WillAdams
July 7, 2025, 10:46am
3
I use a small custom keyboard from Techkeys.us :
Some of you may have remembered back in April I posted about the SixKeyBoard Pendant I created back in April. Today, I am excited to launch the NineKeyBoard Pendant now with speed control capability. In addition to being a full time IT professional, and woodworking hobbiest, and dad of 3 amazing kiddos, I also have another obsession with mechanical keyboards. If you have never typed on a mechanical keyboard, dump your keyboard and get one right now - it is life changing. So this hobby led me d…
The NineKeyBoard CNC Edition has all the great features of the TechKeys SixKeyBoard CNC Edition plus 3 bonus keys. The intent is to use these keys for jog speed control, but they can be mapped to any keystroke! Don't see your CNC listed...
Price: From $20.00 USD
Brand: TechKeys
(no affiliation beyond satisfied customer)
or, if I’ll be fiddling with the feed rate increment a lot I’ll load a keyboard remapping utility and use a game pad:
I find the game controller and numeric keypad layouts a bit confusing (also, my son lay claim to the second Logitech F310 since he left his at college), and while I love the click on my wonderful 6 Key Keyboard (Techkeys SixKeyBoard CNC Edition ) I find I need to change the jog rate often enough when using my Shapeoko that it has been consigned to the far corner of the basement for use with my Nomad (and I am anxiously awaiting the 3x3 version).
Until that time, I’ve been looking for an alternat…
Some folks use a game controller:
Unfortunately, my son left his at college, so I haven’t been able to test this until now (picked up one while doing a run for essentials since it caught my eye):
Picked up a:
(since apparently that is what was used for testing, and I don’t want to trouble over another battery to charge)
Only supported on Windows at this time. Initial setup requires plugging it in, and allowing the device to get setup.
Controls are active when in Jog mode:
Increment:
RB — increases current jog rate
RT — …
but this seems vulnerable to the vagaries of the underlying OS — I wouldn’t recommend trying it unless one has such a unit to spare (don’t buy one special).
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