Did I buy the wrong machine? (X-carve 1000mm)

Sure I could lay it out in Vcarve, but why recreate it if Dan can send me the CRV he already created to do it?

Remember, I am very lazy.

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? I am doing pocketing and profile cuts with VCarve.Pro.(As I understand it the only difference with desktop is a max carve area limit). Those options are limited to 2D curves, (But so is V-Carving). 3D objects you only have the option of rough and finish.
The work flow is a little different that I am used to, as you designate the depth of cut as part of the cut strategy not the object (as easel does).

There are a few other differences in Desktop and Pro. This PDF compares all the features of Cut2D, Cut3D Vcarve (pro and desktop) and Aspire,

Cut2D-VCarve-Aspire-Compare.pdf (499.1 KB)

Perhaps I should clarify: That part can be made in V-carve relatively easily. What can not be done well or easily is making the part in, say, SolidWorks, then importing the solid for machining in V-Carve. At least, not that Iā€™ve been able to do so far.

And sure, let me get home and Iā€™ll pull the file for you, Allen. :smile:

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I started learning Fusion 360 when I ordered my X-Carve (which is arriving this week) and the tutorials are good in my opinion. It would be nice if I could find other users in Charleston, SC to share designs with.

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Iā€™ve been extremely impressed with Fusion so far, with a couple exceptions. This is from my own experience, and YMMV:

1: You will need to alter your posted G-code file to add a Z-positive move before the first rapid move. For some reason, the default Fusion post for GRBL makes a rapid move to the first cutting location, THEN raises the Z, and plunges it for its first cut.

2: Do NOT use the G28 homing function. This has crashed my X-Carve twice now. For some reason, it seems to lose track of where your Z-zero is, and tries to home to a point at X0, Y0, Z-very-negative. I add a ā€œG90 X0 Y0 Z0.5ā€ to the end of my files instead, and that has been totally reliable.

Keeping those two items in mind, it has done EXTREMELY well for me! Iā€™ve been trying on the Fusion forums to get them to make me a post for the X-carve to fix those issues, but so far Iā€™ve been largely ignored. At some point, Iā€™ll just have to figure out enough of the Java to fix the post on my own.

Dan,

I agree with your take on Fusion 360 for the most part. I did find another ā€œwork aroundā€ for having to alter your G-code file though.

As you mention, Fusion 360 does not have a raise Z command before any other operation built into the post-processor like V-carve does. This is frustrating because if youā€™re not using G28, and if youā€™re homing your machine to the work piece as many of us do, then youā€™ll crash on the first rapid.

My work-around for this is manual, but I tend not to forget to do it. I home the X, Y, Z axis in UGS, and then simply do a manual z-axis step until it clears the work piece by about .25 before I turn on my spindle and send the program. This seems to work.

It probably would be more fail-safe (keep you from forgetting anyway) if it were built into the file to do a z-raise, Iā€™m just not very well versed in editing G-code yet.

Really, any way you do it will work, as long as you do it the same way every time, so you donā€™t forget. :smile:

I really wish there was an easier way to change tools, it takes frigginā€™ forever, and you have to be really careful not to disturb anything. I would guess thereā€™s a way to program a tool change that will use the Z-limit switch to raise the tool, then a touch-plate or something to bring it back down, but I have no idea how to set it up.

I have a screen set for Mach3 that I can setup to move to a tool change position. Make the change and then it will lower the new tool to a tool length touch plate and measure the tool. Then it will continue with the operation for that tool.

One thing I have been contemplating is a set of locking pins that would lock the X and Y at the tool change position until the tool change is complete. Then remove the pins and the machine continues. No lose of X or Y location.

It would take some machining of several parts of the machine to get it set up right and one would need a milling machine big enough to do the machining. I am lucky enough to have machines that I can do this, just need to do the design in CAD and CAM

Dave

That would be really neat, I think, some way to move it to tool-change position, then LOCK it there while you change over!

I think with the right software you should not need to rehome your machine with every tool change. All you should have to do is set the tool length. If you donā€™t have an easy way to set tool length then you should only need to set Z 0 for that tool. You just need to insure that you are setting the new Z0 at the same location that Z0 was set in the first place. Also you need to insure that an operation does not destroy the location Z0 was first set at.

If your software will use a tool change position touch plate and set the tool length before the program continues with the operation the new tool was loaded for.

Because rehoming a machine takes time and if your homing set up and switches are not perfect you can have different home locations every time you home the machine.

Hope this helps

Dave

When I change bits in the middle of a project, GRBL will keep the motors powered using the $1=255 setting. That way, with the nema 23 motors anyway, I am in no danger of moving the cutting head around. I change bits, re-zero the Z Axis, and keep going.

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Same here, just re-zeroing the Z axis is all that is needed.

That would work awesome, as long as all of my parts had X0Y0 directly on the bottom left corner where my homing switches zero out to, but a lot of them have zeros that are well out into the wasteboard area. Iā€™m going to have to try locking the steppers, that could do the trickā€¦

What if you didnā€™t realize you needed VCarve Pro when you bought the X-Carve, because you just didnā€™t know better. No, weeks later, you understand that you NEED it. Can you still get the discount as a ā€œrecent purchaserā€ of the X-Carve??

Personally, Iā€™d suggest saving some cash and picking up Desktop unless you REALLY need larger than 24" carving. I have Desktop, and I use the heck out of it!

ā€œDesktopā€ Never heard of that, what is it?

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V-Carve desktop instead of V-Carve Pro

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Ahhh, got it. Thought you guys were referring to something new out there.

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Youā€™ll need a 3D CAD program for design, a CAM program for toolpaths and an app for sending G code from your PC to the X-Carve. I use Rhino 3D for design, MeshCam for the toolpaths and Universal G Code Sender to communicate with the X-Carve.