CNC Router Forum

[MarkDarby]

Echoing what Chris said, 'everything in CNC' is an extremely broad topic.

Let's start with the basics..this is a pretty good overview of the entire activity (I have no affiliation with the author etc).

Once or if you have a sense of the end-to-end workflow, we can dive into specific aspects like Mike Davis asked about: choosing, setup, software, etc.

One thing to bear in mind is that with hobby CNC'ing, Mark's Rule of Thumb (tm) says about 90% of your time will be spent in working with design software and only 10% actually cutting something.

-Mark

Thanks a bunch. The is one of the best I've seen. I subscribed... too.

 

[MarkDarby]

There are several NCWW CNC owners in the Triangle area and I think most would be willing to show you what they have and give you pros and cons before you put down any $$$. Much will depend on your budget, how much room you have for the machine, and what you want to make with it. I'm in Pittsboro and you are welcome to visit and see mine.

My budget says I can buy one about 2" x 2". But... am planning on something in the 12" x 16" area... give or take.

 

[MarkDarby]

Hi Mark and anyone else looking at CNC decisions,

Please reach out to Chris Smith - 800-228-0000 x 3712 and he will be glad to work with you on all things CNC. or email him at csmith@woodworkingshop.com

We could also set up a class in the closest store to you if you like, been wanting to do more of them anyway.....

Coleman

Thanks, Coleman,
I dropped by the local Klingspor's Sunday and had a nice conversation. Don't remember who I spoke with, though. I have to say its a blessing and a curse being less than three miles from Klingspor's.

 

[MarkDarby]

Vcarve or Vcarve Pro is probably the way to go for most people. It is simply excellent software. The only difference between the two is the max job size. I think vcarve is 24x24. Pro removes the size restriction. Aspire is vcarve pro with added 3d modeling features, but I've seen the aspire features and they don't mean much to me. If I was going to do that sort of work I have other programs I would prefer, especially for $1300 more than vcarve pro.

That said you can do a lot of work in Fusion 360, which is a free program (well, free for non business users anyway) but if you do not have a basis in fusion 360 you may find the initial experience jarring.

I have a onefinity and would give them a good look. They are an excellent system at a reasonable price with high quality components.

I'm leaning toward a Vcarve and Fusion 360 combination. I have used it some. I took a continuing ed class at Duke a few years ago. My go-to for my project design to-date is SketchUp. I have to re-work the brain to get back into Fusion 360.

 

[bowman]

Somehow, somewhere in the ether, I am thinking Sketchup has a CAM module that will output your tool code. Whether it is compatible with your future CNC, that's another question I have no answer for.

 

[chris_goris]

Somehow, somewhere in the ether, I am thinking Sketchup has a CAM module that will output your tool code. Whether it is compatible with your future CNC, that's another question I have no answer for.

That would be a real stretch. CAM software , especially for 3D requires very good geometry and very intense calculations to solve and I doubt they would have the breadth of capability for supporting post processors either. I certainly wouldnt trust it!.

 

[Gotcha6]

Best advice I can give is buy biggest machine bed your budget can afford I went with a used ShopBot 4x8 and so glad I didn't get smaller bed.

In reading advertised bed sizes, be aware that this is usually the largest size of stock the machine can receive. I have an X-Carve 1000 and although it will accept stock up to 1m in length and width, it will only carve about 80cm of that. I didn't think of it when I was setting it up, so it will impact what you think you can do.
One of my first 'learning projects' was anchor bolt templates for steel columns. I tried cutting out 9-12" x 12" templates at 1 time and ended up resetting and cutting out 4 at a time. This meant I had to edit my design and workpiece size and would end up doing 3 separate setups. In the end, I decided I was swatting flies with a sledgehammer, though, and went to the TS and DP to finish them off. But it was definitely a learning experience and I'm looking forward to future projects.

 

[tri4sale]

That would be a real stretch. CAM software , especially for 3D requires very good geometry and very intense calculations to solve and I doubt they would have the breadth of capability for supporting post processors either. I certainly wouldnt trust it!.

The one I saw would export into Vetric software to handle post processing. Naturally now that I am looking for it, it can't be found

 

[chris_goris]

The one I saw would export into Vetric software to handle post processing. Naturally now that I am looking for it, it can't be found

Well, if they were using it for just post processors, what would be the point? They were generating toolpaths somehow?

 

[riggsp]

Sketchup drawing files can be imported into Vectric for generating toolpaths and machine code.