and Z axis. are you using autosquaring with 2 endstops or how do you solve that?

#2

I use the hard stops that are built in, my belt block has a few layers of tape on it to shim it to more perfect than I can measure over a 4’ diagonal.

#3

Was watching a YouTube video where a guy has installed limit switches. I think this was the one https://youtu.be/c1J9e-lmO3A

#4

You can use switches but I have found it easier not to bother. I square it, power it up, drive it to the starting position and run.

If you use switches you have to do all that in CAD / CAM. Doing it in CAD CAM means you need to know the position of your material ahead of time. That is just not how I work, but some do.

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#5

Same here, hard stops and just a few moments of care at startup is all I do. Easy peasy.

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#6

Thank you for that clarification on the difference between switchless and switches.
My SainSmart 3018-Pro has no switched and I run it the way you describe. So this should be easy, just larger format.

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#7

I went through the trouble of adding in switches and stuff for the long side and the z. It was a lot of fun to push a button and watch it square and level itself, but only with the trouble for 2 cases, imo.

  1. you recognize there is plenty to learn, and want to learn it
  2. you just like doing that stuff
    For everything related to actually running the lowrider, hard stops are simpler, easier, cheaper, faster to set up, and less likely to need more fiddling down the road.
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#8

Hard stops at the end of the table for Y. My table was not square at the edge so I had to position the blocks off the edge to achieve squareness. Z I just make sure it is all the way down before engaging steppers. Also added a “Enable steppers” item in my custom menu to lock everything in. Will add dual endstops eventually but it is not at all necessary.

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