Hi, Im still waffling about what desktop CNC to purchase, but Ive been leaning more & more toward the XCarve. Im trying to keep an eye on future upgradeability as I weigh up all the options available out there.
Does the XCarve have the capability of supporting a 4th axis at this point? If not, have the developers been thinking about it?
Thanks,
Jim
I don’t know if Inventables has considered it, but the firmware which is being used, Grbl, doesn’t afford a 4th axis. Some folks have done indexed ones however: Shapeoko CNC Router, Rigid, Accurate, Reliable, and Affordable
Funny, I was just asking CNC4Newbies about the feasibility of rotating the Z upgrade (for a 5th axis)…answer was “try the Inventables Forum”. You can find lathe-style axes on eBay for about $250. I wouldn’t think the Z axis would be too difficult, but the real problem is going to the be software…Easel is pretty darn awesome for being free, but I don’t know anything about 4&5 axis software.
Thanks! It really is open source!
Another reason to get an x-carve - an active community & good support.
