You’re going to need a tiny bit for that last one, yeah? Will you be able to carve aluminum with such a small bit?
Also, the bottom of the carve obviously has a rough finish. I guess filling with enamel nail polish is the best fix for that problem, yeah? Any way to get a better finish on carved aluminum if you weren’t planning to cover it with paint?
Well, for an 1/8" bit you could probably step it up a little on the speed. I’m using something like .067" bit and using those speeds.
a .125" bit would be a little less prone to breakage if you sped it up a little bit.
The dewalt speed is at a 3 or 4. I really just fine tune it until it is as slow as possible, with the least amount of chatter/vibration.
Yes I will lol. I’m not necessarily looking forward to it, but I’m sure in the end it’ll be just fine. I have a couple of really small bits that I think will do, I will go a little extra conservative on the speeds and DOC at the sacrifice of time just to make sure that I get a good cut.
The pockets do not need to be very deep, just deep enough to fill with fingernail polish, or even just a few layers of primer/paint if need be.
Me, personally, I like the fingernail polish because you can pour it in thick, and slop it over the edges, and just use a q-tip with some fingernail polish remover to remove paint from all of the edges, plus it gives that “epoxy fill” look.
I guess that is one other thing you could do, fill with a tinted epoxy or something. May have to try that out too.
Look for a tapered endmill they are much stronger but if you want to go the cheaper route you can use flat nosed v bits.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/10pcs-V-Shape-flat-bottom-PCB-Engraving-CNC-Router-bits-1-8-3-175mm-30-0-6mm-/262149741890?hash=item3d09579d42:g:xSsAAOSw3xJVeXSW
Yea, I definitely want to get some tapered end mills, BTW I just so happened to see your Plasma test star cut video this morning. Pretty cool idea.
I keep wondering if I should get a laser for the X carve, but don’t know that I’d use it all that much.
How will the flat nose v bits hold up to aluminum?
Thanks. I use the cheap micro v bits and cheap router wood bits both have held up very well on soft metals and when dull can be re honed. And as for lasers i will be constructing my own set up for etching metal stone and glass http://www.ebay.com/itm/Coherent-40W-808nm-Laser-Diode-Bar-19-Emitter-DPSS-Pump-High-Power-Warranty-/161920633005?hash=item25b338c8ad:g:nGsAAOSwk1JWchSO
Went out and made this to show you the outcome. 30 ipm .003in. doc per pass cut depth 1/16 in. total time 40 min. I hit it with the buffing wheel to give it contrast against the cut for better viewing. and #5 setting on the dewalt.
That’s awesome! Thanks for taking the time to share! I will definitely be looking into some of these bits too! Hopefully I get some free time to work on some of this stuff!
Buy the pointed micro v bits then you can grind off the tips to meet your needs
I have a question. I have been looking at the xcarve for about 6 months and will be ordering one before long. im a machinist and have been programming cnc for 5 years before that I ran manual equipment . My question is when I use a engraving bit at work I run it with a .002 chip load at about 10000 with a depth of cut at .015 feeding at 19-20 ipm is the xcarve not capable of these depths of cuts because of rigidity issues? Or do most people stay to the conservative side? Emblems look awesome can wait to have a xcarve to make some for my 56 chevy at home instead of staying late at work
Well i will be blunt stiffness can be a issue also lack of coolant and very very cheap ebay china made bits. Also I tend to do what works for me when it comes to feed and speed for this machine. alot of times a setting for a bit that works on a large rigid machine will not work on a lighter duty machine i have noticed on many occasions that bit breakage was due to flex in the machine. I have used the fanuc robo drill at work to make holes in material and tried the same settings, bit, and material with the same cut at home and break the bit every time. I did a 8 hour time lapse video with the xcarve this is a great way to see where the machine flexes after stiffening mods i did the same project and flex was greatly reduced. This is a well built machine and can make some great and intricate projects in stock form. Just keep in mind this is a hobbyist cnc built to a price point and with mods will greatly exceed your expectations. This is just my opinion and experience with my machine. I do not regret spending my pennies on this machine and if i had it to do over i would still have this machine over any other in this price range.
Thank you answered my question im very excited to be ordering one at the end of the month and hope that I can make some fun projects
Awesome, Will do! I think I’ll order some here in the next couple days.
Do you think they work so well because of the fact that it’s basically a single flute or two flute depending on how you look at it.
Definitely looks good though. Can’t wait!
@MarcusRoach You won’t be disappointed. Just remember to take your time. I found out the hard way that it’s easier and more rewarding to slowly learn how much you can push your machine, rather than pushing it and breaking/ruining things right away lol
It has alot to do with leverage when it comes to bit breakage. The v bit has more material above the part you are using to cut with and can take more side load. The bit has it’s limits but for narrow shallow cuts they work quite well.
That makes sense. It’s just a tapered bit. Looking forward to doing this. Even if I just use this for the pocketed parts and used an endmill for the profile operation.
Hey @KalvinDaniels
These looks great. How long would you say each one took with the default Easel settings?
I would say each one took about an hour and a half or more. It’s been a while now and I can’t say that I’ve actually timed it. I wasn’t using easel’s default settings though. If I recall correctly it was .003" DOC and 15 or 20 IPM. I’ve found that cutting shallow, but fast works much better and keeps from breaking bits as much.
for those of you wondering how the Hurst turned out… Here are a few pics.
I used a mixture of two flute upcut spiral bits, with the v bits to do the detail work. I generated the two codes using aspire, and ugs to send to the x carve.
That looks like a Kevin Morgan design by your earlier picture.
http://www.kevinmorgandesigns.com/home.html
Are you making that for Trans Am Depot/Trans Am Worldwide, or are you just copying there design?
The guy that has the Trans Am is building it one off, hand laid fiberglass etc. The logo was just something for me to reference on shape and what not. fwiw I’m not producing these to sell. I am simply making these for a friend.
