If you want maximum flexibility, if you embrace the RepRap philosophy, or if you plan to do 3D printing (need extruders or heated beds) then the best path is as explained in the main instructions on this site. Path 1: ESLCAM + Arduino IDE + Marlin + Repetier Host Not doing this will cause motor skipping, driver overheating, cooked motors, and/or other bad stuff.īased on my research so far there seem to be three paradigms for driving your MPCNC. Also, as with all stepper drivers (including RAMPS) be sure you tune each stepper’s (the tiny potentiometer) power level using the instructions here.

I strongly suggest you get the basic UNO talking to your PC before you mount the CNC shield. I got it working on XP and OSX after some fiddling.

You may also have to load a driver to get the USB/serial connection going as it uses a less expensive driver chip than the FTDI part on official Arduino/Genuino boards. You will probably have to carefully straighten the pins before mounting the CNC shield. The Uno that comes with the $35 kit on eBay is a Chinese knock-off. If you carefully set the ESTLCAM work area size and simulate the tool run before going live you shouldn’t bump into the limits. My next move may be to use the six end-stop inputs on the Protoneer, but so far I’ve really not found much need. It won’t control AC motor speed but it does automatically turn my Makita on/off which is handy because the router’s toggle switch is inaccessible when installed facing the Z-axis in the Universal Mount. I’m using a homemade plug box with a high quality solid state relay built-in that is toggled by the +5V output of the Protoneer. Since this post I’ve started using the spindle enable feature of the Protoneer board and ESTLCAM’s GUI.

Cracked estlcam