DXF problems (sometimes).........

[Doug98105]

Hi all,

New to Vcarve, but many years CNC'ing and CAD/CAM. I purchased Vcarve because it's easier and quicker to perform certain functions than in my higher end CAD/CAM software.

What I notice is Vcarve many times finds errors in imported DXF files I created in other CAD systems. These same files usually work fine when imported into other CAM software.

Does Vectric offer any utilities to correct "errors" in DXF files? I've also noted a few of my DXF files that import and cut in flat layouts will only partially cut when projected onto a dome surface.

These error issues with some DXF files don't stop me from doing what I want to accomplish. I can still accomplish the project by using another CAM system, but that defeats the purpose of owning Vcarve with its ease of use.

[IslaWW]

Doug...
Yes there is a way, and Gerry G has set me up with some good info for my classes. Look over the attached PDF

Vectric CAD Import.pdf

(1.17 MiB) Downloaded 150 times

[ger21]

Since you didn't say what the "errors" are, it's very difficult to answer.

But here's my guess.
Every CAD and CAM program supports only a portion of the .dxf file format. And many don't strictly follow the format.
Because of this, some programs will save entities differently than others, and some may not be able to read entities written by others.

If your CAD program gives you multiple .dxf versions to choose from, I always recommend using the oldest version available, as those tend to be more universal.

If you can post a .dxf that doesn't work, I can take a look at it and see if I can see the reason.

[LittleGreyMan]

Thanks for that pdf, Gary.

Fit Curves to Vectors is an important step that may not be obvious for beginners: it lighten the Vectric files and the toolpath files. It may have huge effects on machining as some CNC controllers may nearly stall when there is a lot of points. And dxf "curves" can be made of a huge number of segments. So the controller can't handle properly the speed. I already had burnt wood edges with a dxf I forgot to simplify with Fit Curves to Vectors.

Another trick: for those who don't want to install a CAD, IIRC you can open a dxf with LibreOffice, make some modifications and then export it as a pdf.