Beginner CNC Code Practice: How to Actually Memorize G-Code
A practice-first plan for memorizing the G-code and M-code a CNC beginner needs, built around short daily recall instead of long manuals.
Essays, playbooks and research from the G-Code Sprint team. One email per week if you want it in your inbox.
A practice-first plan for memorizing the G-code and M-code a CNC beginner needs, built around short daily recall instead of long manuals.
G00 is a rapid positioning move and G01 is a controlled linear feed move. Here is the difference, why beginners mix them up, and how to keep them straight.
G02 cuts a clockwise arc and G03 cuts a counterclockwise arc. Here is how to tell them apart, which way to look, and why beginners reverse them.
A short reference list of the G-codes that show up in almost every CNC program, with a one-line meaning for each, built for beginners.
M03 starts the spindle clockwise, M04 starts it counterclockwise, and M05 stops it. Here is what each does and how to remember the set.
A short reference of the M-codes you will meet first: spindle, coolant, tool change, and program control, each with a plain-language meaning.
Five techniques that make CNC G-code stick: retrieval practice, two-way recall, spacing, drilling mix-ups, and reviewing only your weak codes.
Modal G-codes stay active until you change them; non-modal codes act only on their own line. Here is why that distinction trips up beginners.