Hey everyone! Thanks for posting your colourful projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Mauricio Jurin, Thomas Andrew, Tammy Noble, Brad Jaycock, Jesse Kurisko, and Shaun Hanson are the colourful projects contest winners. A prize is on its way!
This Week’s Theme: Autumn-Themed Projects
Celebrate autumn with us by sharing your autumn-themed projects made on the LongMill/AltMill. We will select our favourites and send prizes to the makers!
Happy Friday! Thanks for sharing your household projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Scott Gardner, Sean McKenzie, Paul Larson, Matthew Mead, Raffi Chris Balabanian, and Mike Jakus are the household projects contest winners. Watch out for a prize!
This Week’s Theme: Colourful Projects
This week’s theme is “colourful projects.” Share your LongMill/AltMill projects with a pop of colour for a chance to win prizes!
Hey everyone, we now offer Vectric Aspire on our store!
We’ve taken the jump to offering Aspire in conjunction with the demand for more advanced users.
Why are we offering Aspire?
In the past, our main niche was to serve the beginner, entry-level market for CNCers. However, as our products improved and we continued to come out with new features and accessories, we found more and more advanced users being drawn to our company. We’ve also started playing around with 3D designs and doing some projects where we need the advanced capabilities of Aspire as well.
Now with machines like the AltMill, as well as continued hardware and software advancements on the Vortex Rotary Axis, we’re also better able to take advantage of some of Aspire’s more advanced use cases, such as for making complex 3D models, reliefs, and creating lithopanes.
What is the difference between all of the Vectric software?
We’ll let Vectric explain for themselves. Also make sure to check out their comparisons on their website as well.
Is Aspire right for me?
To be completely honest, although extremely powerful, Aspire is a pretty expensive software. It isn’t something I would personally recommend to a hobbyist right off the bat. If you want to read about my opinion on free versus software, make sure to check out my article. I believe the majority of users, even experienced ones, will be happy with something like VCarve which is less than half the price. Just like with most software, it is possible to get the same functionality by using a combination of software, such as Blender for 3D modelling, and VCarve for the CAM, to get a similar effect. If you’re looking at software options, make sure to check out our Resources as we have lots of different options available.
Aspire however is very streamlined in working with CNC-focused 3D models, plus it comes with many free models that users can modify and change to fit with their projects. We have gotten a number of requests to carry Aspire from a small number of people which I would best describe as the “I want the best and money is no object” group.
Either way, I encourage everyone to do their research and try out all of the different software to find out what works for you. Additionally, even though we have a number of higher-end software options available in our store, we are still very much committed to offering content for alternative software and resources, especially for our beginner users.
Hey everyone! Thanks for posting your cutting board projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Jim Hambone, Emerald Custom Woodcraft, Steve Smart, Scot Lovdahl, Kory Kiefer, and Them Poolstar are the cutting board projects contest winners. A prize is on its way!
This Week’s Theme: Household Projects
This week’s theme is “household projects”! Share something you made with your LongMill or AltMill that you use at home—like trays, boards, furniture, or decor. We’ll pick our favorites and send the creators some cool prizes!
Hey guys, I’m sure many of you have been in great anticipation for the close-loop stepper motor option coming for the Vortex Rotary Axis. Here’s a bit of information.
Before we get started, I just want to apologize that we caused some confusion with a number of people, especially new AltMill users, as the current open-loop version that is currently available doesn’t work yet. We should have had some more info ready to share so that people knew what they needed to expect for the Vortex AltMill compatibility. If you haven’t heard from us yet, we’ll be reaching out directly so that you have the support and parts coming so that the Vortex will work with your machine.
Without further ado, below is Daniel’s write-up of what you should know about the Vortex Rotary Axis Close Loop Stepper Update!
First install of close loop stepper and AltMill
A novel feature of the Vortex Rotary Axis kit not seen with any other rotary axis add-ons is the use of a rotary switching module which ‘intercepts’ power going from the motor drivers to the Y-axis motors and instead sends this to the A-axis, allowing for use of an A-axis which would otherwise be impossible with any regular 3 axis CNC controllers such as the original ‘LongBoard’ controller used on the LongMill.
#image_title
With the release of the new SLB controller used on the LongMill MK2.5, and SLB-Ext controller used on the AltMill, we now have an A-axis specific output. Instead of switching between control of the Y-axis and A-axis, we can now drive both simultaneously and independently.
A-axis control output marked by the red square
Please note that if you have a SLB controller, you can put your own motor driver to control the open-loop stepper motor on the Vortex. Resources and instructions for this can be found here.
Since the AltMill uses integrated drivers with the Y-axis motors, it isn’t possible to ‘intercept’ this control of the Y-axis motors, so we aren’t able to use this same rotary switching module. To use the Vortex Rotary Axis with the AltMill, it is therefore necessary to use the A-axis output, along with a motor and driver just for the A-axis.
Going forward, to complement the new capabilities of the SLB and SLB-Ext controllers shipped currently with the LongMill and AltMill users have the option of choosing the ‘Close Loop Motor’ option to pair with their Vortex Rotary Axis kit. This kit will not come with the rotary switching module, but instead with an A-axis closed loop motor and motor cable that will be installed onto the Vortex.
There are several benefits of this new arrangement:
No more need to toggle between Y-axis control and A-axis control.
The Y-axis motors stay ‘locked’ during use of the A-axis, preventing any possible drift while cutting rotary axis projects.
Higher torque at the rotary axis, with the ability to instantaneously self-correct position, should the position of the A-axis slip under cutting load.
Alarm feedback from the motor to the controller to stop a program if something goes wrong or A-axis position is lost.
Higher possible speed, and higher possible acceleration of the A-axis, to speed up projects with lots of small detail.
Simpler wiring with no need to mount a separate switching unit and two extra sets of cables.
Capability of full simultaneous 4-axis CNC programs, allowing for completely new types of geometries to be machined in one setup.
gSender in full 4 axis mode
Vortex with closed loop motor mounted on AltMill
Closed Loop Motor Compatibility
If you’re unsure of the compatibility of your CNC machine and the Vortex Rotary Axis kit, please note which controller you have installed with your CNC machine and refer to the following:
30″ and 48″ Open-loop versions of the Vortex Rotary Axis are compatible with the LongBoard controller and SuperLongBoard controller used on the LongMill MK1, MK2, and MK2.5
30″ and 48″ Close-loop versions of the Vortex Rotary Axis are compatible with the SLB-Ext controller on the AltMill and SuperLongBoard controller used on the LongMill MK1, MK2, and MK2.5
The closed-loop motor variation of each kit will have a longer delivery time, and it is estimated to ship out sometime between Oct and Nov.
In the haste of production and development of the first batch of AltMill CNC machines, purchases of the original Vortex rotary axis kit and AltMill in combination were possible and shipped out together, meaning some folks received these two kits without complete out-of-the-box compatibility, as a motor driver for the A-axis would be required as described here.
For these few people affected, we’ll be sending out closed-loop motor upgrade kits to upgrade Vortex Rotary Axis kits for full compatibility with the AltMill free of charge. Customers who had placed an order for their AltMill and Vortex before August 15th included in this will receive a confirmation notice by email. If you have placed an order (or two separate orders) including an AltMill and Vortex before this date and do not receive a confirmation of this by September 18th, please reach out to us with your order number to get this sorted out. These will be shipped out in the coming 2-4 weeks.
Kits will also come with an updated 48” extension track section for improved compatibility with the AltMill.
Hey guys, here are our September 2024 production updates!
Getting filmed for “Made Right Here” segment for CTV
AltMill
In August we received a lot of parts for building the AltMill. We’ve done a lot to continue ramping production up including:
Building new carts and jigs to help with moving materials around and helping with assembly
A much bigger and more stable tapping setup
We also ran into a few new issues:
We found a number of the rail extrusions to be bent enough to have uneven machining. We do have enough for the time being to continue shipping, but we will have to make more to make up for the bad parts. We are currently in production for another batch of rails, so we are adding more rails to the new batch to make up for the bad ones.
Over-sensitivity of closed-loop stepper motors and default acceleration settings, especially on the Z-axis causing false alarms for the first 50 AltMills. Updates to the firmware settings, which should be found now in the latest version of gSender adjust microstepping defaults, and any other outgoing AltMills have this issue already fixed.
In other news, we built a 2x4ft working area AltMill with some spare parts. It’s mostly for internal use so that we can do testing, but we suspect a lot of people are going to be interested in a slightly smaller AltMill as well. If you’re interested in this form factor, feel free to let us know!
2×4 working area AltMill
We’ve also started making the assembly videos for the AltMill. We did the filming in the third week of August, and we expect to have videos coming out sometime in September.
We now have about 100 AltMills shipped, and we expect to ship another 50-100 in September and October. We should also be getting our Batch 2 AltMill parts in the next 2 months as well, so we expect to continue scaling production.
LongMill
LongMills continue to ship out smoothly, with most orders shipping out within a week.
One main update to share is with the T12 Spring Loaded Anti-Backlash Nut Blocks. We’ve initially made them from injection moulded blanks which were machined after, however, we found out that due to internal stresses, the threading would be inconsistent and require additional processing to machine properly.
We’ve now started machining them from cast blocks, which have lower internal stresses, which means that there is little to no deformation and changes to the overall shape of the blocks after threading. This method is more expensive, but improves the quality, saves time in re-machining, and reduces the number of rejected parts, which we believe is worth the tradeoff. Due to the time savings and other benefits, there is a good chance we’ll switch completely over to the new blocks and scrap most of the old ones that haven’t been QA’d.
Due to some variability in the tightness of the blocks, we’ve advised users to do a bit of break-in before starting their job. Our expectation for the new blocks will be that this break-in will not be necessary and we will be able to have much more consistency in the resistance in the blocks. We have completed testing for the new blocks and expect blocks to transition into production any day.
Vortex and LaserBeam
Both Vortex and LaserBeam orders are shipping out as usual.
Ikenna and Jen are currently working on new resources for LaserBeam and SuperLongBoard to bring new features and details on improvements and setup, so make sure to keep an eye out for that.
LaserBeam Livestreams are also coming to an end after 2 years of consistent episodes! Congrats to Ikenna and the team for running these livestreams.
More livestreams and content to come out soon with the UltraBeam, so keep an eye out for that.
One big update for the Vortex is that we are finalizing details for a close-loop Vortex kit that allows for full 4th-axis support. That means you’ll be able to control all of the axis (X, Y, and Z), plus the rotary (A) axis simultaneously. This is one of the big features we’ve been working on gSender and SLB for.
Please keep an eye out for news in the next few weeks!
Spindles
We have received another batch of 50 spindles which have been allocated for shipping AltMills. We currently have another 350 spindles on the way, but they are currently delayed in shipping. At the current timeline, we expect the spindles to arrive in the third week of September. Once those are received, we should be shipping the LongMill Spindle Kits shortly after.
If you’re interested in learning a bit more about spindle and router testing, make sure to check out our video here
Spindle break-in, testing setup
We’ve also been experimenting with different size/voltage spindles since we know that the AltMill can handle more power. We’ve of course started with the 1.5KW 110V option since it makes things accessible for the typical hobbyist, we wanted to know where the limits of the AltMill are in case we start getting users that are more industrial or production-focused.
Here’s some testing with a 220V 4.5KW spindle.
It is important to point out that for most people, 1.5KW is still more than enough power for how fast hobbyists are comfortable pushing their machines, and the spindle is more than able to handle anything you throw at it if you slow down the machine to accommodate. Additionally, the 1.5KW spindle is the only option that can run safely on 110V power that comes out of your wall. Larger spindles will require higher voltage (220V) power.
I should also note that while we still recommend getting our AltMill Spindle and Dust Shoe Kit with your AltMill since it’s plug-and-play and will get you set up quickly, you can still also buy other spindles to put on yourself.
At least from our observations, we haven’t seen hobby users fully push the AltMill to its limit. However, we believe that people looking at the AltMill for industrial applications might be interested in a bigger, more powerful spindle, especially if they have power available in their shop.
If you’d like to share your thoughts and opinions, please feel free to fill out the survey below.
Sprouter
We’ve continued to work on this project this past month. We are continuing to test:
Bearing longevity and performance in different configurations
Heat management
Sound and motor tuning
We feel pretty confident in our motor design and construction. However, we’re still left with another frontier to tackle, which is the driver. Having a good driver is important as it allows us to properly and accurately control the speed, improve motor efficiency which in turn reduces heat, and makes the motor quieter.
We have been testing and working with the Chinese manufacturers of the motors to provide us with their drivers. However, while they are close to the performance we are looking for, they still lack the overall performance and speed control precision we want. We will continue to do testing and iron out as much as we can with these drivers, however, we are taking another approach of developing our own drivers.
Here are some pros and cons of going down this path.
Developing our own drivers means we can tune and perfect every aspect of it. However, we require more advanced hardware and computing on board which adds to the cost.
Some drivers are already safety certified since they are already used in different applications. Developing our own means we need to do the safety certification, which costs time and money. However, overall, a custom driver will likely be safer since we can use additional safety features like current control and stall detection to stop the device when there are issues.
We also have a first look of PWM control of the Makita router clone!
We are now working on next steps to figuring out ordering and production for the first batch so we can prepare for a launch near the end of the year.
gControl Panel computer
gControl Panel Computer
After a lot of digging, we’ve figured out a couple things with the Windows licensing.
Our computer hardware can run Windows 11 Home and Pro, but it is very difficult for us to get it at a price better than retail.
Different licenses are needed for different regions, which means that we need to differentiate between computers shipped to different countries.
An alternative OS is Windows 11 IOT, which is a version of Windows 11 that focuses on systems that require high levels of stability and used in specific applications. For example, they are used in bank ATMs, kiosks, and industrial machines.
As described on the Microsoft Website:
Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC is intended for fixed-function, special-purpose devices that require a long support lifecycle of 10 years. These devices are typically found in industries including banking, quick-service restaurants, healthcare, hospitality, manufacturing, and retail.
Windows IoT Enterprise LTSC is based on the same foundation as Windows Professional and Windows Enterprise, delivering the same compatibility, security and management capabilities required for commercial deployments. Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC provides additional capabilities to lockdown the device experience for public facing or employee facing scenarios along with the ability to customize the operating system footprint.
Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC is available for both x64 and ARM64 architecture.
This is great, because, while a retail Windows 11 Home or Pro license costs over $100, the IOT license is around $35USD. Additionally, these computers can be deployed around the world without the same restrictions as a retail license.
I feel that Windows 11 IOT also aligns with the use case of why we want to offer our own PC solution, which is to improve reliability of the CNC system overall, and reducing the number of variables effecting the reliability of the system is an important way of doing so.
We have those first 50 computers in production now, and are expecting them be ready to ship to customers in late October/early November. More details to come. Depending on popularity and interest, we’ll scale up production for a larger batch shortly after.
Vectric 2024 User Group Meeting
We’re excited to share that we’ll be part of Vectric’s 2024 User Group Meeting! Join us at the Embassy Suites Round Rock in Austin, Texas, on Friday and Saturday, October 11-12, 2024, for a weekend full of learning and fun. We’ll be showcasing the AltMill and Vortex, with Scott as a guest speaker. If you’re attending, we’d love for you to stop by and say hello!
For those unfamiliar with Vectric, they create VCarve, an excellent design tool for CNC projects. You can purchase a copy on our website and enjoy the benefit of owning the software with no subscription fees.
To learn more about the Vectric 2024 User Group Meeting, visit Vectric’s event page.
Happy Friday! Thanks for sharing your topographical projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Jerry Brown, Michael Schillizzi, Drew Semingson, Brandy Flett-Hewitt, Shane Jiang, and Jeff Richardson are the topographical projects contest winners. Watch out for a prize!
P.S. We will be closed on Monday, September 2nd for Labour Day and back in the office on Tuesday, September 3rd.
This Week’s Theme: Cutting Board Projects
Share your favorite cutting board projects made with your LongMill/AltMill for a chance to win this week’s contest and free prizes!
Hey everyone! Thanks for posting your sign projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Socrates Garcia, Raffi Chris Balabanian, Dan Muill, Luc Orsali, Duane Cleveland, and Richard McMahon are the sign projects contest winners. A prize is on its way!
This Week’s Theme: Topographical Projects
This week’s theme is “Topographical Projects.” Share your best topographical carvings—lake, mountain, city, or state maps—created on your LongMill or AltMill. We’ll pick our favorites to send out some cool rewards!
Happy Friday! Thanks for sharing your tribute projects made on the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that Dan Marier, Gord Waterman, Corey Daup, Brian Lister, Matthew Mead, and John Teskey are the tribute projects contest winners. Watch out for a prize!
This Week’s Theme: Sign Projects
Post your most creative sign projects made with your LongMill/AltMill for a chance to win this week’s contest and free prizes!
Hey everyone! Thanks for posting your toy projects made with the LongMill/AltMill.
Last Week’s Winners
We are happy to announce that BuiltSmart Woodworking, Grant Colbert, Tony Boon, Dean Goulet, Dave Bross, and Ken Maddle are the toy projects contest winners. A prize is on its way!
This Week’s Theme: Tribute Projects
This week’s theme is “tribute projects.” Share your beautiful tribute projects made on your LongMill/AltMill. We’ll pick our favorites and send the creators some awesome prizes.
