Is cutting this out and shaping it with a rasp or on a disc sander not an option?
First import the photo as a background:
Then orient things to match:
and use Node Editing to adjust the outline to match the pixel image:
Use a rectangle to halve the geometry:
duplicate,
Mirror Vertical:
position in alignment with the original:
Select both and use Join Vectors:
Yes
Then draw the side profile.
Rough in the profile using the Curve or Polyline tool:
and then go into Node edit mode and adjust the outline (we will assume the part is supposed to be symmetrical)
zoom in:
and adjust
arriving at:
Modeling in Carbide Create Pro doesn’t quite work:
Because the wider section is thicker than the narrower, and we want a more consistent thickness.
To work around this, we inset twice — we draw in a circle to get a reasonable/workable dimension:
and inset by that radius twice:
repeat
Then select the original and innermost geometry:
Then select the middle geometry:
which once evened out to be equal to the centerline of the previous geometry may be rounded a bit:
which with a bit of adjustment to the thickness dimensions and to be cut as a two-sided flip job should work well. This is left as an exercise for the reader — let us know if you get stuck and we’ll walk through it with you.
Hi Will,
Thanks for this! I don’t really understand what the point of the profile is or how the profile works in conjunction with the top view and how you model from there (even though you pointed out that it didn’t model correctly). I don’t understand this part at all.
If it’s too much to explain, I understand. I’m just not getting the concept, sorry.
I can follow the second set of directions, but the resulting model doesn’t end up looking like the profile.
The profile was drawn as a reference and because it was there, and I was considering closing it, exporting to SVG, importing it, and then extruding it using a 3rd party program as was done for:
I also was considering cutting it with a series of blended geometries as was done for:
or
but it seemed workable enough to do in CC Pro, and my understanding was that that was okay.
Do you have the middle contour?
Select that and model it as shown above with the two different settings. Be sure to choose “Equal” for the initial leveling.
Steps — you need to model it a second time to add the further rounding.
See the attached.
When I open yours, it looks like your image. Clearly this is cockpit error on my part.
No way to go back in and see the modeling parameters after hitting DONE?
Unfortunately no, but you can see the settings I used by clicking on the relevant image above.
Ok. Finally got it. I’m going to give it a whirl on the machine and see what happens. I thought this would be easy. Yikes. I do see what you mean about putting it somewhere else, push/pulling the faces and exporting as an STL file.
I wish that OpenSCAD was better at organic modeling (or more precisely, that my grasp of math was such that I could make use of it so as to do that sort of thing).
I bought a license for:
but haven’t found much occasion for working with it.
Arguably, I should put more effort into Alibre, but it’s not convenient for me, since the only machines I have connected to mice are my MacBook, which is in my basement den and at which I have to work for my day job, and a Raspberry Pi which is running a copy of the Shapeko wiki/forum.
“that my grasp of math was such that I could make use of it so as to do that sort of thing”
I’m drinking tea and it just came shooting out my nose. YOUR grasp of math? LOL. You’ve got a better grip on math than anyone else I know! 
Unfortunately, my high school couldn’t find anyone to teach calculus for my junior year of high school, instead there was an “Advanced Math” class which was essentially me hanging out in the computer room writing and playing games, so Stanford wasn’t an option, and my math tops out at HS trigonometry.
I’ve been working to address this — there’s a series of books which have helped:
which I’m a bit over two-thirds of the way through — but it’s quite amazing what some folks can do w/ OpenSCAD:
https://www.raphaelluckom.com/posts/bezier_curves.html
and I’m hoping to eventually arrive at a point where folks can do similar things with:
Of course, I’d probably drop all that like a hot rock if a certain integrated CAD/CAM program got scripting… (or if I could wrap my mind around using Alibre and make use of its scripting)
Hi Will. Made some progress. I modeled it in Vectorworks and saved it as an STL file. When I import it into CCP, nothing shows up. If I look at the file in Preview, it shows as a 3D model. Any thoughts? Is there something special about CCP and STL files? Admittedly, I know nothing about them. LOL.
Utensil Outline FInal Extrude test.stl (63.4 KB)
Update: There are two kinds of STL. CCP likes Binary, it seems. This one worked to import.
Utensil Outline FInal Extrude test binary.stl (10.8 KB)
The first file also had to be repaired by Microsoft 3D Builder.
Hi Will, Now that I’ve got the model done, how to I actually machine it? LOL. I know I’ve got to flip it over to do both sides but that’s all I understand.
In VWX it’s 13 inches long. When I import it, I see in the import box, there’s a height of .1181 and the XY scale imports as 1.076 for some reason. What do those mean? Is it scaling to match the stock size, which is set at 14"?
When I go change the stock size, it doesn’t seem to change the model size, just the outline. Not sure how I can machine it like this taking into account clamps and a corner to hold the workpiece. There’s no place for the bit. Same goes for centering it on the stock. I get the following images, which I don’t understand.
I’m hesitant to start machining because I don’t want to destroy my clamps and or corners.
Then here’s what the tool path shows. Which is confusing, also.
First consideration is where the origin will be for the first side, and where it will be for the second.
See:
I consider the Essentials clamps a consumable — buy a spare pack and don’t worry (esp. if you’re w/in your 30-Day “Mistakes are on us” period: For 30 Days, Mistakes are on Us )
The way I would do this is:
Figure out where the centerline of the part is by drawing a rectangle from a node to the corner:
duping it and moving it register with the matching node at the other edge:
Selecting both to get the overall dimension:
and set my Job Setup and Stock to match:
Then cut the first side thus, but for the second (since this is top/bottom symmetrical), re-orient the part by rolling it 180 degrees from front–back and set the origin so that that same corner will be used for origin of the second operation:
For the geometry associated w/ the toolpath, offset to the outside by the radius of the tool you will use for finishing and roughing plus 10%:
(if using a 1/8" for 3D Finishing)
(if using a 1/4" for 3D Roughing)
Draw in geometry along the centerline for a sprue:
ensuring it is aligned w/ the center of the part/stock.
Then remove the part from it using Boolean Subtract (ideally leaving the original part behind):
OK
Delete the original rectangle:
Select the trimmed rectangle and duplicate it:
subtract each from the offset geometry, either using multiple Boolean operations or (easiest) Trim Vectors which are then joined back together:
Remove what is not wanted:
Ok
OK
Join Vectors
Yes
Repeat for the other, arriving at:
Select the outer geometry for roughing:
and the other for finishing:
(adjusting the stepover as desired for finish)
