Engraving Al questions.

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Gundawg
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Engraving Al questions.

Post by Gundawg »

I am going to start engraving some of my parts made from 6061 T6 extrusion. I have an engraving bit from Bits & Bits that is for engraving with a 70* angle and a .005" tip. Can anyone recommend a speed and feed to get started? My spindle has 24000 RPM. I would also like to fill the engraved font with a color any suggestions on this as well method and type of paint or ink? I had some speed and feed info at one time but I can't seem to find where I wrote it down.

Thanks Mike

Gundawg
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Gundawg »

I ran a couple tests they cam out about the same they are passable but could be better. I ran the first test @ 12000 RPM 18 IPM feed and .005 depth per pass 2 passes.
12000 RPM 18 IPM feed and .005 depth per pass 2 passes
12000 RPM 18 IPM feed and .005 depth per pass 2 passes
The second test I doubled up speed and feed the results came out about the same.
24000 RPM 36 IPM feed and .005 depth per pass 2 passes
24000 RPM 36 IPM feed and .005 depth per pass 2 passes
I would like to smooth this out any suggestions? Am I feeding too fast or going to deep per pass?

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highpockets
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by highpockets »

John
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FixitMike
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by FixitMike »

Try spraying a little WD40 on the aluminum before cutting. If this was being done on a mill, a spray mist would be used.
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by IslaWW »

Mike...
Test a few different bits. Whiteside has a nice 60*. This was done with a Centurion 1/4" 60* as a VCarve. (about .020-.030 depth, 1 pass) Using mist

"hi tech" rustoleum black rattle can and a 400 wetsand on a rubber bloack
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Gundawg
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Gundawg »

That looks good Gary. I have an MQL mist system on my router and I was running it so it had oil. I may try some different bits the one I am using was designed for engraving.

Thanks Mike

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by aifeliciano »

Gundawg wrote:
20170818_163608.jpg
May I ask what font and type of toolpath did you create to get the "stick" font shape?

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by martin54 »

If your testing then you need to run different speed & feed settings, doubling both speed & feed is pretty much doing the same thing just a bit quicker so there won't be much difference between the two :lol: :lol:

Manufacturers recommended settings for speed & feed should be your starting point for fine tuning, check your suppliers website or if you know the manufacturer of the bits then try their website :lol: :lol:

If your testing then try running a constant speed & change feed setting or run a constant feed & try different speed settings :lol:

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Adrian »

aifeliciano wrote:
May I ask what font and type of toolpath did you create to get the "stick" font shape?
If you select the Single Line font option in the Text Tool you'll see those fonts.

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by aifeliciano »

Adrian wrote:
aifeliciano wrote:
May I ask what font and type of toolpath did you create to get the "stick" font shape?
If you select the Single Line font option in the Text Tool you'll see those fonts.
Ok got it. None of the single line fonts available match my mil-spec TTF font. whats the "easiest" way to engrave a TTF without cutting the outside and inside lines?

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Adrian »

Depends on what the look you're going for is. If you want it to look like a single line font then you're going to have to create it yourself by offsetting, node editing etc or install a font into Windows that looks the way you want such as these - http://www.mrrace.com/other software_Fonts/ - or the other commercial ones that are available. Note that those fonts will appear in the TrueType list as they are not true single line fonts (no truetype/opentype font can be).

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Chuck Keysor »

Mike, this is a semi-dumb question,,,,,, but what is the height of your letters? Are they .1" high, or .8" high?

I haven't engraved aluminum, but when I have engraved other materials, the smaller the letters, the worse my results, which is fairly intuitive. And are Gary's letters 2" high? It would seem that without knowing how tall your characters are, and how tall his are, it would make it hard to evaluate and/or compare results.

But I am interested in seeing how much improvement you can get by following forum suggestions, so thanks for bringing this up. Chuck

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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Mike-S »

Not aluminum, but shows what is possible. Done with a CMT 60 deg Laser Point.
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Re: Engraving Al questions.

Post by Chuck Keysor »

Thanks Mike for the added information. With the added size information, I can tell you are up against a tough challenge. With that small size, even my camera has a hard time taking a good picture. The CMT laser point is my favorite engraving bit.

I think I got discouraged with my tiny engraving efforts when a friend of mine burned my test file with his flatbed laser engraver! (I have a Shopbot PRT alpha 60 x 144 with a 5 HP spindle.)

I wonder if you may be at the physical limits of your machine's ability to hold steady enough to cut such fine letters? I hope someone else can shed some light on that question, as I really am interested in such small engraving. Maybe your easiest path to making better looking letters would be to make them larger..........

Thanks, Chuck

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