Hi
I’m trying to to find out if its worth buying vcarve 12 pro for my shapeoko 5 pro
so when you design a project in vcarve with more than 1 toolpath and different bits when opening it up in carbide motion it wont prompt you to change bits when needed like it does with designs from carbide create so if there’s 3 different bits does this mean id have to do the xyz set every time and load each file separately
and by asking this if so how high would someone recommend this program ?
Tool change support just requires a post-processor which supports it.
Vectric tech support has one, or see discussion here.
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Yes, just choose the correct Carbide 3D post processor and it works fine.
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Your basic question about weather Vetric is worth the price is a good one. For me I could afford the Vetric license but so far I have not outgrown CC. I do have the Pro license but for what I do CC still works for me.
So the question for you is the cost benefit analysis of what Vetric can do for you worth what you get from Carbide Create free version or the Pro version? Only you can answer that.
I have thought about the Vetric and the desktop version limits you to 24"x24" so you have to get the Pro Vetric to take advantage to the full capacity of an SO5. Another level above is the Aspire.
If you are a pro designer or making a living at the CNC maybe vetric would be worth it. The good thing about Vetric is if you start with a lower level you only pay the difference in pice to upgrade to to a higher level.
From people here on th e forum seems like Vetric is very intutive but there is still a learning curve. The Vetric software was designed to carve wood. Other products like F360 is not primarily focused on carving wood but parametric design from a desktop cnc to a professional cnc. And F360 has a very steep learning curve. However if you can master F360 it is almost limitless in what it can do. There is also Carveco and a few others that are license and cost money but there are a lot of free software which is open source. So carefully explore your options before plunking down a big chunk of money.
Join the Vetric forum to get a feel for the community and what problems people have and if they get help. From others here on the forum they seem very responsive.
Vetric is a UK based company so for the Americans and Canadians they are our cousins. However sometimes the biggest barrier to communication is speaking the same language but not understand local dialects.
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Do you just use the basic cc or cc pro?
It’s really hard to beat the workflow of using CC Pro on a Shapeoko machine. I’m so used to it, I just continue to use it even after I paid for Vcarve Desktop. Vcarve has a nice feature set but I find the interface a little more complicated and find it harder to design parts within it. Still haven’t even tried running a project from vcarve yet. I’ll sit down soon and force myself to use it just so I get a good feel for how it runs.
I’m sure if I started on vcarve, I would like it a lot more. I started on CC basic and found it could do pretty much anything I could throw at it for my needs. Upgraded to CC Pro and liked the additional features of roughing and finishing pocket toolpaths along with the ramping feature for contour toolpaths. Helped my workflow quite a bit. I believe vcarve has these same features.
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I ended up buying the the software. the best part is that you can get a fully functional version (except for saving/using the file) for an unlimited amount of time. Download for free and test yourself is what i recommend. you will know if the features are right for you. I found it to be incredible intuitive to me.
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Almost everything in Vcarve can be done in CC Pro but a lot of it is more streamlined in Vcarve. Will always finds a way to make things work though.
CCPro + Will Adams ≈ Vcarve
I started with CC then upgraded to CC Pro. About a year later I got Vcarve Desktop for Christmas and then later upgraded that to VCarve Pro.
The molding toolpath in Vcarve is pretty powerful. I didn’t think I would use the fluting toolpath but it looks like a nice way to create ramped grooves which I have seen several people request recently.
The 3D capability in VCarve is a lot more useable from my perspective but can still be confusing at times. You can only import 1 STL per file but can mix that with as many VCarve 3D clip art objects as you want. They give some of that for free but then charge for other elements from their library. There are ways around that single STL restriction but it’s work which involves lots of clipping.
Being able to have multiple sheets in a single file is great. You can also have both sides of a 2 sided job in the same file which makes visualization of the final product nice.
CC is great for the price (free) and I think they are the only ones to include software with the machine. CCPro is a great value as well and the Carbide 3D team is constantly releasing new patches and features.
If you are primarily doing 2D/2.5D work CC is excellent. If you plan to do primarily 3D work you should check out the free trials of Vcarve as well as some of their demo videos and the tons of You Tube content out there.
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I will add that multiple sheets can be different sizes and thicknesses in Vectric. I think that the best software is the software that you get used to… and that you actually use. I have had Vectric Aspire since before I bought a Shapeoko and I use it every day. I could do 90% of my work on cheaper software but that is just what I am used to.
VCarve Pro Makerspace Edition (which should be functionally identical) includes tool change commands in the gcode output when using the Shapeoko post-processor included by Vectric. When that is run, Carbide Motion intercepts the commands and runs the tool change + bitsetter routine. So there’s no need to redo the XYZ origin when changing tools, everything functions as expected.
I am not familiar with the maker space version but standard Vcarve Desktop and Pro support the tool change with bitsetter when using the included post processor for Carbide 3D. At least in versions 11.55 and 12.
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Yeah, my understanding is that the only difference in the Makerspace Edition is the licensing model (which I kinda hate, but that’s off-topic).
I am not keeping current on CC features, but I learned V carve for a Shopbot and it easily translates to many other machines. I tried CC in the early days and found it very clunky in comparison, even though it was free. I chose to spend the dough and it works really well for my needs, working in mostly wood, I know you can customize tool settings for any material.
I find it very intuitive , love the double sided machining, the textures,the engraving options. To your questions, the program will prompt you to change tools and with a Bit setter you do not need to do an XYZ set for every tool change ,othewise that would be a massive nightmare/ fail.
Occaisionally I do see some Z level discrepancy issues of .015 when clearing larger areas vs. smaller bit cleanup tools in the same area. That could happen in any program, it’s more the machine than the software, I think. . You can see projects I’ve posted to understand what I’m talking about. I need to use two sometimes three tools to clear an area with fine detail. I’d rate it a 9 on a 10 pt scale. Their customer support is good too, from my experience.
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I bought Aspire 12 for designing bass guitars. The primary reason is the Two Rail Sweep function. It is basically a size adjusting contour toolpath. If I could find that functionality elsewhere, I would look at it. No issues with Aspire, but now I want true 3D design, so I will need a new program to do that!
I’m new in the CNC world. CC pro got me off to a solid start and I would highly recommend any beginner with a Shapeoko start with CC/CCpro. But… I would say that moving to Vectric pro 12 really upped my game. It was hard to write that check but to me, it was worth it.
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YES, definitely access the forum (see link below) for the tutorials, which are for both the 2.5 D and the 3 D so once you get bored with trying to do 3D with the regular CC then check out the tutorials for the 3D and possibly you will want to upgrade to CC Pro.
I did a version of the Buffalo/Indian Head Nickle after reducing it to 60% to fit in my old S3 system. It worked the “3D” effect much better than I thought it would. And I even found a spray paint called Nickle so the wooden version turned into a really good replica.
I’m also turning some 6" rounds that have a pretty decent humped design for capping corner posts on a wooden raised bed garden. They are turning out nice also and I still am working with the 2.5 D version instead of 3D. Your standard C 3 D will take you a long way into your own designs and requests of others.
https://docs.vectric.com/docs/V10.5/Aspire/ENU/Help/page/main-window/index.html
Love it! LOL. @WillAdams is an awesome asset for sure!!
Absolutely worth it. I started out without any experience with CNC. I was very confused with the program that came with the Shapoko Pro 5. I bit the bullet and purchased the VCarve Pro. I am now on version 12. What a very much easier program to use and learn. Tons of videos for every function out on YouTube. Now that I’m familiar I can go back and use the original program because I understand many of the terms now. However, I am very sold on the VCarve. It’s just easier to accomplish about anything I can imagine. I do use the CC Post procesor.
Douglas
You can use trial versions of both CC Pro and Vectric Vcarve Pro, so i would download both and play around and see what you think. Either one is effective at getting the job done.
I personally use Vcarve Pro and have no complaints it does everything i ask and more. I personally feel that it’s more powerful than CC Pro and the 3d model interaction is far superior in my opinion. But hey that’s just my opinion, download the trial version and play around with both, watch some youtube videos, there are a ton for both software versions.
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