using the cnc as a plotter or printer

[woodman08]

the manufacturer has shown us a simple way of mounting a small sliding bearing with a pen mounted on it so you can use the mchine to sketch out what its going to cut .
Problem is where to get such a small sliding bearing anyone have further ideas.
The pen has to ride flexible or it will ruin the end

[snowgrains]

I did the following with a Pilot G2 pen:

1. Open the pen and remove the cartridge and spring from the tip.

2. Reinsert the cartridge into the lower half of the pen without the spring.

3. Place the spring against the back end of the cartridge and screw the two halves of the pen back together.

The result is that the cartridge is now extended to its maximum up against the tip of the pen housing, yet has about a 1/4" of travel back up into body of the pen.

I then took a piece of 3/4" scrap wood and drilled an appropriately sized hole in it so that I could jam the pen into it and get a tight friction fit.

Clamp the scrap to the router mount, lower the Z to there the modified pen tip is just touching paper taped to the cutting bed, and run the GCode.

With a very shallow cutting depth, the pen does a fine job of drawing exactly what will be cut.

[cabnet636]

to see a photo of that jim