Are there still not issues with qtplasmaC on a Pi? PlasmaC good enough?
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Yeah, that’s what I was referring to.
Before qtplasmac there were two gui front end options, axis and gmoccapy, I think axis would work with the rpi but gmoccapy (which was my preference) would not. Also, I don’t think the config wizards would work on the rpi so you would have to build your configs on another machine and copy over. This was a while ago when I played with it, I could be wrong.
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Well it’s time to redesign my torch mount. A little sunlight through the window, time, and pressure from the spring has caused my top plate to warp.
I also had problems where sometimes the rods would pop out of the plastic holders.
Any suggestions?
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Thanks! Are there any tried-and-true mini PCs that work with LinuxCNC?
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I would love to get something small with a touchscreen. My laptop looks to have a bit of a timing issue so it is boarder line acceptable.
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Maybe an Odroid N2+
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I’m using a lattepanda alpha with mach4. I believe it’s supposed to work with Linux cnc.
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I have a 7" touchscreen (1024X600) that I have connected to a mini-itx mobo. The whole thing fits in a box about 9" square and 2.5" tall. A nice case for it is an upcoming project for the CNC.
Originally, the touchscreen was bought for use with a Raspberry Pi, but that project has been shelved for a very long time, so I hooked it up to a little mini itx system, which gives me an i5 instead of a Pi 3. (Or 4, I have a couple of those now.) It’s currently running Linux Mint Cinnamon, but I don’t have LinuxCNC on it.
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I’ve tried and failed to nail anyone down on an answer to that. It would be nice to just order something from amazon that we know will work. It’s hard because the older stuff tends to actually be better suited for the real-time requirements… I guess the newer and faster stuff gets the more layers of complexity get added in that gets in linuxcnc’s way.
Last I checked the odroid h2+ was said to be a good option but due to the chip shortages I couldn’t find it anywhere in stock at that time.
I followed this guy Stefan Cymbaluk who used to post videos of builds he was doing, he seemed to have good luck buying $100 gigabyte mini pc’s off of ebay (j1900 brix). It doesn’t look like he posts anymore and his instagram account is down.
qtplasmac was designed with touch screen in mind. The ASUS VT168H was recommended when I asked about that here: MonoKrom - QtPyVCP GUI for PlasmaC and Mill - Page 8 - LinuxCNC
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After $14.99 and quite a few expletives I’ve got a working remote pendant! This thing will probably need a write up of it’s own, in the end it’s pretty simple to setup I just made things hard on myself.
Sorry for no video, in it’s current configuration it requires two thumbs to jog the gantry and I didn’t have enough hands for jogging + holding the phone
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That is awesome! Having a handheld jog-controller has been on my ‘list’ for sometime… but I have yet to get that far on my ‘list’.
Just a heads up for anyone following this is a guide
(As of 1/4/2022)
A user at the linuxcnc forums has put together a walkthrough for installing linuxcnc on the MX Linux 19 distribution. This walkthrough is geared to windows users without linux experience. He also has geared this tutorial toward a qtplasmac install with a mesa 7i96!
From the chatter I gather that there are problems with the default debian distribution provided at the linuxcnc.org downloads page that I most recently mentioned. Really just minor annoyances from my experience so far but I’m also fairly comfortable in linux, ymmv. Also, I’ve previously mentioned that I had initially installed on Mint Linux but they seem to advise against that as Mint uses outdated versions of Python.
Finally, be advised that a new version, MX Linux 21, was released after this guide was put together however it is still recommended to use mx linux 19.4. I gather if you use version 21 you will need to compile linuxcnc from source at this time which might be a hassle if you just want to get up and running asap.
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Thank you for putting all of this together in one spot!
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Hey, I noticed on the MESA site there is a new addition to the list of THCAD options: “THCAD2 High isolation A-D accessory”
http://store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=365
Would you mind to take a look and let me know if you think I should get it instead of the THCAD-10?
I’m a total newbie on plasma technology. My study of the THCAD options lead to me to think this THCAD2 High isolation A-D accessory is an option to substitute instead of THCAD-10 and yet get better protection/isolation.
Interesting. At first glance it looks as though both versions offer the same amount isolation/protection. If you’re using DIN rails in your enclosure the new card would be nice, otherwise it seems to me youd be fine going either way… The form factor looks a little bulkier, if your not using DIN rails you might consider your layout in the enclosure.
It wouldn’t hurt to check in on the chatter at the linuxcnc forums to see what they’re saying about it.
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I ended up ordering the “THCAD2 High isolation A-D accessory” as well as the “7I96S STEP/IO Step & dir plus I/O card” — I hope I ordered the right items. 
I enjoyed this video as well as the guy’s out of the box thinking with low tech approaches to solving things.
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I should also add, that I also ordered (from Amazon) some DIN rails for mounting electronics in my enclosure. I ordered these (affiliate link):
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The S varient is new to me. Looks like it should work. The S seems to stand for spindle so this card can handle spindle control. Hopefully what ever changes were made there don’t effect thc readings.
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I think I had to order the S variant because the other one was not available.
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Also, I made the mistake of buying my plasma cutter after getting the “THCAD2 High isolation A-D accessory” — which really was a compounded error because with all those many considerations to keep in mind while shopping for plasma cutter, I forgot to get one with the right kind of arc ratio. I wound up ordering one that has a 1:1 ratio, meaning I should have gotten the 300, if I understand correctly. I have a request into the MESA sales desk about it.