Im attempting to cut a shape thats to wide for my machine. Im planning to put the material at a 45 degree angle in the machine but im having difficulty figuring out how or where to se my zero point any one tried this before
If your project is both too tall and too wide for your machine you will have to cut it in sections and assemble it. If ONE of the two dimensions is within the limits of your machine, you should tile it. Not sure about CC, but in the software I use tiling always wants the zero in the lower left.
That appears to be a really easy cut by doing one half and mirror the other side, right down the middle. Tiling in CC is very easy and there are a number of tutorials on their site.
What is the material? As @Frank246 pointed out cut your project in half and cut it in two sections and if necessary use tiling. So if you are going to cut it out of plywood for instance you just still use the lower left or whichever other position you want, Lower left, center left or top left. Any position you want as long as it is “left”
So if your half of the object is still too big to get on your Shapeoko then cut it into stripes that would fit on your machine. The width must fit on your machine but the length can be infinite with tiling. If you have to cut it into stripes then design a way to put it back together before hanging on the house.
I found center of my bed. Drew grid lines to match up with the grid in CC. Used a marker on the router to confirm it would align.
Other ways to do it, this worked for me.
Mark it with chalk. Split it with an axe. Hammer to fit. File to fair. Paint to match
Im making it from pvc trim boards im really trying to keep it one piece so i dont have a weak spot its 37.5" wide but only 18" tall so it will work if i put the stock at a 45 in the machine im just having difficulty figuring out how to set my zero point since cc wont recognize the stock isnt straight up and down
So I took your picture and traced it and make the image 32" wide. I cut it in half and then mirrored it but this was a real rush. I just wanted to show that you could get the basic design in.
brick_brack.c2d (608 KB)
Not suggesting you use my design but just wanted to show the feasibility of making it.
Are you cutting the eaves, or just the decorative piece below the eaves?
What size is your machine? Cutting area?
Are you trying to fit this on the machine for a single cut? or do you plan to move/tile it?
Hi Donald. Do you mean the design will fit on your bed if the design is rotated 45 degrees? Or are you saying the only way you can cut it is if your material is turned 45 degrees?
If it’s the design, just turn it in Carbide Create and leave your stock piece square and use the corner or center (your choice).
If you’re saying the only way is to turn your stock material 45 degrees, then set up your file with a square/rectangular “pretend” stock that includes your actual material blank size within it. I would lay out your design, also draw your actual material blank size (you don’t need to assign a tool path to it, just use it as a visual). Group your actual material outline and design and then rotate the two to 45 degrees. Line up your outline of the actual material to the “pretend” stock you designated at the start. If you’re able, align the bottom left corner and use that as your zero (because it is easier than figuring out where the centers align). The machine will “see” a big rectangle of material even though that’s not what’s secured to the table. The machine will cut on your tool paths and ignore the imaginary larger stock. I don’t have my laptop with me at the moment or I’d send a pic of what I’m thinking. If you want help, reach out and I’ll jump back on from my laptop.
I think it’s doable.
You can’t use a BitZero or anything like that to set your zero if your stock needs to be at an angle. Knowing where a corner is doesn’t help if the angle of your stock isn’t exact. Your best bet would be to throw some MDF scraps on the table, and machine yourself a little fence or L-bracket shape at a 45 degree angle. Then when you drop in your stock, it’ll be easy to line it up to a “true” 45 degrees relative to the machine’s axes.
Dave’s suggestion is good too.
Whenever I’ve needed to place some stock at 45°, to make use of the extra couple inches, I use a speed square and center zero. Center zero makes the most sense to me when rotating stock because the position of the center zero is also the point of rotation in Carbide Create.
-Set the zero to be the center of the stock [In Carbide Create]
-Rotate your design to 45° [In Carbide Create]
-Find the center of your stock [in the shop]
-Use the speed square to set the stock at 45° relative to the T-slots on the CNC. (There could be some error here depending on if the y axis of travel is unparallel to the T-slots) The error doesn’t matter as long as your stock is wider than the cut by the same error. [In the shop]
-Jog the CNC to the center you found on your stock [In the shop]
-Generate toolpaths [In Carbide Create]
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