If your computer does not have a parallel port, all you will need is a low cost PCI parallel adapter card (these can be found on amazon for $15-$20). If you plan on using a laptop (not recommended) you can try to find a PCMCIA parallel adapter, but many people have frequent issues with this setup. A more expensive solution would be to purchase a USB smooth stepper board. Unfortunately, we do not supply any of these adapters and cannot attest to their reliability.

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IF MY COMPUTER DOESN'T HAVE A PARALLEL PORT, HOW DO I RUN THE MACHINE?

If your computer does not have a parallel port, all you will need is a low cost PCI parallel adapter card (these can be found on amazon for $15-$20). If you plan on using a laptop (not recommended) you can try to find a PCMCIA parallel adapter, but many people have frequent issues with this setup. A more expensive solution would be to purchase a USB smooth stepper board. Unfortunately, we do not supply any of these adapters and cannot attest to their reliability.

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MY COMPUTER DOES NOT HAVE A PARALLEL PORT. HOW DO I INTERFACE WITH THE MACHINE?

Since this 4th axis already comes with a stepper motor, you will need a driver and some cable to connect to the driver from where the 4th axis will be placed. If you have extra space in the redFly electronics enclosure, you can fasten the driver there. You will also need some wire to connect the driver to the breakout baord.

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[410] what I need to buy to make this work on my GreenBull machine and the redfly?

Most motherboard do contain parallel ports, but the port connector may not be at the back (in the section where external connectors will be connected). Instead, the motherboard may contain an LPT ribbon connector on the actual face of the motherboard (usually along one of the edges). You will need a ribbon connector to a DB25 female connector.

If your motherboard does not contain an LPT header on the motherboard, you can purchase a parallel printer adapter that plugs into one of the PCI slots. The price of the adapter is very inexpensive and sometimes is actually less costly than the actual ribbon connector.

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As I am building my 20" x 24" laser engraver cutter, I notice that there is no parallel port on the onboard computer and I have the parallel breakout board any answers?

You can cut at varying depths with the 40w laser cutting and engraving machine. Each layer of engraving with the laser will leave behind a black charred film that will reduce the effectiveness of the engraving for deeper layers; therefore, a very strong air assist will be needed to blow this film off of the surface of the material.

CNC machines are more successful and efficient at carving and should be considered.

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I wonder if it is possible to do 3d engraving with the 40w laser kit? different depths is the same piece of wood.

The parallel breakout board has the db25 connector for data and the USB connector for power. Connect the USB from the computer to the parallel breakout board so the breakout board will have 5V of power coming from the computer. The db25 connector (connector with the 25 pins) receive data signals for each pin from 1 to 17 and have respective numbered screw terminals, some for input and some for output (18 to 25 are gnd pins).

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Should I connect both the USB and the 25 pin connector of the parallel breakout board to the computer?

Cooling is not as tricky as you might think. There is 3 ways to approach this, only 2 really matter for a low scale 40w setup. First one is the cheapest and easiest. The higher the temp of water the worse your performance will be, from what I understand anything in the 30C range is about the most tolerable it gets. Lower is better. But not frozen...from what I've been told a very experienced cutter, he found 8C was the highest power he achieved.

1. Use a 5 Gallon resovoir system which gives you a fairly large space of water to heat up before you need to tend to it. Add about a cup of anti-freeze to the mix of DISTILLED water. You don't want ANY minerals in the water that might build up in your system. The anti-freeze works to keep algae and other ickies from growing in your water.

2. Use a smaller resovoir system (or even closed loop) and install 1 or more radiators found in CPU cooling systems with 120mm fans attached. This will continously cool your water system to ambient room temperatures, but with a tiny resovoir it will be difficult to add things like ice-packs to drop the temps if the ambient is quite hot.

3. Using an industrial coolant system. Overkill and unless your cutting A LOT, this is a very expensive option to take. You can also explore the idea of Peltier cooling but it is extremely expensive electricity/BTU wise compared to an industrial cooler.

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BUT DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING ABOUT COOLING THE LASER OFF - IS YOUR SETUP LIKE MOST OTHERS NEED BUCKET OF DISTILLED WATER TO PUMP THROUGH MACHINE?

If your computer does not have a parallel port, all you will need is a low cost PCI parallel adapter card (these can be found on amazon for $15-$20). If you plan on using a laptop (not recommended) you can try to find a PCMCIA parallel adapter, but many people have frequent issues with this setup. A more expensive solution would be to purchase a USB smooth stepper board. Unfortunately, we do not supply any of these adapters and cannot attest to their reliability.

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MY COMPUTER DOES NOT HAVE A PARALLEL PORT. HOW DO I INTERFACE WITH THE BREAKOUT BOARD?

Unfortunately we no longer include or sell our CNC plans for none of our machines. We will be here to assist you if any parts wear over time, and will be able to replace the parts if needed.

Charges may be subjected due to time of purchase and cause of wear.

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If I purchased the blackFoot 4x8, do you include the plans for the machine itself, in case I wanted to replace a piece of it due to wear?

The breakout board has a relay installed and uses the terminals labeled S, O and P. The following link explains the operation of this relay and how to connect the terminals:
https://www.buildyourcnc.com/item/electronicsAndMotors-parallel-breakout-relay#prettyPhoto/8/

You will run your power cord (use an extension cord rather than the actual power cord of the router) through the relay using the S, O and P. The P is a general connection and the S is normally closed (S and P is connected when the relay is not engaged) and O is normally open (O and p are not connected until the relay is engaged).

There are three wires in the power cord: neutral (white), live (black) and earth ground (green). You will run your neutral wire (white wire) through this terminal. At some point in the power cord, remove the outer insulator and expose the three wires within. Cut your neutral wire and strip both ends of the cut. Then insert one end in P and the other end in O (normally open), so Mach3 or other control software you are using will engage the relay and the router will turn on.

You will need to setup your control software to turn on the relay using Pin #16 as this is the digital signal pin that controls the relay.

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What do I need to do to my breakout board to turn the router motor on at the beginning of the program and off at the end?

You will need to build the table unit for your machine. There are instructions on how to do this at the bottom of the product page here, https://www.buildyourcnc.com/Item/cnc-machine-blackFoot-v4
There is no estimate on how much this will cost though, since there are too many variables involved to do this.

- PC with parallel port and USB port
- 20awg stranded wires for the motors - http://www.buildyourcnc.com/electronicscombo.aspx
- 18awg stranded wires for power supply to drivers
- 24awg stranded wires for breakout board to drivers
(location and spacing of components varies from one person to another, so we do not provide cables/wires)
- General purpose extension cord (cut the female end off) to provide power to power supply
- USB cable to power breakout board
- Parallel cable to communicate to breakout board
- Router
- (optional - instead of router) Spindle with power inverter http://www.buildyourcnc.com/SpindlesAndAccessories.aspx
- (if purchasing spindle with inverter) General purpose extension cord (240v) (cut the female end off) to provide power to power inverter
- End Mill(s) http://www.buildyourcnc.com/ProductsEndMills.aspx
- CAD, and/or CAD-CAM software (to produce geometry, machine operations, and g-code) http://www.buildyourcnc.com/CNCsoftware.aspx
- CNC control software (to read g-code and control machine) http://www.buildyourcnc.com/CNCsoftware.aspx

This answer is applicable to most of our machines with the exception of the greenLean and the blueChick since those machines are equipped with a table structure.

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Can I purchase a computer off Amazon (I have a machine I want to use) and still use the USB interface to drive it with LinuxCNC?

Yes, the blackTooth actually has a base that is open, so you can set the blackTooth laser cutter on a surface that is depressed as much as you need so you can accommodate a work piece with very large heights.

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I'm considering the purchase of your Blacktooth laser. I will be engraving on my wood blocks that are two inches in thickness. Will the Blacktooth accomodate this thickness material?

Youmay be able to find an adapter for your cable, or even a new cable, locally. This is the cable we sell that will work, https://www.buildyourcnc.com/item/electronicsAndMotors-cable-wire-db25-male-male

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The female 25 pin socket on my computer has to be connected to a similar socket on the breakout (parallel) board which came with my Blacktooth. Do I need a DB25 to DB25 cable, if such a thing exists? The cable I have is male to female.

Consider the loads on each axis when choosing appropriate stepper motors. If your holding torque is maxed out at roughly 16oz/in (1lb/in), then you could use the NEMA 11 or 14. Also consider the shaft sizes and current ratings when choosing drivers that pair with the motors.

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I am planning to build a scratch CNC machine to do rotary engraving on writing pens. Can you recommend the parts I would need? I'm thinking NEMA 14 (11?) and 3/8" acme rod. Not sure which linear motion to use. I have an old lathe to use for the 4th axis.

If your computer does not have a parallel port, all you will need is a low cost PCI parallel adapter card (these can be found on amazon for $15-$20). If you plan on using a laptop (not recommended) you can try to find a PCMCIA parallel adapter, but many people have frequent issues with this setup. A more expensive solution would be to purchase a USB smooth stepper board. Unfortunately, we do not supply any of these adapters and cannot attest to their reliability.

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I have a parallel. breakout board. and no parallel port at the back of my computer do those parallel. cards. work with the breakout board?

For our machines our steps for the build process can be found on the actual machine page with images to reference (please read carefully all the instructions) (https://www.buildyourcnc.com/blackToothLaserCutterAndEngraver.aspx).
You can get further help here (http://blacktoothlaser.blogspot.ca/2013/04/index-for-blacktooth-laser.html?view=sidebar) a post made by one of our customers!

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where is the build manual for the blacktooth laser? online? I didnt get one with my machine

It will depend on how you configure the machine to use the Laser and plasma. Is the laser on a separate gantry? That will determine the way you will connect the laser control system or if you use a typical CNC controller. The plasma will need inputs of THC on, THC up, THC down and outputs to trigger the plasma torch. I recommend the Pokeys57CNC for the plasma and you can also fire the laser with it, but you will not be able to do engraving with the laser unless you use a laser controller. If you use a laser controller, you will need to either build circuitry to switch the digital signals from which controller you will be using, or if you have the laser on a separate gantry, you can use a traditional laser controller connected to the stepper motor drivers on that gantry.

Users response:
I was planing on using same gantry, and installing plasma and laser module on z axis along the side with current router. Perhaps if it’s needed installing another z axis on current z axis. So that when I use plasma, router z will be homed and plasma z axis will be able to utilize thc.

When you say “If you use a laser controller, you will need to either build circuitry to switch the digital signals from which controller you will be using,”
If i install laser controller, pokeys and router motion card, do you mean all ( axis and router/laser/plasma) signals or just the one that controls router/laser/plasma?
I was wondering if I could jump (parallel connect) axis signals from card to card without ?
Also do you prefer ethernet card or usb?
I really do appreciate your help :) thanx again.

Buildyourcnc response:
Not a problem at all.

Remember that with all of that weight on the z-axis, you will not be able to do efficient raster style engraving.

By putting the laser on another gantry, say at the far end of the table, then you would be able to use a laser controller that controls its own stepper motors and the nozzle can have fast swing motion for engraving. With the laser on the z-axis of the spindle (like see on the greenBull), you will only be able to do vector motions for the laser.

You can also have a CNC interface and laser controller controlling the same stepper motor drivers, but you will need a few tri-state buffer chips where you can use a toggle switch for which controller has control of the drivers.

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How should I control a plasma torch, spindle and a laser on my CNC machine?

If your computer does not have a parallel port, all you will need is a low cost PCI parallel adapter card (these can be found on amazon for $15-$20). If you plan on using a laptop (not recommended) you can try to find a PCMCIA parallel adapter, but many people have frequent issues with this setup. A more expensive solution would be to purchase a USB smooth stepper board. Unfortunately, we do not supply any of these adapters and cannot attest to their reliability.

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I DON'T HAVE A PARALLEL PORT ON MY COMPUTER. WHAT DO NEED?

This "question 12186" could be a good place to house questions on the laser controller. We are in the process of creating thorough video instructions, but please add specific questions by clicking the "submit additional information" and we will answer questions regarding the laser controller with detail.

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Is there a better manual for the laser engraving controle having problems with the set up of the stepping motors etc