First job almost successful! I’ll take it

CNC Machines Shapeoko 5 Pro
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I just got my 5.1 Pro 4x2 assembled and first job almost complete! It was a pocket tray. Everything was going smooth as Skippy until the last layer of the cut out.

I think I made the tabs too weak, and the crush it clamps, well, crushed them :rofl::melting_face:

When that happened, the pressure of the clamps brought the piece out of alignment, and the bit crashed into the wall of the piece, taking a chunk out.

Good learning experience though, and I’m calling it a B-, which is passing in grad school :relieved: Bit seems fine. Will try again tomorrow!

IMG_6568
IMG_65684032×1809 1.61 MB

IMG_6569
IMG_65691290×1343 122 KB

6 Likes
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The default tabs are rather large for me. I generally use .25" wide and .125" tall. I have never had a failure. The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. Good first attempt.

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For cutout paths like this you definitely don’t want to be using side clamping. I know the lack of obstruction is really nice, but you really need to either attach on the bottom (double-sided tape, or the masking tape/super glue trick), or clamp from the top.

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Yeah, that’s what I thought about right after it happened. I need to 3d print the little sep accessories so I can clamp down from the top

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For something like this I typically use the crush it clamps that hold the top down. I’ve never had an issue. The piece looks good though.

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For some notes on clamping, see:

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I always measure and make sure the my clamps line up with my tabs. I have a left stop I measure from to help with this. I seldom have a problem of losing a carve doing this. The clamps you are using are definitely the ones I prefer.

3 Likes