I am trying to make my futst led/ neon sign. I have a bit that came with the kit that cuts like a square bottom but leaves a lip to hold the silicone cover in place. I have chosen a signature style font and the strokes are wider than the bit. I need to be to cut down the center of the strokes on to create a chanel for the leds to set in. Anyone done this before and give me some help on how to accomplish this?
Try offsetting the font inward to get a centerline and then use a profile cut on the line.
That offset may be a pain in some portions of the text and need manual adjustment.
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For that insetting see:
If you go back to V7 & use the “V-Carve” path (Not the Advanced V-Carve), you can make a planar path down the center of each line by using a max depth of 0.0001
Set the top of the stock to a positive value of the depth you want to cut. (so the bottom of the cut is at Z0.000). Make sure you set the retract to higher than the depth of cut.
You may also need to edit the ends of the curves to avoid the “chicken feet” pecking at any sharp (non-smooth) nodes.
Now in CC8 they removed the regular “V-Carve” path & only have “Advanced V-Carve”
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Tried all these things … didnt work like i need it to. I need to be able to route a single bit with chanel in the center of the strokes of the copy. The chanel can not be wider than the bit because it leaves a lip that holds the silicone cover in place. The font is a hand written script type. I will try and attach a pic if i can figure out how.
So the channels will look like a long keyhole, with a round entrance & exit at the ends, but with the bit profile in between.
Can you share the .c2d file, and the diameter & depth of the channels?
Thank for your willingness to help! The bit is .250. What i need to do is route a channel the width of the bit in the center of the strokes of the letters.
OBBC.c2d (1.8 MB)
Basically, you need to just re-draw this as a single line, and then double back, but leave the origin open.
One concern, which interferes with automating this is that the stroke is not perfectly even — a larger circle will fit at one end of the L for example:
than at the other:
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Even the regular V-carve trick in V7 doesn’t work well on this one. Too many crows feet at the ends to edit them all out. Much quicker to just draw in centerlines & use a contour path.
This might be quicker in InkScape for someone who’s familiar with it. Didn’t take too long just using Create Curve in CC.
OBBC2.c2d (1.8 MB)
Moreover, there are narrower regions at the center:
Inset:
Apply
and use the inset geometry to draw a line down the center:
Done
then use Node Edit to adjust:
Then duplicate in place:
Then attach a temporary line as a handle:
and select one copy of the central line and the other and join them:
Yes
Then select both open lines:
and Join Vectors again:
Node Edit again:
and delete the “handle”
Note that it may be necessary to export the geometry as an SVG and reimport it before the deletion.
When a “No Offset” Contour toolpath is assigned:
It will have a single entry/exit point:
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