Mark walks through every step on how he does a tool change and some of the other methods out there. I really appreciate his perspective. No electrical endstops or z probes needed.
There are so many ways to change a tool, this is his method and reasoning behind it. My two cents is his chosen method works perfectly for a square machine, or a non critical cut on a not so square machine and is the way I do it. If you have a nicely tuned machine this method can be done with some spring clamps, I love this.
Adding gizmos like endstops and probes can make some fantastic things happen or just add unnecessary complexity to what he shows is a very simple task. If you have a not so square machine use method #4. If I used method #4 I would use 0,0,0 as my “safe place” and make sure my cut does not start there, so you have a place to set the z depth. Method 4 lets you energize your steppers and square up your machine, then holds your position by never releasing the X and Y axis.
To all you newcomers out there I beg you to try this way first. I don’t sell my machine bundle with endstops and this is why, I really feel they add more complexity than value. Probes are the same way you can easily set your z height by eye or feeler gauge just as easy. So many people watch other videos and want to add all the bells and whistles. Sometimes a screw driver is better than a screw gun.
If you haven’t already seen Mark’s series, this is Number #13! Every step of the way has been covered, if you don’t understand something I am sure it has been covered in this series. I can’t wait to see what’s next.
Thank you mark for all the effort you put into making this community a better one!
Feel free to ask questions in the forum (here) or the video comments.