Hi Gang…as an owner of the OG Crossfire plasma table, I was excited to dip my toes into the world of CNC machining with the MR-1. This forum is a tremendous asset and wanted to do my part in “paying forward” a modification idea.
I decided against purchasing the touchscreen computer setup due to space constraints in my garage. I’ve got a Dell laptop computer I’ve been using for a few years that stays in the garage where I’ve got all my fabrication software: Fusion360, FireControl, CutControl, etc. Since I flip back and forth between my Crossfire table and the MR-1, I decided to use the Crossfire laptop stand on my MR-1 as well. (It’s this one here on Fireshare: Laptop Stand for Crossfire | FireShare | Langmuir Systems). All I needed to do was buy an additional pin hinge and makeup a simple mounting bracket using existing holes on the MR-1 leg. As you can see in the pics, the laptop+stand swings out the the way easily and the pin-hinge system makes moving it back and forth between MR-1 and Crossfire table super easy and convenient.
That’s a nice solution. I also hope that Langmuir considers making something like FireShare for MR-1 creations.
I also didn’t use the stand that Langmuir shipped, it stuck out way too far for my shop. I bought a small Harbor Freight tool cart which holds the all-in-one machine (basically a 24" monitor with a PC built in) that I use as my control computer. I can roll it out next to the MR-1 for easier use, and stow it alongside when I need the floor space back.
One thing is to be careful with the control machine mounted on the floor. It needs to be isolated from the legs. There is a roughly 5V DC ground difference between the control box and the enclosure. As long as it doesn’t touch anything that could touch the enclosure you’ll be okay. I also have my MR-1 against the wall and I put the control box on the right rear leg which allowed for good wiring access and makes it easier to reach the power switches. I wired in an external e-stop switch since the one on the control box is now not accessible.
