I have tried to mill text into wood by using the #122 (1/32" Square Endmill), but can’t seem to get it to work with any text smaller than about 1/4" in height.
Any suggestions for smaller text?
I just had very good luck with this one.
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For a square endmill the narrowest feature of the text needs to be 10% wider than the endmill diameter.
Better to use a V endmill and a V carving toolpath:
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Great! Thanks for the info.
Thanks! I’ll try that. How small can the text actually be?
That’s a good question (how small can text be) — this depends on the mechanical resolution of the machine and the accuracy and precision it can move at – backlash and so forth become issues at small sizes.
Not a V engraving, but I did a diamond-drag engraving text on my Nomad and achieved quite small text (unfortunately, can’t find the piece of acrylic at the moment, and my phone reset itself when I was cutting the grass a while ago, so no photo).
I would suggest making a test in a piece of scrap to determine just how small you can achieve.
When I view the “show simulation” it will not complete the entire letters if the text is too small. (using the 1/32" end mill, which to me is a very tiny mill) It just seems that I should be able to create text smaller than 1/4" high with this tiny mill.
It is not the height but the width of the letter. If the simulation does not show properly your bit is too wide.
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It just seems like the 1/32" bit is small enough to do some pretty little text. I have also tried the #501 engraver with the same “show simulation” results.
I’ll give the v-bit a shot.
The #501 is a vee bit. The preview for a vee bit does not render properly except for vcarving tool paths. If you try contour cuts like pocketing the simulation will not render properly and/or cut properly
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