What commands from GRBL v0.8 are useful for a pendant?

Cycle Start, Feed Hold, and Soft Reset are useful commands mentioned in the article.

Can I access Cycle Start and Feed Hold without a pendant?

Yes, these commands are accessible via the terminal, but the pendant provides easier physical access.

What components do I need to build this pendant?

The article lists soldering supplies, 10-wire ribbon cable, serial connectors and cable, three arcade buttons, two switches, an E-Stop, a screw terminal block, an aluminum enclosure, and a drill press with a step drill.

How should I plan the wiring layout?

The article describes sketching the button layout and wiring: Cycle Start, Feed Hold, Reset, and E-Stop share Arduino Ground, while the two switches are on their own circuit, all tied into a terminal block to exit via the serial connector.

What connector did the author use to exit the pendant enclosure?

The author used a serial connector to exit the enclosure and noted Sparkfun had suitable plugs.

How large were the holes drilled for the buttons?

The article states 1-1/4 inch holes were used for the buttons.

What should I be careful about when soldering?

The article advises double and triple checking the wiring diagram and writing notes about which wires go to which serial connector pins, because mis-soldering can be hard to diagnose.

Did the author recommend a specific style of terminal block?

The author recommended a screw terminal block and did not recommend white European style blocks because they don't work well with small wires.

Make Your Own GRBL CNC Pendant

Contents hide

1 Summary of Make Your Own GRBL CNC Pendant

2 Step 1: Components

3 Step 2: Plan

4 Step 3: Soldering

5 Quick Solutions to Questions related to GRBL CNC Pendant:

Summary of Make Your Own GRBL CNC Pendant

Summary: This article shows how to build a handheld pendant for a DIY CNC running GRBL (v0.8+) to access handy commands like Cycle Start, Feed Hold, Soft Reset, and E-Stop. It covers required components, planning button layout and wiring to GRBL pinouts, drilling an enclosure, mounting parts, soldering connections into a terminal block, and final assembly tips.

Parts used in the GRBL CNC Pendant:

Soldering iron and supplies
10-wire ribbon cable
Serial port connectors (one male, one female)
Serial cable
Arcade machine buttons (3: Green, Yellow, Blue)
Switches (2)
Mushroom style E-Stop button
Screw terminal block
Aluminum enclosure
Drill press with step drill

So you just finished your DIY CNC machine, set up GRBL and even cut your first part. Now what? Well, did you know that as of GRBL v0.8 there are pinouts some really useful commands such as Cycle Start, Feed Hold and a Soft Reset? Cycle Start and Feed Hold allow you to literally pause your machine so you can double check that your tool isn’t about to hit a clamp, or maybe you just need to run inside to grab some more pizza. Once you get back, just hit the Cycle Start button and BAM! your machine goes on its merry way as if nothing had ever happened….

Although these commands are accessible via the terminal, I decided that I really wanted to have a nice pendant with easy to use buttons – and maybe a few extra buttons for future development! So grab your soldering iron and lets get to work!

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Step 1: Components

There are a few components that we need to complete this project, I set up a handy-dandy wishlist over at Sparkfun with *most* of the parts, the rest you will have to source yourself.

What You Need:
– Soldering Iron/Supplies
– 10 wire Ribbon Cable
– (2) serial port connectors (one male, one female)
– serial cable
– (3) arcade machine buttons. I like Green, Yellow and Blue
– (2) switches
– Mushroom style E-Stop button (Mine came from ZenToolworks.com)
– Screw terminal block (I don’t recommend the white, “European Style” blocks because they don’t work well with small wires)
– Aluminum Enclosure
– Drill press with Step Drill (Amazon has step drills for $cheap$)

Here is a link to my Sparkfun wishlist:
https://www.sparkfun.com/wish_lists/55422

Step 2: Plan

Before digging into a project, it is good to figure out a plan. I did a quick little MSpaint sketch to show how I wanted my button layout and my wiring set up. Basically, my Cycle Start, Feed Hold, Reset, and E-Stop buttons will share the Arduino Ground (-) wire. The two switches will be on their own circuit since I don’t really know what I want to use them for. Everything will tie into my terminal block before exiting via the serial connector. There are probably better connectors than a serial connector, but Sparkfun had some cool little plugs and they were cheaper than other options that I found.

If you are interested in the GRBL pinout for other projects, check out this link: https://github.com/grbl/grbl/wiki/Connecting-Grbl

Once I figured out where I wanted everything, I used my step drill to drill some some big holes. 1-1/4″ to be exact, my drill press really struggled, so be careful! Once the holes were drilled, I tested the fit of the buttons (to make sure they were not too tall) and checked the location of my terminal block. When I was sure that everything was in a good place, I glued in the terminal block and went to soldering….

Step 3: Soldering

Carefully start soldering the buttons together, be sure to double and triple check your diagram! Write lots of notes about what wires go to what pins on the serial connector. If you solder the wrong pin, it can be tough to figure out why your pendant isn’t working. Once everything is hooked up, carefully close the box. I had to wiggle stuff around to get it to fit correctly and had a lot of trouble with wires escaping the terminal block.

For more detail: Make Your Own GRBL CNC Pendant

Quick Solutions to Questions related to GRBL CNC Pendant:

What commands from GRBL v0.8 are useful for a pendant?
Cycle Start, Feed Hold, and Soft Reset are useful commands mentioned in the article.
Can I access Cycle Start and Feed Hold without a pendant?
Yes, these commands are accessible via the terminal, but the pendant provides easier physical access.
What components do I need to build this pendant?
The article lists soldering supplies, 10-wire ribbon cable, serial connectors and cable, three arcade buttons, two switches, an E-Stop, a screw terminal block, an aluminum enclosure, and a drill press with a step drill.
How should I plan the wiring layout?
The article describes sketching the button layout and wiring: Cycle Start, Feed Hold, Reset, and E-Stop share Arduino Ground, while the two switches are on their own circuit, all tied into a terminal block to exit via the serial connector.
What connector did the author use to exit the pendant enclosure?
The author used a serial connector to exit the enclosure and noted Sparkfun had suitable plugs.
How large were the holes drilled for the buttons?
The article states 1-1/4 inch holes were used for the buttons.
What should I be careful about when soldering?
The article advises double and triple checking the wiring diagram and writing notes about which wires go to which serial connector pins, because mis-soldering can be hard to diagnose.
Did the author recommend a specific style of terminal block?
The author recommended a screw terminal block and did not recommend white European style blocks because they don't work well with small wires.

About The Author

Ibrar Ayyub

I am an experienced technical writer holding a Master's degree in computer science from BZU Multan, Pakistan University. With a background spanning various industries, particularly in home automation and engineering, I have honed my skills in crafting clear and concise content. Proficient in leveraging infographics and diagrams, I strive to simplify complex concepts for readers. My strength lies in thorough research and presenting information in a structured and logical format.

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