Newbie- Design software recommendations

[cr08]

So I came across this forum after doing some extensive searches and trying to find the best 3-axis DIY CNC design and have come to the conclusion there really is no 'best'. lol. But 99% of the good information seems to be self contained here.

I am really interested in doing my own build mostly for hobby based work. Starting out with foam, polystyrene, etc. then hopefully to wood sometime down the road. About 5 years back in high school I had taken an elective drafting class which introduced me to hand drawn mechanical engineering drafting and then later AutoCAD and Mechanical Desktop work, all of which really fascinated me. And another elective class along side that gave me a short chance inside a week to work with a mini servo based robotic arm and computer axes control which was also good brain food.

I am not gonna get too deeply into the discussion of the build and hardware due to the fact that my current budget won't allow for even the cheapest of builds and probably won't for quite some time (Unless someone knows of a good 100% complete kit for under $100-$200, which I honestly doubt after my own research. ).

But rather I am curious as to what software everyone else uses for the design process of materials to be cut on your machines, particularly focusing on 3-axis CNC work and makes it the easiest to translate into the language needed by the controller software as this is something I am capable of getting my feet wet and back into now with my limited budget.

[CarveOne]

Originally Posted by cr08 So I came across this forum after doing some extensive searches and trying to find the best 3-axis DIY CNC design and have come to the conclusion there really is no 'best'. lol. But 99% of the good information seems to be self contained here. I am really interested in doing my own build mostly for hobby based work. Starting out with foam, polystyrene, etc. then hopefully to wood sometime down the road. About 5 years back in high school I had taken an elective drafting class which introduced me to hand drawn mechanical engineering drafting and then later AutoCAD and Mechanical Desktop work, all of which really fascinated me. And another elective class along side that gave me a short chance inside a week to work with a mini servo based robotic arm and computer axes control which was also good brain food. I am not gonna get too deeply into the discussion of the build and hardware due to the fact that my current budget won't allow for even the cheapest of builds and probably won't for quite some time (Unless someone knows of a good 100% complete kit for under $100-$200, which I honestly doubt after my own research. ). But rather I am curious as to what software everyone else uses for the design process of materials to be cut on your machines, particularly focusing on 3-axis CNC work and makes it the easiest to translate into the language needed by the controller software as this is something I am capable of getting my feet wet and back into now with my limited budget.

There is free CAD software for Windows and Linux and low cost software for both as well. As long as it exports AutoCad .dxf format files most gcode conversion software can use it. Free gcode converters are available also.

CarveOne.

[ger21]

For most parts, I use AutoCAD to draw the parts, and export g-code from within AutoCAD with a vba macro I wrote. For 3D parts, I use MeshCAM to create the code. And for more decorative work, Vectric's Aspire.

[cr08]

Thanks for the extra information. Now I am gonna ask a really stupid question so bare with me here. It's been a while so I am not sure if AutoCAD's DXF format supports 3-dimensional pieces. Though for the sake of information gathering lets say it does (I am almost positive it does). Will most of the software out there that does the DXF-to-Gcode conversion work with the 3rd dimension and produce working 3-axis toolpaths? Sorry of this is really simple info. Been trying to gather info on this forum and it's somewhat harder to determine what software people use, whether their routers are 2 or 3-axis, and correlating those 2 key points together.

[ger21]

Originally Posted by cr08 It's been a while so I am not sure if AutoCAD's DXF format supports 3-dimensional pieces. Though for the sake of information gathering lets say it does (I am almost positive it does). Will most of the software out there that does the DXF-to-Gcode conversion work with the 3rd dimension and produce working 3-axis toolpaths?

You'll need to clarify "3 dimensional pieces", but the short answer, is that none of them will.

Been trying to gather info on this forum and it's somewhat harder to determine what software people use, whether their routers are 2 or 3-axis, and correlating those 2 key points together.

Virtually all the routers people are using here are 3 axis.

What software you choose to use is greatly influenced by what you want to cut. SOunds like you'll cut mostly flat parts??

Back to the original question, most .dxf to g-code programs only read lines, arcs, and circles. Some have the ability to offset the toolpaths to compensate for tool diameter, others do not, and require the offsets be done by you in the CAD program. Now, if you want to cut the different lines/circles at different depths, the usual method is to put them on different layers, and in the coversion program, assign the proper depth to the proper layer. Some will let you assign depths to individual entities. Depending on what program you use, the workflow may be slightlly different, but very similar. Some of these programs can add ramped lead in moves, which are true 3D moves. But these programs are typically referred to as 2.5D. The Z axis is mostlly used for setting the depth, and the majority of cutting is done with 2 axis. But you still need all 3 axis to run them. A very good 2.5D program is Vectic's Cut2D. It's the easiest to learn, fairly inexpensive, and there are numerous free 2D CAD packages you can export .dxf fles from.

Now, a 3D .dxf can come in many flavors. In later versions of AutoCAD, a .dxf can contain solid models. In most cases, it'll be a mesh consisting of 3D faces. It can also consist of 3D polylines. Or, it can be regular lines and circles with the entities in 3D space, rather than just lying on the XY plane. The only one of these that is really useable, is a mesh model. That's the type of 3D .dxf that MeshCAM and Cut3D can read.

The AutoCAD macro I use can do a little more in regards to the Z axis. It will read depth information of lines and circles, if they are not drawn at Z=0. So if I move a line 1" down, it will cut it at 1" deep. If it's draw at z=0, then I enter the depth I want it cut. This allows me to cut as many different depths as I want, without having to enter the depth info for each line. So, once the drawing is done, it only takes me seconds to get my g-code. The macro can also cut 3D polylines, by following the line and cutting to the depth of each vertex