I’ve only completed one 2.5D wood carving and that was on a 3018 Genmitzu machine. It took over 8 hrs. to run. It turned out ok, but I want to try in on the SPXXL.
My question is what bits are best for this venture? I was planning to use 1/4 & 1/8 Ball Nose bits.
What stepover should be used?
Should I look at smaller bits?
I just cut a positive mold for a concrete stepping stone, which is why the relief is shallow and the detail is low.
This was designed with Vectric V-carve and cut on an XXL. I used an 8mm roughing bit and then a 6mm tapered ball mill with a 1mm radius tip for the final pass. It took about 10 hours to do it. It is 16" in diameter and 2" thick made from a 24" x 24" x 2" layup of MDF.
EDIT: I have used 8mm, 6mm and 1/4" bits for the roughing pass. It just depends on how much I can remove with the roughing bit. If there is a lot of areas that the roughing bit can’t get to, it makes the final pass take longer, so I’ll move to a smaller roughing bit.
Looks super smooth. What percentage stepover are you using?
I use Vetrics and ussually have a 6 to 8 percent stepover. You can go with more but i have found you get a way better finished product with those percentages.
I’m guessing a slow feed rate as well?
That all depends. I ussually start at 80" per minute but can speed up or slow down from there. Most of the time i am speeding up but you can tell by the finish you are getting.
Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.
I ran some foam board insulation to test a cut on a project and found I had to slow down to get a smooth cut.
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