Drill holes for threaded inserts of waste board with the X-Carve itself

My X-Carve just arrived, but I was not able to order a waste board since this would lead to enormous shipping costs.

I downloaded the drawing and started to drill all the M5 mounting holes by hand which was rather simple. The only thing missing are the 144 holes for the threaded inserts.

I am just wondering wether it is possible to mount the waste board onto the aluminium extrusion frame and drill/carve these missing holes with the X-Carve itself. I am sure, that the working area of the 1000 mm X-Carve is smaller than the distance between the outer most threaded inserts, so I would not be able to get all of them drilled with the X-Carve.

However, is it possible to provide negative depths in Easel to mill to some point below the zero reference which is the upper surface of the waste board (provided that my carriage on the z-axis is able to go that deep mechanically)?

The Z (zero) is where you set it. So long as you have a bit with a shank long enough it could be possible. However, rather than resting you spoilboard on the aluminum rails (chance you might strike one), lay your spoilboard over another board under it. Thus raising the height of your project. Clamping down would be something you would need to figure out. But, in theory, it should work.

On a side note, depending on how large of a project you want to work with you might not need all 144 holes. If you envisioned projects being the full length and width of the spoil board then by all means carve away.

Good luck with you project.

1 Like

I’ll give you some advice from someone who has been using their x-carve for years. If I were to do it all over again there are two different approaches I would consider.

  1. An aluminum Mic-6 wasteboard drilled and tapped (accurate but expensive, time consuming)
  2. Size a piece of MDF to fit, don’t bother with a grid with inserts, and run wood screws through it to hold down material

A waste board is exactly that, something that’s going to get trashed if used correctly. It’s a lot easier to see it as that if you don’t spend so much time designing it. I bought the fancy Inventables wasteboard and completely destroyed it within six months. Placing material, under your workpiece to save your wasteboard is a huge hassle, and wasteful.

to answer your question, yes you could use the x-carve to cut your wasteboard, you can find posts on here of people who have done exactly that. There are hold down inserts outside of the cutting area, which you’ll want to do manually, if at all. It will just limit you from cutting larger pieces close to your max.

1 Like

All MDF (or your wood of choice) waste board for T-slot:

1 Like