I’ve been wanting to try a Radio Controlled 3d printed model aircraft for a while and when we had a spell of bad weather and I couldn’t fly I decided to try building one. I use many 3d printed parts on my foam models but until now I had never printed a complete model. There…
PDF plans One of the challenges with any CNC machine is generating g-code. Most foam board plans are PDFs, which need to be converted to g-code to send to a CNC machine. You can use this process for CNC routers, laser and needle cutters I used this process on my recently USB-converted CNC router to…
In the post, I’ll explain how I built my CNC Needle Cutter to cut foam boards for RC aeroplanes. If you’ve made any foam board RC aeroplanes, you know there is a lot of cutting. I wanted a better method to cut these parts out. Why a CNC needle cutter? I did consider a diode…
The latest firmware works on both MKS Gen L boards. This post has all the details Use the MKS Gen L Boards for CNC Foam Cutting
My CNC router used a parallel port interface for several years. This is how I converted it to a USB interface to use it on more modern computers. I hadn’t been using my CNC Router very much mainly because the CNC foam cutter had kept me very busy. My 3d printer is used for many…
For some time I’ve been wondering if I could use Fusion 360 to generate g-code for a 4-axis hot wire foam cutting. Unfortunately, AutoDesk doesn’t include foam cutting in the Manufacturing section. I’ve had a request in the AutoDesk forum for several years but never received any response from them. Parallel Cuts Only So, can…
This is the build of my OpenBuilds OX CNC router from Ooznest. Having already built a Hot Wire CNC foam cutter I got the bug to build a CNC router. In 2024, I upgraded the frame to 1000x750mm with a 32-bit controller. After a lot of research, I decided to buy the OX mechanical kit from…
What is the Kerf? Kerf is defined as the width of material that is removed by a cutting process. So in our case it’s the amount of foam melted by the hot wire. To get accurate parts we need to know how much foam is melted away by the hot wire. So before we can ascertain…
You’ve built your 4-axis CNC foam cutter, and now you need software to generate G-code for your foam wings or fuselage. If your budget allows, purchasing software might be the best option. DevWing Foam 2 and DevFus Foam are excellent choices—I use them for all my projects. You can find tutorials on these programs both…
You’ve built your 4-axis CNC Foam Cutter, and now you need some software to send the g-codes to hotwire cut your foam wing or fuselage. LinuxCNC is a great software which sends g-code to your foam cutter. For the hobbyist, you need to use the old parallel printer port. It won’t work with a USB…
You just built your Hot Wire CNC foam cutter, but it’s not working as expected. I receive questions from people worldwide who have had issues getting their machines up and running. USB Driver problems Recently (December 2024), several users of the CNC Foam cutter reported problems. Check this post, USB CH340 Driver Problems A recent…
The MKS Gen L board is an Arduino Mega 2560 and RAMPS integrated into one unit, which in itself isn’t a big deal. However, a few features on the board make it an attractive alternative. The latest firmware works on both versions of the MKS Gen L boards, the V 1.0 and V2.0, as well…
Why do we need to calibrate the CNC foam cutter? There are two calibrations we need to do on the CNC Foam Cutter. The driver modules need to be adjusted to match the stepper motor. If we don’t do this, we can overheat and destroy the module or not have enough current to move the…
This is an easy way the upload the Arduino Mega 2560 firmware for the CNC Foam cutter using a Windows application called XLoader. Since releasing the build for the USB HotWire CNC Foam Cutter I’ve had quite a few guys contact me who are struggling to compile and upload the firmware. If you haven’t come…
The CNC foam cutter software and firmware have been updated to Grbl HotWire with new and requested features. It now supports grblHAL 32-bit controller boards. The axis letters have been changed to XYZA. Follow this post to Grbl HotWire for CNC Foam Cutters for the latest features. The rest of this post explains how to…
In this article, I’ll discuss four software solutions that can be used for CNC Foam cutters, along with their pros and cons. With this information, you should be able to decide which one is best for you. CNC Foam cutters are typically 4-axis machines, with each axis moving independently. So if we are creating a…
The parallel port has been discontinued on PCs for many years now. It was mainly used to connect a PC to a printer. Mach3 was designed to use this port to send step and direction pulses to the CNC controller and receive inputs such as limit switches. Mach3 is still popular in the CNC world,…
When starting out using a CNC Foam Cutter, you’ll soon find that designing a wing can be a bit of a challenge. DevWing Foam 2 may be just the software you are looking for. It’s incredibly capable but like any software, you need to put in the time to learn it. Hopefully, this post and…
Printing ABS on a 3d printer can be a little harder than PLA. Up until now, I have avoided it after a couple of poor prints. I built a tri-copter that used a PLA 3d-printed yaw mechanism but I’ve broken it twice on some heavy landings. So I decided I needed to get to grips…
The images below show many variations on the foam cutter with further details below. The CNC Foam Cutters builders gallery shows machines built by fellow enthusiasts who have been kind enough to allow me to show their pictures. As you can see, you don’t have to follow my build or use the same materials. 3d…
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