I am looking for a lowrider GRBL Configuration using a Mega 2560 with a Ramps 1.4 board including the Reprap 12864 display - you website says little or nothing about such a setup - although I have seen videos where the LCD Display + SDCard is used to ‘feed’ the files to be milled out.
Is it your intention to provide such a setup in the near future?
Ryan’s preconfigured firmware is from here: https://github.com/Allted/Marlin
The 12864 is just called the LCD around here.
So for RAMPS, and LCD and Dual endstops, it would be: MPCNC_Ramps_T8_16T_LCD_32step_DualEndstop
The 32step is for drv8825s, but you can just half the value if you have another driver that doesn’t go to 32nd microstepping (like the a4988s).
I am running a GRBL setup now. I dump the Lowrider II setup and built the Rhino!!! I cannibalized the LRII hard wares and table and converted it to my new machine. Its running with an OPEN BUILD Black BOX Controller. It can auto home with this setup and do repeated cuts very easy. I had so much problem with the LWII and its cutting capabilities. I always had to monitor and babysit it constantly when it was running. Now I just program it and load it into the OpenBuild CAM software and let it run.
I got this setup from thingiverse and made some small modification to it. The Black Box Controller is so easy to setup and it have so many features I can expand in the future (laser or plasma cutter)!
Peter
I’m actually 3 parts through building a Root 3 Lite CNC and having difficulty (research-wise) in finding Marlin software to run it.
I came (or am coming?) very close to a Lowrider build on a smaller scale - I just love the design of the Lowrider, very inspirational! Maybe my next build…?
However, being as far down the line as I am with the R3Lite, I thought I really ought to finish it.
This is why I instgated this post, I can’t seem to find any really easy Marlin setup which would solely be required for CNC work.
I am also want to try to run this machine ‘headless’ in the same way as I use my 3D Printer (Prusa Clone) by transferring gcode onto an SD card and then running it through the LCD Screen SD card slot. This is what appears to happen on many of the videos I’ve watched here.
I’ve played a lot already with Marlin (with steppers on the bench) to get the whole thing working electronically before actually beginning to put the machine to work. Can’t say I have been successful as yet, but I am getting closer as time goes by. Just can’t seem to ‘get rid’ of all the 3D Printer stuff that’s included in the standard Marlin Releases.
Jeffeb3 above suggested Ryan’s preconfigured firmware earlier, but when I look at the Config.h file there, it seems that all the 3DP stuff is still included. Am I right in thinking these machines are actually running 3D printing setups and you have ignore all the Menu Commands that relate to 3D printing?
I’m still far from clear in my own mind what to be expecting should I go down the route of following Jeffeb3’s suggestion.
Can anyone put me straight on this please?
You don’t need to get rid of anything. 3D printers are CNC machines. The only thing we do is fake a thermistor value of 170C, other than that nothing needs to be added or taken away.
Wow! I never ever, for one minute, thought it would be as simple as that!
I have wasted so many hours trying to ‘ditch’ all the stuff I thought to be irrelevant (for CNC operation) in Marlin and subsequently - and unsuccessfully - trying to compile in the Arduino IDE, I have lost count.
On the other hand, the experience has been ‘useful’ shall we say. Frustratingly tedious, but a good mental exercise. I’m 77 years young this year and still playing like I’m still a kid - and I LOVE every single minute of it. Lets face it, whats better, a brain workout with Marlin or a stupid SODUKU magazine?
Ryan, many thanks for unlocking the secret for me - I’m awaiting a new board at the moment so can’t try anything out yet but I now have hope I can do what I want to do…
Many many thanks…
I really want to be able to work on software projects when I retire. That’s the life for me. Kudos to you for trying that with Marlin.
Fairly new to CNC here but have finally worked up the courage to post. I just ordered the MiniRAMBo to drive my lowrider CNC and am curious if anyone has had any luck flashing the GRBL firmware on it? I THINK I will be better off if it was flashed with the GRBL firmware rather than Marlin because I have experience controlling CNC machines through a host program such as Linux CNC but am not familiar with LCD and SD controllers. I have not found a good host program that can run Marlin on Windows 10. (I would like to stay away from Pronterface, Cura, & Simplify3D) and am thinking the universal gcode sender (USG) will be an easy option to use with the GRBL firmware. Any guidance here or reccamended programs that can opporate as a host for Marline would be greatly appreciated.
Not sure why you want to stay away from pronterface, but repetier host works well. So does octoprint and cnc.js, which are both installed in my v1pi image.
The mini rambo hasn’t been ported, afaik. The grbl for mega is close, but you have to figure out the pin mapping, and set the digipots.
I did have grbl on my LR when I first made it. It was very similar to the setup I had on the MPCNC and there was not much difficulty in the configuration.
Thanks for the response Jeffeb3. Unfortunately I am still having issues and am hoping for some more suggestions/guidance. The shop space I have access to does not have wifi so that rules out anything web based. I have tried pronterface and repetier but unfortunately neither of them will respond to my gcode files properly. I am using MeshCAM to extrude 2d DXF files and produce the gcode. See attached picture of the gcode and DXF file in MeshCAM and also the gcode file uploaded into pronterface. Repetier will upload the gcode but will not display any print (or in my case, tool path) lines.
It is important that I am able to produce gcode from the DXF files and get them to the router. It really feels like I’m cornered here but I know there has to be a way. Any help is greatly appreciated.
The tools Ryan has guides for: EstlCAM, repetier host, work fine with the mini rambo without any wifi. You should look at how he sets them up, at least, to see if you can get them working.
There used to be a v1pi with a hotspot, so you could connect to the pi directly, but I didn’t get it working in the latest version, and I haven’t spent time to fix it. Sorry.
Otherwise, you can buy another controller. There are lots of grbl options. There is even an esp32 grbl board for the mpcnc that would work great and has good support from it’s creator on slack.
Hi!
That seems like a really sturdy design… I could not find the plans for this machine on Thingiverse or any other place searching for Rhino cnc… Would you be willing to share where you found this?
I am searching for a machine that can be used without babysitting, and will chech out the open box controller for sure.
You need to babysit cnc machines. The bits start fires really quickly and wood is a good fuel. There are lots of good videos on cnc fires. I’ve had a close call and there are a few others here that also have started fires. A smoke alarm or webcam won’t warn you fast enough. Please stay safe.
I know its been a while since I first raised this topic and I have stuck to my guns and carried on with my Root 3 Lite until finished - which it now is. I still think I might just make a lowrider yet, but I have one more problem to sort out on the R3Lite which I hope someone here might just be able to help me sort out. the support here is better than anywhere else as far as I can see - at least people give their own (usually very helpful) advice.
My problem is that I am trying to setup mesh bed leveling on my R3Lite, but because my Z Minimum is set at the top of the Z axis, whenever I try and start the leveling process, the first thing that happens is the Z axis tries to go upwards (against the Z Endstop switch) and the whole thing comes to a shuddering halt!
This is because conventionally, a CNC machine has its zero at the top of the Z travel which is where I have my Z MIN endstop wired- whereas a 3D printer has its Zero approx 0.2mm above the printing surface. To be honest, I don’t even have a Z MAX endstop (because that is the end I am cutting through).
OK, I know I can put the milling bit on the surface of the workpiece, set my origins from there and let it run. But, I want to be able to apply a mesh bed map to take out any ‘out of level’ inaccuracies before I start. I only do very light engraving and it is rare for me to go much deeper than 1.0 mm in any project, hence the need for the leveling function to work
Can anyone help me out in trying to get this working the way I would lke it to work - I’m using a Ramps Compatible Board (MKS Gen L V1.0) running on Marlin 1.1.x and everything works just fine via the LCD (and Pronterface when connected) - with the exception of the bed leveling.
Hopefully someone has already had this problem and managed to sort it out successfully. Any help would be so greatly appreciated, it is beginning to annoy me now…
