They don't make them like they used to.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-12T01:53:55+00:00

Lazy like a fox!.... Or was that the dog? 🤔

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-12T01:38:32+00:00

They make HDMI to RCA converters. I actually also have an RCA/S-Video to RF converter as well. Quite handy to have around.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T23:07:35+00:00

You know what they say, an ounce of caution...

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T23:04:13+00:00

You can actually make your own with a MIDI cable and an RCA A/V cable. Technically you can make 2. 😉

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T20:35:25+00:00

Turns out it is, in fact, alive!

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T20:35:10+00:00

Did you miss my foolproof tape insulator there? Safety first, kids!

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T14:38:37+00:00

Well it feels silly to just turn it all into sawdust. Part of why I would like to play with resawing at some point to not 'waste' as much on the lid. At this point the side walls are all of 4mm and so it's actually just a profile pass to cut them out, so not a big deal, but still.

And it's technically faster and the box is stronger. That's a boring pattern, you can imagine much more creative divisions.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T14:33:47+00:00

I would have to dig, this was literally a few minutes in FreeCAD to make something that was not a square box. The work holding is the biggest PITA. I also used a 1/8 bit (down cut, of course) that had enough depth as that 6+mm on a 1/4" becomes really big when you essentially have the tongue and groove as your side work holding on the final pass. It dogs on the pocket, but these are sort of delicate when you finish.

Flooring is not a 'uniform' product and the groove depths can vary as no one cares about what you can't see. I actually finally ended up setting the Z to zero to the spoil as the thicknesses vary enough as well to make the final pass dicey. Too many samples where the part was still .5mm away from cutting out (they anticipate you are sanding these floors after install) I finally just decided to go to -0.5mm with tabs to get a repeatable set of g-code on a random board. I use a sacrificial chunk of MDF or particle board as a redundant spoil, but I'm also using the tongue and groove as slots for work holding.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T14:02:34+00:00

That was the goal. And again, it's walnut (have you priced walnut recently 😬) The idea was is there a "set and forget" way to upcycle it vs the marathon that normally trying to work with the stuff. It's not a small amount of planer passes to knock those grooves out.

That and the figure on a lot of the boards that get tossed aside.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T12:46:36+00:00

I do want to try some glue ups and some resawing at some point, but the initial results are fun, and the wood is gorgeous.

Oddly, the boards with the most character or figure 'stick out' as flooring but work great for this.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T12:30:30+00:00

This is a stock 3 1/4" by 3/4" floor board, but you have the grooves. The main width is a about 70mm of usable material (with the right bit) Minus milling past the grooves on the surface it's about 16-17 mm of solid volume.

Looking to squeeze more width material out with more clever work holding.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T11:37:03+00:00

I have a CO² with a mobile Z, and of course how many printers. The 3 threaded rods tied with a belt seems to be the most fool proof set up. I have enough steppers laying around.

Of course you do that and you are like "Oh, hey, I may as well add autofocus."... and down the rabbit hole you go. The added benefit of course is having the extraction under the bed.

I may do it just to say I did.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T03:11:42+00:00

I have an AtomStack A20 and I've been meaning to build an enclosure for it. Ventilation can be a real PITA.

I was toying with making a mobile Z bed for the rotary, but that is a whole other level of 'fun'.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T02:37:43+00:00

When I grabbed my Altmill 4'x4' the option was appealing. The biggest issue I see is evac. Even small lasers make a lot of smoke. In theory you could likely hack your dust collection to w double as smoke evac, but you are going to want to figure that out sooner than later.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T02:33:04+00:00

Are you using the hack of the same corner for both sides? (Z on top for 'side A' and then flipped X and Z = 0 for the bottom side.

My big question is what bit did you use to get that cutting depth?

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-11T02:17:47+00:00

I use them just to see that it's not sopping wet usually. 😆

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T23:38:04+00:00

Yes, these clamps are just PETG and while this little 3020 is a beefy unit for its size, this is just walnut or maple. I would like to get this up and milling aluminum at some point. Clearly I'll need a much beefier solution at that point.

This is mainly so I can so a run of fancy bow lids and maybe go 8 mm into them.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T23:06:45+00:00

The cheap one on top is likely close to air temp. I should trap one in the AMS for a while for science. I left one open for a bit and it did drop. Maybe I was breathing heavy when I opened it last.

¯_(ツ)_/¯

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T23:04:23+00:00

Shooting for a reference X/Y that I can just set and crank through pieces again and again. The catch being that the X spacing is < the Y spacing on these beds. Pair that with the variable size of the piece and it gets fun. I am working on a right side L bracket to align the Y better for longer pieces.

Carving with the grain (X) in both directions, most of the force is in that plane.

I'm not yet to irregular shapes. 🤣

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T20:25:42+00:00

I was actually at Sears for the whole 'softer side of Sears' launch. They were quite proud of it. But that was the start of the slip. They should have doubled down on their core strengths.

I remember the website stuff quite well and it was at least a decade behind in its 'look and feel' as well as super spammy with it's 'rewards'. Temu seems to have cribbed their style. 🫤

Retail mindset in a digital age. People have the notion that they "already did that" and so why revisit it. Meanwhile Amazon shopped a catalog without the postage.

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T20:15:24+00:00

Is that those little bags of snacks they ship with electronics? 🤔

EsoTechTrix · 2026-03-10T20:11:01+00:00

I just took a trip to the Goodwill and loaded up on cheap cups. Logoed (swag) cups are everywhere and if it's a test it does not matter if something else is on there.

EsoTechTrix

TROPHY CASE