CNC SIGN PROJECTS – SAMPLES AND SETUP

Written By: Bill Griggs - Oct• 11•12

CNC SIGN PROJECTS SAMPLES AND SETUP

ONE MORE TEST PIECE

Part 9

Stencil Ink and sander gave fast but inaccurate results.

After spending quite a bit of time making sample test pieces I decided that the entire process took too long to setup so I decided to try one more technique to help speed things along. I decided that I would eliminate the stain process completely from the PhotoVCarve and use only stencil ink. My idea was to do the PhotoVCarve tool path first. then create a paint mask cut to rough shape around the V-Carving.

Next I sprayed (more…)

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CNC SIGN PROJECTS – MAKING TEST PIECES

Written By: Bill Griggs - Sep• 29•12

MAKING TEST PIECES

Part 8

In this eigth part of the CNC Sign Projects tutorial series we will be making test pieces for the sign. Since I only had one piece of oak I’d only get one shot at cutting the sign correctly So rather than risk ruining the oak, I put a piece of MDF board on the router table and ran the G code that I had created. I have been using MDF for the test material because it is cheap and easy to come by. I would try a technique and if it didn’t work I would just cut the next technique over the previous one. Usually I could get two or three tries before I had to change the wood.

FIRST ATTEMPT

I have also been experimenting with different color stains and paint to get the look I wanted. Here are some picture of the attempts. When I got a technique I was happy with, I will made the sign in the expensive OAK board. One thing I found is that the Best Bit for doing this kind of work is the Laser Point Bit from CMT. (more…)

Posted in Blog, CNC, General Update, Projects , Bill Griggs, cnc router, cnc router table, cnc sign projects, Maker, Makermasters, making test pieces, V-Crave, vectric | 9 Comments »

Multiplo Open Source Robot Kits

Written By: Bill Griggs - Sep• 07•12

Multiplo Open Source Robots on Kickstarter

MULTIPLO OPEN SOURCE ROBOTIC KITS

Julian da Silva is up to something again. He’s about to turn the open source community on its ear. Julian just launched a new Kickstarter campaign to bring robots to the open source world. He teamed up with some of his friends to form Multiplo LLC., a Florida-based company which produces open-source robot kits with Arduino compatible brains.

I caught up with Julian as his Kickstarter campaign kicked off and asked him about his plans to use Crowd funding to put open source robots in kid’s hands.

“We released Multiplo on Kickstarter yesterday. Multiplo is an open building system. It was designed specifically to allow users to add their own parts to the system. You don’t need expensive molds or extrusions to make these robots. They can be made with a laser cutters, CNC machine or 3-D printers. We wanted to make it this way because these are tools which you can find in most Fablabs or hacker spaces. The goal is to make a very generic building system which is easily upgradable with compatible parts that the user can fabricate. We want to make it so the students will be able to make robots without having to spend thousands of dollars to have special parts made. After the campaign is over we will be releasing all the files and information needed for people to create their own Multiplo systems. We will release all the DXF files so you can modify the parts or cut them with a laser cutter. Regardless of whether we make our funding, we will release the information.”

In order to be a success, Multiplo will have to raise $15,000 in a month. So Multiplo’s Kickstarter campaign has raised nearly $11,000 in one day. For those who are not familiar http://Kickstarter.com is a website that allows ordinary people to fund the development of a product or services. A pledge guarantees the contributor one of the first products produced if the project is reaches its funding goal. Crowdfunding allows small business to compete on a level playing field with big companies. (more…)

Posted in Arduino, General Update, Interviews, Robots, Science & Tech , Arduino, Bill Griggs, crowd funding, Julian da Silva, kickstarter, Laser cutter, Maker, Makermasters, minibloq, Multiplo, open source, robots | Comments Off

CNC SIGN PROJECTS – APPLYING FINISH

Written By: Bill Griggs - Sep• 05•12

APPLYING FINISH

Part 7

Applying finish to a projects can make or break the entire process. As I previously mentioned, my client provided me with the raw material to make this project. Oak is not the best choice for a sign. Oak has a very strong grain patten which can detract from the details of the sign. My client loved the look of natural oak and asked that the wood just be clear coated.

I looked at a variety of different clear coating and decided I would try a water based polyurethane finish. Since the sign was only going to be displayed indoors at cow competitions (more…)

Posted in Blog, CNC, General Update, Projects , cnc router, cnc router table, cnc sign projects, Maker, Minwax Polycrylic, vectric, Water based Polyurethane, workshop | 10 Comments »

CNC SIGN PROJECTS – MAKE TOOLPATHS

Written By: Bill Griggs - Sep• 01•12

MAKE TOOLPATHS

Part 6

We now have created all the vectors we will need to complete the CNC sign project. The next step is to make toolpaths for each router bit. When we imported the PhotoVCarve toolpath it also created a Toolpath file under the toolpath tab (to the right of your screen) so we won’t need to create a new one . We will need to make a Toolpath from the vectors for the text and a toolpath for the border elements.

Select the text and use the Create V-Carve tool

CREATE THE TEXT TOOLPATH

Left Click on the text to select it . Then Click the Toolpath tab and select the Create V-Carve/ Engraving toolpath icon. The V-Carve Toolpath will change to allow you to enter data. You will be able to select the cutting bit to be used, in this case the 1/2″ diameter, 60 degree V-Bit. You can also select the tool depth of cut but we will not use this feature. So after you select the 60 degeree V-Bit, click the CALCULATE BUTTON. Aspire will make a tool path for the Text for you. (more…)

Posted in Blog, CNC, General Update, Projects, Workshop , Bill Griggs, cnc router, cnc sign projects, cnc tutorial, create toolpaths, DIY, Make, Makermasters, tool path, toolpath, toolpaths, vectric | 6 Comments »

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