Hello everyone,

I'm Gene and I originally come from Russia. I've been living in Thailand for a few years, and for the past few years I'm in Luxembourg.
I'm working as a software developer, but quite far from the field of MCU programming (although I did use C/C++ and x86 assembly years ago), learning about Arduino since earlier this year.

I've recently bought a used Hobbymat MD65 lathe from UK, and planning all sorts of upgrades to it.
I don't have a desire to go CNC as I was always fascinated with manual machining and want to focus on it.

However, the idea of fiddling with belts to change spindle speeds, and set up change gears to cut threads seems kinda outdated, considering what kind of technology is available today. I'm going to replace the original motor with a 3-phase one and a VFD. Still haven't decided if I will keep the original belts and pulleys (4 reduction options available), or make new ones with a single ratio. I'm also planning to install a DRO with magnetic linear encoders and a touchscreen laptop-based interface (using a not so well named "Caliper2PC" unit to interface with the encoders, and the related software).

For varying feed rates and cutting threads, I was previously recommended the "Russian ELS" (made by Oleg), however I'm not that fond of it's controls (a joystick, couple of rotary switches and a bunch of buttons, with just a 16x2 text display), and I am not sure I will ever want the X axis control. Then I stumbled on Jon's Atomic ELS, and when I saw the UI, and how well Jon explained everything in the video, I figured that looks like a great option.

I'm now in the phase of gathering parts, so far I've ordered:
- 3.5" Nextion Enhanced NX4832K035 display from ITEAD ($38.64, use discount code NEXTIONTRIP)
- Omron 1800 PPR E6B2-CWZ6C (Chinese, most likely a copy - as the original costs $332 from Mouser) rotary encoder from eBay seller ($32.30)
- YE Series 1 Axis Closed Loop Stepper CNC Kit 4.8 Nm(679.87oz.in) Nema 34 Motor & Driver from StepperOnline (€101.20, shipped from Germany for €12.36)
- 350W 48V 7.3A 115/230V Switching Power Supply from StepperOnline (€25.88, shipped from Germany for €12.36)

Note that the encoder I've chosen is 1800 PPR, rather than 800 PPR that Jon uses, hopefully the code will be able to keep up with the pulses. I think it should be possible, because the Russian ELS also uses an Arduino Mega, with a 1800 PPR encoder (which it decodes in X2 mode), and claims support for "7 feeds: 0.03-0.21mm at spindle speed up to ~~2500 RPM". The main reason I chose it is that I would like to implement spindle dividing and would like higher resolution. With X2 or X4 decoding, respectively 3600 or 7200 counts per revolution can be measured, providing a resolution of 0.1 or 0.05 degree (6 or 3 minutes).

I plan to make custom enclosures using either Aluminum or galvanized steel sheet. I like Aluminum better, but am not sure how to ensure proper electrical connection between the riveted/screwed together parts for proper grounding (considering the oxide layer on the surface of the sheet).

I already have several different Arduino boards (including one Mega, and some 32-bit boards based on STM32 and ESP32) and various other parts, so I will figure out if something is missing later on.

Good luck with your projects, guys.
Best regards,
--Gene

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Yes, I have a couple around I¡¯ve used numerous times to make brackets and such. They¡¯re a handy source for sturdy sheet metal, especially if you get ahold of an old one. You could probably use the case from an original IBM PC as armor plate, practically

Whenever I go to the recycling center (a place where people bring all sorts of stuff and dump them into bins for different types of materials), I check the scrap metal and electronics bins for something useful. The electronics bin almost always have 1 or more PCs in there (including relatively new ones with fancy looking motherboards etc, I have no idea why people throw them out). I've taken a couple power supplies and heatsinks for various projects. However I never took the case itself, as I would have to cut it to get a (not so large) useful sheet, and since the case is powder coated, if you bend it to the desired shape the coating is going to crack and if you want it to be neat, you will have to strip it and repaint it, isn't that the case? And galvanized steel sheet is very cheap to buy new.