BF20L ,linuxCNC, touch probe and install

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05 Aug 2026 08:31 #348460 by aydinsen
Hello from Turkey! Need beginner-friendly guidance on BF20L CNC Touch Probe setup
Hello everyone,
Sending my warmest regards to all forum members! I have been following this community for a while now and have gained a lot of valuable information. I would like to thank everyone who has contributed and shared their knowledge here.
First of all, I have an optimum BF20L mill that has been converted to a CNC. For the controller board, I will leave the link below. Although I have a background in electronics, I am very new to the CNC world and want to make sure I am on the right track.
I want to install a touch probe, but I have a few questions about what to expect:
  1. Once configured, can I use this probe to automatically set my workpiece zeros (X, Y, and Z axes)? Is that the main expectation?
  2. Could you please explain how to configure and wire this setup step-by-step, as if you were explaining it to a complete beginner (or "explain like I'm five")?
  3. Since I live in Turkey, I am not sure which probe model to buy. Can you recommend a budget-friendly, price-to-performance touch probe available here?
I would truly appreciate your help with the choice of probe and the configuration process. Thanks in advance!
www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://cdn...spwouoe,sh/x/im/m1/3

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06 Aug 2026 10:28 #348489 by Todd Zuercher
Replied by Todd Zuercher on topic BF20L ,linuxCNC, touch probe and install
1) yes

2) If you have a simple switch probe you simply connect a wire from the input on your board to one side of the probe, and run the other wire to the ground on that board. There are some basic instructions here for the Hal programming.
wiki.linuxcnc.org/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?Touch_Probe

There is not any real programming needed in Linuxcnc, it is ready to go once the Hal lines for the probe are added to your configuration. You might want to make some G-code probing routines to automate your probing process.

3) Most any probe will work. If you have access to a 3d printer you can even make your own probe like this one.
www.thingiverse.com/thing:4672365
Obviously the better the probe quality, the better your results can be.
The following user(s) said Thank You: tommylight, aydinsen

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07 Aug 2026 07:50 #348520 by aydinsen
Replied by aydinsen on topic BF20L ,linuxCNC, touch probe and install
thank u soo much

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09 Aug 2026 11:07 #348588 by rodw
Replied by rodw on topic BF20L ,linuxCNC, touch probe and install
It seems like the BF20L has a MT3 spindle. In this case, I would recommend you adopt Tormach TTS tooling.
You will need to buy a genuine Tormach MT3 collet to hold the 3/4" tools. I got mine from littlemachineshop in the USA.
You can premeasure your tools. Tormach sell a tiny granite plate with a hole in it so you can measure the tools with a height gauge.
Enter your tools and their heights into the LinuxCNC tool library
Then if you use QTdragon or probe basic, the probing for a 3D probe is all built in. They will prompt you when to change tools.
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