My husband purchased a CNC through Bob’s CNC. I am tasked with learning the design programs and the computer part of it. I have read from many other users that they love using Easel to create their own designs. How do you connect your non X-Carve machine to Easel? I am so new to this. So excited about the possibilities, but not sure what I’m doing. Thanks for your help!
I’ve downloaded all of the drivers and programs, but when it comes to connecting to the Bob’s CNC machine, all the settings are geared toward the X-Carve. Does anyone have experience with this?
Bob´s CNC appear to be GRBL based, with an Arduino clone board.
=> Just tell Easel that you have the Xcarve.
You may be required to readjust the steps/mm values to match your machine but it should be enough to get you going.
You can also use what’s called the Universal Gcode Sender. This is a software package to control a grbl machine outside of Easel. It works well. I have other drawing and cam packages that I use to create the gcode. I get the code into a simple Word processor like Notepad and use the UGS with the x carve.
Can I still design something in Easel and send it out to UGS. I’ve been trying to do that this afternoon with little luck getting the file to open in UGS. I am able to save the project as an NC file, but from there I keep getting stuck.
That’s certainly worth a try. I feel like I am out of my league!
The G-code file (the .nc file) that you get when you export your G-code from Easel is just a text file.
Post the first 20 lines of that file here.
Which version of UGS are you using? I believe 1.09 is the stable one. Save your text in notepad. There are a few Gcodes which do not work well for me. Since I have a router, I remove all the M codes and unnecessary codes like time delay ones, coolant on and off, etc. I have found that the % symbol impacts it as well, so I delete it. Those codes may well be your problem.
@StephanieHamilton Please join our Facebook group, Bob’s CNC, for fast and accurate answers to all of you questions. Just recently Easel added support for Bob’s CNC, but until it’s tested, we are still using UGSPLATFORM (latest nightly build) to carve. If you have already clicked “Carve” in Easel, the you need to undo the GRBL changes sent to your Arduino memory. $RST=S (sent using Ugsplatform) will reset the defaults and get you back on track.
Bob has a You Tube video for using Easel & Ugsplatform. Good luck. JimD