Touch Plate Probing with Easel

Easel
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Build a Touch Plate and wire it up to your GShield.
How to send arbitrary gcode via Easel: Machine menu -> Advanced -> Machine Inspector -> Console text field

  1. Zero your X and Y first.
  • Lower your Z close to your touch plate
  • Send a G38.2 command to begin the processes
  • G21 G38.2 Z-80 F10
  • This will set tell your machine you are using Metric, move the Z axis, a distance of 80mm at most, and at a rate of 10 mm/min.
  • Mill should now be touching the plate.
  • Remove touch plate; Measure touch plate thickness
  • Close the Machine Inspector
  • Click Carve
  • Lower your Z axis the thickness of your touch plate.
  • Mill should now be touching your stock; Zeroed in X, Y, Z

Repeat the when using two stage milling. Only change Z height if possible when moving the machine to change bits. If you do need to move the X and Y to get to the spindle, change the bit and then move X and Y back to zero in the exact opposite distances.

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Also, this thread has lots of good information from Bill that is helpful as well!
https://discuss.inventables.com/t/touch-plate-project/19019

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Step 3, draw the rest of the owl.

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I built a touch plate for less than $7.00. I went to Big Lots and purchased a headset extension cable and cut in half. I took a couple of alligator clip jumpers and cut these in half. I had a piece of 1/8" aluminum which I cut 2" sq, drilled a 3mm hole and tapped. I then took a wire connector and 3mm screw an attached to aluminum plate. Red wire goes to bit, black wire to plate, I plug into headset jack when I want to use. Simple and effective.


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