tool path from stl file?

[Tristar500]

Thinking of giving the David laser scanner a try.

Any way to get a tool path off of a stl file?

[ger21]

MeshCAM, Vectric's Cut3D, I think CamBam, and pretty much every other higher priced CAM package.

[yohudi]

Thinking of giving the David laser scanner a try.

Any way to get a tool path off of a stl file?

You can also do this at zero cost using FreeMill... you will need to edit the post-processor to use the code with mach control software.. or try one of the visualMill based post-processors available at MecSoft.

The VisualMill Mach post-processors are reported to function OK with FreeMill.

I've attached an image showing an .STL I test cut using Mach2 and FreeMill gcode.

Hope this Helps

Danny (aka Yohudi)

[High Seas]

STLWork -- not free but has a demo. About $125 as I recall. Seems like you have a range of choices.
BTW -- Let us hear how you like DAVID. Good thinking - ahead. Find a processor for the output --before generating the output!
Cheers - Jim

[Bradt]

Vectric Cut 3D works great for this, and it's pretty cheap too! You can download a free trial version. It'll let you post the file, but it adds a watermark until you get a license.