Buildbotics CNC Controller

I recently purchased a Buildbotics controller. I have been building CNC machines for the last 12 years I decided to give the Buildbotics controller a try.

Here’s what I have experienced since my purchase. The unit itself is clean and well assembled. The directions for connecting everything were simple. Setup inside the software was straightforward and easy to follow. The manual that was included is well thought out, with diction and wording that the average person, like me, can understand. Because my units are a full 4 axis machine with a rotational A axis, it was necessary to calculate out the degrees per rotation which ended up being very easy to do. Once everything was connected, it took me very little time to get everything running properly. I did have a couple issues/questions about the rotary axis. I left a message and Doug personally called back to help. He was very helpful. After a little tweaking, I was up and running.

I like that the BB unit is part of the Raspberry PI open-source community. I think we learn best when we share knowledge. Here are some of the many things I like about the BB unit: (1) I don’t need a separate computer to run the software. (2) I don’t have to purchase a separate software program to run my designs. (3) The game pad that is included with the unit. Once up and running I was pleasantly surprised with how easy it is to use. (4) The camera setup with settings that includes crosshairs. I had one issue with the camera. Right now, it is necessary to unplug the camera before you switch the BB unit on. If you don’t, you will get errors and things don’t work right. This is small turnips compared to the overall quality of the unit. Buildbotics controllers work great and the community of people that are part of the forum are very helpful. I am very happy with this purchase.

Doug’s video tutorials are very helpful. They are produced with a layman's quality that helps a person understand what he is talking about and easily find the answers to many questions. So overall, I highly recommend the Buildbotics controller. I plan on using the BB unit on any future CNC machines that I build with the belief that I am giving my customers a top-quality machine with a top-quality controller they will enjoy.

Super easy set up and customer service is being great. I have used this to make cnc glue machine and cnc plasma.

I wanted a solution that did not require a computer in the dusty remote work shop. I choose the Buildbotics due to its access from anywhere on my lan from any device with a browser to upload files afer CAD/CAM from the comfort of the office. I can use browser on phone in the work shop to open files, jog with phone UI or game controller, execute probing macros, and run. Add to that, custom macros for homing and laser based X,Y material alignment, and an open source Raspberry Pi that I can access for customizations.

Doug has answered every question I've ever had. When I have trouble he'll have me call him and we talk it through. My controller lost a motor driver after three years of service. Doug helped me trouble shoot it. I sent it back to Doug for repairs. I've done research on other systems and the Buildbotics is so simple to install and setup.

This is a great controller. I used it in a retrofit of a Dyna Myte 2400 and it controls the stepper motors with ease. I am able to feed at 50-60 IPM in the Z and Y axis and 90 in X. The motors are able to deliver ~230-300 Newtons of force on each axis before stalling at top speed (about 50-65 lbs). This should be enough to cut any material. The spindle now seems to be the weak link. I would highly recommend this controller.

On a side note: Can the software be updated to save the motor amp setting up to 8? Right now when it powers down it drops to 6.

Doug has given me the best customer service ever! He is always so very knowledgeable and spends time with me any time I have needed him. I had issues with my machine and it turned out not to any issue with the controller, he still helped me to figure the prolem to a great solution! THANKS DOUG

I'm still loving my Buildbotics controller. However, I'm even more impressed how Doug, one of the principals behind buildbotics is still providing top notch, beyond the call of duty customer service. 3+ years later he still treats me like a prospect before the sale. I needed my controller fixed. I shipped it to him, and I had it back in about one week. Working like a charm. If you want a controller that's awesome, that has even more awesome after the sale customer service, you've come to the right solution.

I built an unconventional custom 3-axis machine (X-A-Z) and got it operational within 4 hours of sitting down with the controller and mechanical system. I was able to find and modify a Fanuc post from Fusion's library with very little development time. When we did run into problems support (email and phone) from Buildbotics was excellent. I can't say enough about how pleased I am with my first custom CNC machine R&D project.

I have no doubt that I will order another controller in the next couple of months for another specialty machine.

Just here to say Thank you Doug ,for top notch customer service He taught me a lot about his controller and programming it ,He always there to troubleshoot problems and answer question I would highly recommend buying his controller.He has a passion for what he does and he's a great teacher keep up the good work Doug.Thank you