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This is a fun article but the author really should update it to include the AxiDraw[1] which is a modern, off the shelf, pen plotter. It makes EPIC plots becaus
by ChuckMcM 5y ago
This is a fun article but the author really should update it to include the AxiDraw[1] which is a modern, off the shelf, pen plotter. It makes EPIC plots because you can use what ever pen you want in it (as opposed to old HP plotters that needed HP pens). Check out #plottertwitter on Twitter for some really amazing things folks have done.
[1] https://shop.evilmadscientist.com/productsmenu/846 https://shop.evilmadscientist.com/productsmenu/846
- ddingus 5y agoThanks for this! I did not know these existed. There goes a little of my MAD money. Too fun! Edit: Well, a lot of money. Pricey, but a very nice device. Having the rotation axis opens up a lot of marking devices. Neat!
- brudgers 5y agoIf only I had space…anyway there are similar spec devices on eBay for <$130. Back before Designjets, I always wanted a Graphtec lead plotter. No dry pens on overnight batch plotting and more tone control (in theory at least).
- headcanon 5y agoI bought an Axidraw recently and its been great, its a fairly robust device. Plotting quality has been great, although it takes some learning on how to use it. They also take care to use non-proprietary firmware, and publishes it as open source: https://github.com/evil-mad/axidraw https://github.com/evil-mad/axidraw
- knodi123 5y agoWhat kind of thing do you use it for?
- handmodel 5y agoI'm not OP but sometimes I use it to draw designs on materials that you can't print on + vinyl stencils would not serve well.
- headcanon 5y agoMainly as a form of art - I was getting into generative art at the time and wanted to be able to print a few posters. I haven't gotten back into it for several months now but I've been meaning to :)
- paulgb 5y ago+1 for the AxiDraw. The author does link to this page: https://github.com/beardicus/awesome-plotters https://github.com/beardicus/awesome-plotters which has some good AxiDraw resources. I became much happier with my setup when I switched to running the AxiDraw from a Raspberry Pi using Saxi: https://github.com/nornagon/saxi https://github.com/nornagon/saxi
- generj 5y agoI love Saxi. Makes it much easier to run a plot. Even not having to have my computer plugged into the AxiDraw and arrange my room a certain way is a win.
- watertom 5y agoI guess I'm trying to figure out why it costs more than some 3d printers
- dylan604 5y ago'cause it's vintage man! Edit: how about because this thing has already shown it can withstand the test of time. Can your 3d printer say that?
- NelsonMinar 5y agoI'd have to see the build quality on the 3d printer. FWIW the AxiDraw is pretty robust. You can buy cheap knockoffs from Chinese manufacturers for about half the price but they come with compromises.
- mmcwilliams 5y agoHaving gone both routes I will say that among the "knockoffs" you can find several that use the EBB Driver Board [0] which minimizes some of those compromises and allows you to use the Evil Mad Scientist tools with a little bit of Python or tweaks to config files. That said the build quality and software products from EMS make it worth supporting them, to me. [0] https://shop.evilmadscientist.com/productsmenu/188 https://shop.evilmadscientist.com/productsmenu/188
- monokai_nl 5y agoRecently purchased an AxiDraw as well. Because of its size and noise I wanted to detach it from my computer, so I was looking for a way to control it wirelessly. I managed to do this with a Raspberry Pi and wrote a short instruction article on how to do this yourself: https://monokai.medium.com/how-to-wirelessly-plot-with-the-axidraw-f9e0a872138e https://monokai.medium.com/how-to-wirelessly-plot-with-the-a...