CNC Routing, Laser Cutting or 3D Printing - Anyone?

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MarkDarby

Mark
Corporate Member
All,
Just discovered that the university where I work has toys that I can use! Toured their lab on Tuesday and am very impressed with all that I see. I'd love to hear from anyone who uses CNC routers, uses laser cutting tools or uses 3D printers as part of their woodworking life. I'm probably going to buy Rhino for a Windows PC to create the files I need with each.

Thanks,
Mark
 

smallboat

smallboat
Corporate Member
I use them all in a school setting. Are you getting an education discount on Rhino? If not you may want to look into Fusion360 from Autodesk. Its free to students and educators and very capable. I used to use Rhino but have moved over to Fusion360 in the past year. Pretty much anything that can export an STL file will be good for the design work, then you'll need to create the appropriate code to drive the machine in question. I'll assume the shop has all that work flow in place and you just have to show up with the STL file. Also, you'll need 2D design software for the laser. Photoshop or equivalent for engraving raster images and a vector program for cutting. Depending on what you're doing that may be a CAD package or something like Adobe Illustrator.

Sounds like you're getting ready to have some fun! Post photos!
 

KenOfCary

Ken
Staff member
Corporate Member
I have a 3D printer that I'm finding most useful to support my woodworking hobby. I have printed bench dogs and many fixtures to hold tools on a pegboard. Even some small parts bins have come in useful. I think I started a thread called 3D printing for woodworkers or some such a while back.

Let me see if I can find it. Found it here:

https://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/showthread.php?t=59127
 

tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
I have a ShopBot CNC for my woodworking. Full size 4x8 foot bed. What size machines do they have at the University, and which University is it?
 

Michael Mathews

Michael
Corporate Member
I recently took delivery of a Prusa I3 MK2. I've used it to make some wedges to setup my wedgie sled for segmented turning. I've also printed a bunch of other stuff. Love playing around with Sketchup to create the models.
 

Bear Republic

Steve
Corporate Member
Would that be NC State? The Craft Center or other machines? They have training classes in a number of subjects. I looking at taking the CNC course. They have a sliding cost scale for students, staff, and public. Public rates are still pretty reasonable.
 

chris_goris

Chris
Senior User
The thing people need to remember about all of these computer controlled machines is they are only as good as your modeling abilities. They will only do as they are told. Inferior modeling softwares and user inability will create lots of bad geometry that these machines cannot replicate. Voids in your models, non tangent conditions and disconnected solids just to name a few will give these machines fits and can cause crashes. My advice to anyone thinking of getting into CNC, get formally trained in your modeling software if you intend to do it seriously, it will save you time and aggravation in the end.
 

tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
The thing people need to remember about all of these computer controlled machines is they are only as good as your modeling abilities. They will only do as they are told. Inferior modeling softwares and user inability will create lots of bad geometry that these machines cannot replicate. Voids in your models, non tangent conditions and disconnected solids just to name a few will give these machines fits and can cause crashes. My advice to anyone thinking of getting into CNC, get formally trained in your modeling software if you intend to do it seriously, it will save you time and aggravation in the end.

And find the good resources online for purchasing models. Creating 3D models is not easy if you want to make a 3D design. And for 2D designs, etsy is your friend :) Ton of people selling CNC compatible designs on Etsy, and cheap. I bought 50 models I needed for $4, that were ready to import and cut. It would have taken me days to recreate those.

But yes, learn your software. I didn't take the class on my CNC till I had owned it for 3 years (thanks to last year's raffle :) ) and after leaving class wish I had taken in 3 years ago! What took me a year to teach myself was covered in the first day.
 

KenOfCary

Ken
Staff member
Corporate Member
I like OpenSCAD (free) for designing 3D objects for printing. It is very easy to pick up if you're programming oriented. You build the model with code to create objects and also create negative space. Additive/Subtractive commands. Meshmixer can be used to fix some models with non-contiguous vertices. Inkscape is a good 2D design software and is Gimp.

https://www.thingiverse.com/ is a great website for free models, some that can be customized. They have a good collection of woodworking models.
 

MarkDarby

Mark
Corporate Member
Hey -- I work for Duke. They have a ShopBot 2418 -- anxious to start using it. Have a lot to learn.



I have a ShopBot CNC for my woodworking. Full size 4x8 foot bed. What size machines do they have at the University, and which University is it?
 

MarkDarby

Mark
Corporate Member
Thanks a bunch -- was looking for a class to jump start my work. I will definitely look into NC State.

Would that be NC State? The Craft Center or other machines? They have training classes in a number of subjects. I looking at taking the CNC course. They have a sliding cost scale for students, staff, and public. Public rates are still pretty reasonable.
 

MarkDarby

Mark
Corporate Member
My son uses Rhino -- and I'm sold on what it can do. Think I'll go with Rhino. Pretty sure that I can get an educator's discount -- am going to give it a try and see. then the question becomes: Windows or Mac. Thinking Windows.



I use them all in a school setting. Are you getting an education discount on Rhino? If not you may want to look into Fusion360 from Autodesk. Its free to students and educators and very capable. I used to use Rhino but have moved over to Fusion360 in the past year. Pretty much anything that can export an STL file will be good for the design work, then you'll need to create the appropriate code to drive the machine in question. I'll assume the shop has all that work flow in place and you just have to show up with the STL file. Also, you'll need 2D design software for the laser. Photoshop or equivalent for engraving raster images and a vector program for cutting. Depending on what you're doing that may be a CAD package or something like Adobe Illustrator.

Sounds like you're getting ready to have some fun! Post photos!
 

tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
My son uses Rhino -- and I'm sold on what it can do. Think I'll go with Rhino. Pretty sure that I can get an educator's discount -- am going to give it a try and see. then the question becomes: Windows or Mac. Thinking Windows.

I'd go with Windows, mostly because the ShopBot only runs on windows. ShopBot also has training at their Durham headquarters, real good 2 day class. Most people using ShopBots run Vectric Aspire or V-Carve as thats what comes with it.

Be sure to check out http://www.talkshopbot.com/ for lots of good info and help. And search for posts from TJ and his online training classes, think they are every 2 weeks. And they are archived on YouTube so you can watch past training.
 

smallboat

smallboat
Corporate Member
The only version of Rhino available to run on MACs is a "WIP" development version. It may not have all of the features you are used to seeing in the Windows version your son probably uses. Use what you can get trained on or have someone to turn to when you have questions. It will save a lot of frustration. Most any CAD program will be able to do what you need.
 

riggsp

Phil
Corporate Member
I use my CNC router for a lot of my projects...I've made several boxes by just rough cutting to size with my table saw, then use the CNC to do the finish cuts, any rabbit cuts, and any detail work. With a little prior planning, just about any project can support some CNC work.
In a former (younger) life, we made complete cabinets on the CNC then then just put them together.
I use Vectric V-Carve Pro for 2D design work because it's simple and intuitive to use, and I've played with Rhino, Mastercam, Fusion 360 and some others for 3D work.
I haven't had the opportunity to play with a 3D printer, but I can see where it could be very useful.
 

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kg5000

Kenny
User
I built my CNC wood mill. 52" x 52" cut envelope using a DeWalt 611 router.

I highly recommend Windows because all the apps run natively there. You can run most Windows apps on a Mac but they run slower because the Mac has the overhead of emulating a Windows system. Mac's are also $300 to $500 more expensive. You could upgrade your Windows system with a discrete graphics processor for the difference and have a much more satisfying experience. Mac's are great for graphic design but here we are talking more about CAD and CAM software which is predominately Windows based.

For 2.5D and 3D check out Vectric V Carve Desktop. It's only $350, has a lot of aids to get going quick and a ton of video tutorials. You can download a demo that allows you to play with all the features except saving files or outputting GCode. It also comes with some canned projects where the GCode is supplied to try on your CNC mill.
 
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