Cutting Cardboard With Carvey

[MeredithMartin]

Wow, that’s some awesome alliteration there…

I’m about to introduce the Carveys as part of our digital fabrication unit, and was wondering if anyone has had any success/suggestions when it comes to using cardboard with the Carvey. We’re very limited as to the materials we have on hand to cut with, and I’d love for them to be able to do some low-stakes designing and carving on cardboard before I break out the tiles for the mosaic project.

I guess my question is twofold:

1. Is it possible to use cardboard with the Carvey?
2. If yes, any tips/tricks/suggestions?

Thanks so much!
Meri

[AllenMassey]

You will not get good results cutting cardboard. But you can get great results cutting 1/8 inch thick hardboard It is very inexpensive (a 4 x 8 foot sheet for about $6 or less than 20 cents per square foot)

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hardboard-Tempered-Panel-Common-1-8-in-4-ft-x-8-ft-Actual-0-115-in-x-47-7-in-x-95-7-in-832777/202189720

[NeilFerreri1]

Are you having the students make their designs AND run the Carvey? If the goal is the kids learning to design for the Carvey rather than learning how to use a Carvey (as the operator), I think there’s not too much that can go won’t with just milling the tiles.
I give my students parameters, but I look at every project before we run the machine. My goal, however, is the CAD not the CAM.
As @AllenMassey said, cardboard won’t work. Hardboard makes a huge mess, though. I’d get cheap pine boards or just cut the tiles.

[MartinW.Mcclary]

Lowes has 5mm poplar plywood in 4 x 8 sheets for about 15 dollars. That’s about 50 cents a square foot. Pretty cheap and less of a mess than other cheap sheet goods.

[AllenMassey]

@NeilFerreri1 is correct, the pine board at Home Depot are very inexpensive, Or you can use the poplar boards they are also cheap and I think they carve a little better than pine.

At most Home Depots they have a big stack of wood cutoffs in the back near the board saw that they sell for 80% off the regular price. Most of the cutoffs are the perfect size for what you need to practice on.