Reply with QuoteBy the way, I received my AB couplers from Lovejoy before I left but hadn't had the chance to install them, as I have to shorten my motor mounts a bit to accomodate them. Also have the SuperPID2 coming in, so I'm pretty excited about that.
I gotta check those out. I guess the vector files would make it easier to get art ready to machine, but with a couple small hiccups, I thought the fonts worked fine. I haven't done so yet since I'm away, but I'm sure it would be pretty easy to make a design in Adobe Illustrator, and convert to vector art right from there. Just the same, the vector files would make it a bit easier...Originally Posted by CarveOne
By the way, I received my AB couplers from Lovejoy before I left but hadn't had the chance to install them, as I have to shorten my motor mounts a bit to accomodate them. Also have the SuperPID2 coming in, so I'm pretty excited about that.
I don't have Adobe Illustrator, and I wasn't successful with saving the knot fonts to dxf in Inkscape so far. I think Inkscape will do it, just thought I would see how the vector file set will work to save some effort.
CarveOne
CarveOne
http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com
A friend of mine who is a Marine, came over the other day and asked me if I could make something for him with the CNC. First attempt v-carving aluminum. I didn't want a full deep 90 degree v-carve however. I used an insert 30 degree bit with a .01" flat. But since the doc was .036, and I didn't want to break the v-bit, I roughed with a 1/8" bit, and 'rest' roughed with a 1/16" bit. I then re-cut everything with the v-bit to give a more uniform appearance. The roughing took about 1 hour, v-carving about 2.
The v-vbit is Amana's InGroove insert engraving set; I have the 1/2" shank version, but it does come in 1/4" shank as well...
The diameter is 9"
Louie!! That's probably once of the nicest pieces of work I've seen on here. Man that looks nice! What is the diameter of that sweet piece of artwork?
NICE!!!
Thanks! 9" Diameter... I was adding it in at the same time you posted!
Is this 100% done with Vcarve PRO or Aspire?
Almost has a platinum look to it.
The artwork is online (same site as the mayan and aztec calendars). I did all the toolpaths with VCarve Pro, though I did use a trick to speed up the job.
If I just used a 1/8" bit to rough out, there would have been too much material for the v-bit to clear. If I used a 1/16" bit, it would take too long. If I did normal pocketing with 1/16", with a 1/8" clearing pass, then I wouldn't leave enough meat for the v-bit.
My solution was to make up an 'imaginary' v-bit, basically I specified a 15 degree engraving bit with a 1/16" (.0625") flat. I then set up VCarve to this bit, with a 1/8" bit clearing pass, at .032" doc. I started out at 40ipm but ramped it up along the way. So I cut the pockets with the 1/8" bit, and the v-carve with the 1/16" straight bit. My shop computer is slow, so I grouped the border, and letters, separately.
Afterwards, I reprogrammed all the toolpaths for the .01" v-bit, at .038" doc. I also did this for the center, because if I went full v-carve I would have broke the bit.
The only thing I wasn't happy with was the Marines logo; I tried to drag engrave it at .002 with a dremel burr and it didn't work out to well, so I tried to spin the bit and kind of obscured the logo somewhat.
Although there were no burrs aside from the logo, the edges were super crisp, so I used 400 grit wet-or-dry and sanded along the grain with a soft sponge backer. It eased some of the hard edge, and gave the 'platinum' effect...
You don't just post pics of nice work but you always do a great job in your write up and tell us how you did it. I hope to have my machine done in late May sometime. I'm building the pdjinc system if you're familiar with it. It's all aluminum and steel construction. I revised the original plans and bumped it up to 30x42" I work on it every weekend and over the past few weeks I have really excelled on it. As a matter of fact, yesterday I mocked up the lower frame assembly because I had to get a measurement. The anticipation is really getting to me. I can't wait. I already have all the electronics and computer ready to go. I have the gecko g540 along with 380oz steppers from Keling. It's a dual Y stepper setup. I also have the router and mount ready to go to. It's the Bosch 1617EVS 2 1/4 hp and I bought a mount from K2cnc. The only thing I don't have yet is the 1/2-10 5 start acme rods. Soon though.
I have a question for you since I'd like to do quite a bit of work with aluminum as well. Did you do that whole thing dry or did you randomly spray it with a coolant mixture of some sort?
Thanks.
Wow Louie! That's really nice. My Marine buddy will salivate all over my monitor looking at these photos. He wants me to make him one and I don't have a clue about it.
CarveOne
CarveOne
http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com
When I first started, I couldn't find decent info on how to cut aluminum with a home-made CNC. Sure it's easy if you have a Haas VF6 with a 30HP spindle, flood coolant, ATC, etc, but it's a lot trickier for our DIY machines, which are way lighter, not as stiff, with weaker spindles, etc. Most I found out by experimenting and breaking bits - welding aluminum onto carbide steel!
I will use WD-40 on aluminum. There are a few places online that actually recommend it. I'll shoot it over the top of the piece before I start, and occasionally while cutting. I use a vacuum or air gun to get rid of swarf, ESPECIALLY if I'm slotting or profie cutting in the center of the work.
With the HSM toolpaths I find I need less lubricant, since it seems to 'clear' the swarf away, at least away from the cutting edge. Definitely with the v-bit in aluminum.
I looked into the pdj machine and its a nice setup, but I think I suffer from ADD and can't look at a set of plans too long before I go my own way! I would like to upgrade to the g540 so I can get a little more performance out of my steppers, though my xylotex box is still going strong. I also have the bosch 1617evs router, it used to be mounted on my now-unused incra router table. I have a SuperPID on the way.
Good luck with your machine, be sure to post some pics here of your build!
Thanks c1... I'd say you can do it, less worrying than the aztec calendar. Originally I was going to cut this in reverse (v-carve letters and border, raised logo) but I think the raised letters look more stylish.
I still can't believe myself how thin and consistant the letters, especially the serifs, are. When I chose the 8-start leadscrews, I was more concerned with rough-cutting parts with speed, and later worried that I didn't have enough mechanical resolution to do detail work like this. Only thing I can think up is my machine is sturdy enough to hold position well and the 8-start leadscrews utilize the steppers where they are the strongest; with my .005" mechanical resolution (not counting microstepping) one lost step and the lettering is ruined....
Close up of the lettering... about 1/2" height. You can see how thin the serifs are...
My gosh that looks nice. I'm amazed at the detail of the lettering. I could honestly see this on the podium of some 4 star general. I found the dxf on that site. Now if only I could start some cutting. Nice to know I purchased a good router being that you have the bosch 1617evs too. I'll be blind going into the aluminum cutting too. What rpm on the bosch did the aluminum like best?
Ya the pdj is pretty nice. I originally was going to build the jrgo but I might as well do it right the first time and build it for the long haul I thought. I went with 20mm linear rods on mine and up'd it to 1/2" thick aluminum gantry sides. It should be pretty darn durable. What you said about being light and not as stiff makes me think I should build a pretty solid and heavy workbench.
More exquisite artistry Louie !!
I'll be using 5 start screws and a G540 system on my smaller steel channel machine that is being rebuilt with box tube right now. My big machine with R&P may not do those letters as well as your in your photos. I like the raised letters also.
CarveOne
CarveOne
http://www.carveonecncwoodcraft.com
Thanks zool, only this time I cannot take credit for artistry, only bringing it to fruition...
c1, I think with your heavier gantry you should be able to tackle this no problem. I'm always pushing the limits on my machine,where you have a bit more headroom. I think your r&p drive has a bit more resoltion than my system, with better drives. Though again, with your high z, I'd build a platform of mdf and surface it, so you get max stiffness. I just might build a removable sub-platform on mine....
Louie, that comment makes my think hard about mine. I haven't yet cut my 1/2" thick gantry sides to length yet. I was going to make them about 3 longer than the plans but perhaps that's a bad idea. Perhaps I should keep the gantry height as the plans show. That would keep it more durable. What is the height from the bottom of your gantry to the cutting surface?
This is where I get a bit confused. I was thinking of switching over to 5-start leadscrews, to up the mechanical resolution. Only thing is, now the steppers have to spin twice as fast to get the same speed I have now, and we all know that torque drops as speed increases. Plus the added friction. But then the avavilable torque would be double, minus frictional loss. Maybe getting 1/2" 8, 4-start would be better since there should theoretically be less friction than 1/2"-10, 5-start? There's got to be a butter zone where the toque of a 1tpi screw producing 'x' ipm, equals the torque of a 2tpi screw producing the same 'x' ipm?
The only thing with the 8-start is that heavy cuts can magnify chatter because it has a little bit of a backdrive effect. [my machine is still not as stiff as I'd like] Still I can take a 3/8" pass in hardwood at over 140ipm if I wanted to with no significant issue. Then again, I'm using 3-flute downcut chipbreaker spiral bits which tear through wood. It would be fun to try HSM toolpaths on WOOD to see how fast I could pocket... like doing a neck pocket or pickup route in one pass at .625" depth...
I can see where more resolution would be beneficial is when arc and circle interpolating, more resolution should mean smoother movement, right? Would it matter, if say, my home-brew leadscrew bearing system has maybe .0025" of play, not unreasonable, negating any resolution increase?
Crazy questions that keep me guessing...
I have 6 inches, though with my spoilboard it's 5-1/2". I actually want to make mine taller, and crank the bridge even FARTHER back so I can recover more dead space on the table (about 3-5 inches.) I would have to reconfigure my z carriage to get it tighter to the bridge as well.
IIRC, with the pilot pro, the frame rails are not the thickest profile, but since it sits on the table flat, it's not an issue. You probably could just get a thicker, taller profile for the frame rail, and mount your linear rails higher up to give you more z clearance. I don't think you have to worry about stiffness making the gantry sides taller, more so how stiff you z axis wil be when dropped all the way down; now it's acting like a big lever...
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