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Thread: Am I on the right track?
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12th July 2021, 12:52 PM #136
CNC Advice
Hi
I am not sure where to start as the is a huge topic. I am a professional joiner with 46 years experience and use a CNC nearly every day so I am coming from another perspective. However I will try and advise you based on your question.
In short you only get what you are paying for. As far as machines go it all depends on how much you are going to use the CNC. If its every day and for hours at a time, you will need to invest something like $20K plus plus. If it is for the odd job (small) now and again you can pick up something fairly good for around $5000 -$8000. That's just the CNC. Then you will need tooling, excellent dust extraction and software.
The trouble with the lets say cheap machines (remember I am coming from a professional stand point) they are just hobby toys that lack quite a lot. They may suit you right now but I can assure you over time you will wish you invested in something far more robust and stable. My 1phase 240Volt CNC has a 6KW (8 HP) motor that is fan cooled and never struggles to machine anything I want to do. The trouble with anything much smaller is that they are most of the time under maximum load and are simply just a router that has been built on to the machine. The router, mounting as well as the drive gear are very light. However having said this it may just be what you require and your requirements may not be as critical as mine. I regularly work 0.1mm for some clients (I machine custom components) so for me accuracy and consistency is very important.
Do not skimp on cheap tooling, it really is a waste of time, solid carbide is the best. You need excellent dust extraction as the tooling stays sharper for longer and of course it is far better for your health.
As far as software is concern I would recommend Cut2D or VCarve by Vectric. They both offer free downloads to try on your machine before you buy and are very easy to learn.
I hope in some way this helps
Kevin
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12th July 2021, 06:47 PM #137Senior Member
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In the software somewhere there should be a way to adjust the kerning (space between letters) If you look at the gap between the B and the l it looks too big. This is because the l is a narrow letter and the software sets a standard gap between letters. Hope this helps. (Retired engraver)
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12th July 2021, 08:53 PM #138GOLD MEMBER
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Ahh yes you noticed! I knew it was too wide and I have a background in photoshop and illustrator, I should have seen it when I first created it. I imported the type face into fusion originally. I am playing with the font tool in Fusion now and it doesn’t let you adjust the kerning of individual letters. I will go back and have another go at the original font I created. Cheers!
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12th July 2021, 09:08 PM #139GOLD MEMBER
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12th July 2021, 09:15 PM #140GOLD MEMBER
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Haha, yes indeed!!
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19th July 2021, 07:01 PM #141GOLD MEMBER
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Still working on the harmonica combs.
Here is a Redgum one, stabilised and sealed with shellac then food safe resin on top.
And more in production.
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19th July 2021, 07:05 PM #142GOLD MEMBER
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Nice job Cal,
How did you go stabilising the redgum? It's such a dense wood I wouldn't have thought resin would go into the cells?
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19th July 2021, 07:14 PM #143GOLD MEMBER
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I’m not sure that a huge amount of juice made its way in to every nook and cranny in the Redgum, there was some small worm hole that definitely filled. I have more sitting on the CNC bed awaiting the chop, will see if there is any other signs of infusion once they are machined. The Blackwood, Sheoak and silky oak definitely took a lot. I didn’t stabilise the Huon due to its oil content, and it should be more than fine with a few coats of hard shellac anyway.