New kid on the block

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My first time here. Getting ready to purchase my first x carve. Will welcome any advice and suggestions. Been doing woodworking the old school way for a long while but now need to step up things. Open to any advice. Thanks

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I love my X Carve. We’ve created things with it that I’m not sure I’d be able to make the old school way. While you’re waiting for your machine to get there, if you haven’t already, you can start playing around in Easel (basic is free, 4 days of Pro is free each month, and if you want unlimited Pro, you can pay a subscription) and familiarize yourself with its functionality. Easel doesn’t do 3D carving, but you can layer shapes to carve at different depths and create a 3D-like effect. However, if you’re interested in more natural-looking 3D carves, Autodesk’s Fusion 360 is free for non- or low-volume-commercial use.

When it arrives, be very deliberate when assembling your X Carve. Follow the assembly instructions diligently, and post questions here if they arise. The more precise you are in the build process, the happier you’ll be in the carve results. Also: good dust extraction cannot be emphasized enough! :slight_smile:

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First of all: welcome to the club!
Since you are doing woodworking already you’re in a better spot than I was when purchasing my x carve. Some things I learned on my way:

  • read the assembly instructions carefully
  • get your machine square
  • invest some time calibrating your machine thoroughly. This will make a huge difference regarding your creations. There are several tutorials in the forum already
  • invest in some good bits
  • depending on what you want to do maybe have a look into a real CAD / CAM tool
  • search the forum. A lot of topics have already been discussed. Special shoutout to @PhillipLunsford . Check his youtube channel too, a lot of great tutorials.
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Download a free CAD program and learn how to use it. 3D is the way to go these days. The sky’s the limit if you can draw stuff. I’d also suggest Y axis stiffeners and riser plates down the road. I also purchased an aftermarket Z axis and 9mm belts. These upgrades made a huge difference in the accuracy of my parts…which needed to be accurate.

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Thanks Kimberly. Really appreciate the insight. quick question, is there a download file that has the entire user file or install instructions that I could print to make one hard copy manual. Thanks

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The build instructions are a series of click-through pages, divided by the part of the build. You could click through them, printing them off in sections. There are a lot of photos and diagrams that you’ll want to be able to see clearly, so consider your print quality, or be prepared to also follow along on the website.

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Paul,
Welcome to the Forum. This group is by far the most helpful bunch of people I have ever had the pleasure to work with. I will echo what others have said. Spend some time on Phillip Lunsford’s YouTube Channel (Paw Paw’s Workshop). He is a master at teaching the fine points and will save you a lot of frustration in the beginning. Set aside an entire weekend to do the setup. I setup a 4x8 sheet of plywood on sawhorses and sorted out all my parts there, making sure I had everything. The Inventables staff was very good about shipping replacement parts . And use this forum. Quickest way to get a good answer.

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