I had a ton of fun making this! Lately, I haven’t made anything for myself and glad I did it!
Materials:
Aspen
Ziricote Veneer
3/8 Maple Dowls
Walnut
Dimensions:
Grid surface: 6.25 x 6.25 x 1.625
Base: 8 x 8
I also got to try out my new set of crush it clamps! 
Here is the build video:
I’ve been asked a couple of times about the file. I put a link in the YouTube comments to the digital file. I would say the file is verified 
Cheers!
So cool! How long did it take to cut each side?
About an hour with the clearing op. I used a 1/4” ball nose, it goes pretty fast in that soft wood
Very nice gravity well!
I’m not a Fusion 360 guy. Could your STL file be used in Carbide Create Pro without much (or any) modification other than defining tool paths?
Hey Steve, I wish I had more time with CC Pro to answer that question 100%, but I do not.
I do know the .STL files are at the final dimension of the model profile that was machined. The stl can be scaled.
If you imported the stl into CC Pro, you would need to manipulate it and position it correctly for the double sided machining and do your normal workflow inside CC Pro.
The file contains 2 STLs, one model with the top profile and a second STL for the bottom that’s flipped.
Just be careful as that ball bearing reaches the event horizon that our whole plane of existence is not sucked in. 
well to be fair…when I was making it, it felt like hours. When I went back into the house, the wife aged 40 years and the kids had kids 
Spacetime can be a funky…
Thanks - I’m intrigued. I’ll give it a try…
I can confirm that your file works perfectly in Carbide Create Pro. I imported it, scaled it down a smidge and tested it on some glued-up 2x4 scraps (my blank was 1/4" smaller than yours in all dimensions).
Now that I got it working, I’ll make another one in “real” wood and post the details here. I also need to get a bigger ball-bearing cuz this one is wimpy!
Very Cool!!! I’m actually right in the middle of doing a Fusion How-to for a similar model.
Thanks for testing it out!
I got the ball bearings off Amazon here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00CAGAWD2?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title
They were a decent size for the overall dimension of everything.
The lumber scrap grain followed pretty well, not bad for the effect.
Gluing up the veneer was a pain
Maurice, I just realized that in your video you mentioned a longer pot life glue, but I don’t see where you said what that glue was. Could you? Thanks!
@CrookedWoodTex Crap, you’re right! I used Titebond II Extend Wood Glue
This was a super important step to slow down the set time, it’s painful to line everything up, it’s worse when your rushing to beat the glue setting up.
@Merick01, Found this illustration of warped spacetime. Looks exactly like your model. It would be cool to build one from blackish wood (to represent space) with light-colored lines. Not sure I want to plunk down $ for Wenge…
Right! Wedge is expensive, but I think Walnut could be a good substitute for a darker type of wood with white lines. Should be a good contrast. There’s a lot of possibilities here!
So much, that I’m going to make a puzzle out of it. There is some serious prep to pull it off though, to include surface jigs to hold the pieces together for the top/bottom carving.
I spent the morning doing the CAD/CAM work, this is getting built this week. Fingers Crossed on this one.
I’ll have 5 points of contact and it will be suspended on top of a walnut base, with the bottom curve cut into the base. I’m going to play with the tolerances more to get a little tighter fit to strengthen those joints for support.
I’m going to early release the model today on my Patreon and document the steps on it as I go, I hope that type of content will be more value added to the subscription. Trying really hard to quite my day job so I can focus more on this. 
One thought on using walnut is that it contains sufficient tannins that one could use a traditional ebonizing solution (steel wool in vinegar) to darken it.
I bet my Ferric Nitrate would darken it up pretty well but would affect the veneer if you went that route. Painted VCarved lines after the profile after the solution is applied would solve that issue
Here’s my take on this project using end-grain walnut and maple veneer, the STL files from @Merick01 and Carbide Create Pro. I made my blank a little bigger - 9" x 9" x 2". The final diameter of the “warped spacetime” is 8.75". The base is made from baltic birch plywood, based on a logarithmic spiral and intended to represent a spiral galaxy. Finished with a few coats of shellac, followed by paste wax.
Using the .STL files in Carbide Create Pro was very easy. There are two files - “Top” and “Bottom”. The STL files will automagically scale to fit whatever stock dimensions you use (in my case 9"x9"x2"):
Step 1: Set your stock size and thickness:
Step 2:
Under the “Model” tab, import the “Top” STL file:
The only thing you have to do is set the “Height” to match your stock thickness from Step 1. Then click “Apply”.
Click “Show 3D” and you get this:
Click “Done” and head over to Toolpaths to set appropriate 3D Rough and 3D Finish Toolpaths.
When you’re done cutting the top, flip it over, and repeat the steps above to import and cut the “Bottom” STL file.
For those of you in the United States, you can get a 1" steel ball bearing from a local Harbor Freight for $1.99. They look like this - just gently tap the ball out of the housing and the whole thing will come apart:
Nailed it! Great choice of contrasting woods and great job getting the veneer lined up between glue ups! That base is super good with those metal pins!
