Monthly Archives: August 2011

First “Dremel Tool” Router Cuts Using Mach3 with G-code

Posted by on August 30, 2011 7 comments

Up to this point, I’ve been able to mechanically assemble my ZTW CNC router, wire it electrically and find a shelving system to store it.  I also came up with a way to mount my Dremel tool to it and move the axes manually using Mach3.  So far, so good, but the real beauty of a CNC machine isn’t manually jogging it, it’s programming a code and letting it cut things for you.  Here’s a couple of my first cuts using automatic computer control.  I’ll explain how it’s done after the break.

This is accomplished via something called “G-Gode” or General Code.  In addition to CNC routers, it can be used for milling machines, lathes, water jet machines, CNC punches, or nearly any other CNC machine you can think of.  Possibly you have some vague idea of how it’s programmed, but if not, I found Read more »

Why I cancelled my Netflix Subscription (for Hulu Plus and Blockbuster?)

Posted by on August 28, 2011 4 comments

After using Netflix for well over three years, we (me, my wife, and our dog Evie) have decided to cancel our Netflix subscription.  As outlined in this post about why using a media center PC for your TV is a great idea, we don’t have cable.  We do watch broadcast TV sometimes, but most of what we watch comes from the internet.

Although we’ve been generally happy with Netflix, Read more »

Computer and Electrical Issues Encountered while Setting up a Zen Toolworks CNC Router and How They were Fixed

Posted by on August 27, 2011 2 comments

Although ZTW makes a good router frame, especially for the prices they charge, they do take some work to get running correctly.  Setting one up takes both mechanical and electrical skills as well as the willingness to lean to use a new CNC program.  That being said, here are some things I ran into while setting up my kit.  Maybe you’ll run into some of the same stuff and this can help you.

Computer Issues – Although this can’t be blamed on ZTW or Mach3, the first computer I tried to use for this build crapped out on me.  It was pretty old, but the requirements to run Mach3 aren’t that high by today’s computing standards.  I bought a used computer off Tigerdirect that would fit my needs for $109.97 plus shipping.  As it had a copy of Windows XP included (and a warranty) I was very happy.

Initially I tried to use a USB to parallel port adapter with my notebook.  This didn’t work well as noted in the Mach3 documentation.  There are just some issues with doing this, I’ll leave it at that.  In my opinion Read more »

How an Optical Drive Reader Works

Posted by on August 24, 2011 No comments

Here’s another piece of my former HTPC, the optical drive.  This didn’t look as pretty inside as the hard drive, so it met a different fate than being placed above my workbench.

Read more »

The Disassembly and Destruction of a hard drive

Posted by on August 22, 2011 4 comments

So my trusty old HTPC died about a month ago after about five years of use.  Interestingly enough it only survived for a couple of weeks in a humid garage where I was going to use it to power my CNC router.  Let’s hope the “new” one that I got holds up a little better.

Having an outdated PC headed for the trash seemed like a great opportunity to take some stuff apart and play with it.  As seen here, this is me taking apart the hard drive.  It’s well-built and used Torx head screws to keep everything together.  I have a set of Torx bits somewhere, but using a screw extractor with my drill seemed like a better solution since they wouldn’t be put in again.  If you take one apart yourself, there may be a screw hidden under a label like mine was.

Also, I put a neodymium magnet on the platter to hopefully erase most of it.  Not sure if that will work, but I’m probably being paranoid anyway.