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At least there is something free with the added explanation on how to maximize the use of that free version, so thank you for that.

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Yet another CAD/CAM software with a paid monthly subscription. 

No thanks, I'll take my candid feedback to FreeCAD and try to escape this endless loop of monthly subscription software.  

You realize you're talking to an open source community, right?

I've taken the time twice to start a thread in LinuxCNC Install for my PC/Mach/Paralled to Pi5/LinuxCNC/Mesa conversion but both have disappeared after I submitted them?

Am I doing something wrong?

Hi Forum; 

I went to use my CNC Router the other day and the cobbled together controller has give up.. Won't even boot after a few kicks and wiggles...

So I've put together a Raspberry Pi LinuxCNC controller with a mesa board to squeeze into the old PC location.

I've gotten  the Pi5/LinuxCNC all running off the boot image but just yesterday received and added the Mesa 7C81 I/O board. 

It's assembled and powers on, now I just need to figure how to connect the Mesa I/O to the outputs from LinuxCNC.   I guess it's time to read.

If anyone has a good 7C81 configuration page they can refer me to I'd appriciate it.  Ive just started and am not stuck yet but love a good example to follow. 

Adventure Awaits!

My second machine build log, If you want a good laugh and have time to waste that you will never get back
www.cnczone.com/forums/cnc-wood-router-p...t-log/35355-cnc.html
 

Hi everyone,

I’m building JetCad3 — a native parametric CAD and CAM application for people who design and cut real parts. The goal is a serious design tool with full 2D/3D modeling, sensible exports, and practical CAM for sheet cutting, without locking you to one vendor’s cloud or one OS: JetCad3 runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. More about the project: jetcad.io

Right now there are two workspaces you can use end-to-end. The system is ready for daily plasma use, I've actually been using it for a few years in my shop as I've been at this for quite some time before making it publicly available.

Drafting (CAD)
Full 2D parametric sketching and 3D solid modeling (extrude, revolve, sweep, helix, and friends), re-editable feature history, assemblies / multi-body workflows, and the usual import/export you’d expect for fabrication and printing — e.g. DXF/SVG for flat patterns, STEP/STL/3MF for solids. There’s also a parametric geometry generator for common mechanical parts (gears, sprockets, pulleys, splines, etc.) so you’re not always redrawing the same primitives from scratch.

Plasma CAM
Toolpath generation tuned for plasma tables: arc-preserved G-code (G2/G3), kerf compensation, lead-in/out, pierce delay, feed/speed controls, auto-nesting (several effort levels), and cut simulation with a live DRO-style view so you can sanity-check the program before it hits the table. If you’re already on SheetCAM or Fusion 360, there’s an AI-assisted post processor converter: paste your existing post, get something native to JetCad3 you can iterate on — handy if you’re comparing workflows or migrating gradually.

Laser CAM (roadmap)
Laser CAM is not shipping yet, but it’s a major focus. The plan is to cover CO2 flat-bed style cutting as well as fiber galvo workflows — different kinematics and process assumptions, so they’ll be treated as first-class paths rather than a single generic “laser” mode bolted onto plasma.

Why I’m posting here

A lot of LinuxCNC users live at the intersection of Linux on the shop floor, real G-code, and actually cutting parts. I’d like to find a small group who are interested in trying JetCad3 seriously — running real jobs, pushing edge cases, and giving candid feedback.

Testers would be marked Staff on the JetCad3 community forum, with free access to all current JetCad3 features for as long as they want to stay in the testing group (no fixed end date tied to “please churn out bug reports by Friday”). In return, I’m hoping for honest reports: what works, what breaks, and what would make the tool fit your workflow better — especially on Linux and with plasma (and later laser) in the loop.

If that sounds like you, reply here and mention roughly your setup (OS, table/controller if you’re comfortable sharing, and whether you’re more CAD-heavy, CAM-heavy, or both).

For anyone that's not really interested in being a tester but may be interested in trying out JetCad3 on their own time, there is Free / Hobby use available. You simply download from the website for your preffered platform (Window, Linux, or Mac OS) and click Free / Hobby at the sign-in window (No account creation required) in the desktop app. In the Drafting workspace that limits to one Component with up to 5 Sketches. In the Plasma workspace, you're limited to 500 lines of posted Gcode but you can Auto-Nest across multiple sheets, then post out one or two parts out at a time (to stay under 500 lines of gcode) to complete a large nest cut on your CNC plasma machine. If you feel the system has potential for your workflow, I'm offering 30 day free trial. The trial DOES require credit card input when signing up for the trial but you always have the option to cancel before getting a charge if you change your mind, this is just to keep trial abuse down to a minimum.

Thanks for reading — and thanks to everyone who keeps the LinuxCNC ecosystem moving; it’s a big inspiration for building JetCad3. I've used LinuxCNC for the better part of 12 years from everything between mill & lathe retro-fits to both new CNC Plasma and Fiber laser machines that I used to build for a living.

I ended up using a bottle of water as a weight, with the wire fixed at one end and a pulley arrangement for the moving end. I used polished wire nozzles used for wire winding machines to guide the wire without fatiguing it. Do not try to use MIG welder wire nozzles, as they will break the wire very quickly.  I built the machine for a university lab, but I don't think they have used it very much since, so long term reliability is untested.-- Ralph

Thanks for you support.
I've already installed the python3-zmq package, but it's not clear to me how to include a macro. Could you help me with an example to complete it?
MACRO=
MACRO=
And how to connect these macros to an external button

Seems like encoder failing to count at higher speeds, might be interference, or encoder slotted wheel dirt/rust, or encoder input lagging, or encoder outputs marginally low output.
I have also seen a perfectly good encoder counting on one direction, and one channel going all wonky on the other direction, it was new so i returned it without the chance of figuring out what was wrong with it.

I had time to test some more today.
Let me start with a big thanks for the great, helpful feedback.

I started trying some runs with G33. Multiple runs with the same settings resulted in only one tool mark.
Increasing the RPM did in fact result in a slightly lagging toolpath (cutting on the right side of the insert).
This was not very pronounced, even between 100 and 900 RPM the difference was visible, but not more than a few tenths of a mm.
At 2000 RPM, the new tool marks were close to the middle between the earlier ones. But I don’t really intend to thread at 2000 RPM anyway.

Going back to G76, but with Q, H, E, and L all set to 0, gave me my first nice thread.
Reintroducing Q29 still gives a nice thread and cuts on the left of the insert, as one would expect.
H2 also still worked, and after that E0.75 but L0 gave the same good result.
So only L2 was left, and I am now using the same G76 line as before, so this has to be the problem.
But no it also cuts fine.

At this point, I am uncertain if I should be happy that I can cut threads now or worried that I have no idea what was wrong until now.
I cannot think of anything I changed in between.The only thing is, I had a look at the belt connecting the spindle to the encoder.
I had this apart and inspected, checked the belt (nothing notable to see), and put it back together. I don’t think that should have changed anything, maybe slightly different belt tension?

check the angle on the bar, and be sure of your tip height, both will break most threading insert, been there got the t shirt

This appeares to be working now
checkout  the state-tags-arc from my repo to test
github.com/rodw-au/linuxcnc/tree/state-tags-arcs

There is some house keeping to sort out. I need to work out how to use equate G_1,G_2  etc in motion (control.c) I remember the devs last time I tried, they did not like this  but I have not got a solution yet. Its just housekeeping and will only be an issue ig the equates for gcodes are ever changed.

Have you run linuxcnc from a terminal so you can see any errors?
you need python3-zmq package on the system.

macros are defined under heading:
[DISPLAY]
MACRO=
MACRO=

I'll have to check later to confirm all work properly.

Thank you, Peter.
I did as you suggested and I was able to see the dio listed in halshow.
I spent all day trying to understand how to access and setup the inputs and outputs using the M64+ commands.
I think I figured it out after hours of frustration.
My issue was understanding the syntax of how the actual screw terminals of the 7I77 connected to the input of an MDI command of say M64 P4.
I needed to get my head around the random name that I had assigned to an output [ say Digital out 4], the terminal on the 7i77 ( that could be terminal 8..) and the call sign [say M64 P3] that i put into MDI . Understanding how to link them all together in hal to get a predictable result was a head-wreck.

Watching that single halshow dot finally turn from brown to yellow made my day.
Easy once you know.....as usual.

Thanks.

andypugh wrote:

Having looked at this a few times, I think that the best place to do it is actually in a G-code filter. ie calculate the heading from the G-code and insert / append C axis moves as appropriate.

Actually, there is a use case that needs motion pins. A plasma cutter cutting bevels. An additional joint is needed to tilt the torch and there are complicated tilting torch holders that keep the torch tip axial to the Z axis (single axis bevel head). I was just chatting to a user with one who uses the post processor approach.

But picture a simpler torch holder design where the torch tip position moves when tilted. A component could take the bevel angle and calculate the offset x,y,z positions of the tilted torch tip and then apply external offsets to locate the torch on the cut path in real time. This way, the machine could consume simple 2D x,y gcode (which is the norm for plasma cutters) and enter plasma cutting nirvana with bevelled holes.