Vcarve goes out of bounds

[Kelly_Bie]

Hi guys!

I’m completely new to CNC carving. My dad bought an x-carve from Inventables, and it’s impossible to resist playing around with it, since me and my husband have a little side business in creative woodworking..

I’m really sorry if this question has been asked before (I couldn’t find anything, but I might be lacking the right search terms) or if this is the tutorials somewhere (I’m working my way trough them, but have a long way to go), please just redirect me if i missed some big basic cornerstone of cnc carving :p Also please be patient with my lack of knowledge and basic terminology..

So, I designed a mandala and would love to carve this so it gets a 3D V-effect. I’m working on basic 9mm MDF with a painted top layer

The bit I’m using is a 90 degree V-carve bit, with a 1/8 inch shank and 1/4 inch cutting diameter from inventables.

Once I get to carving, everything goes well, until the toolpath starts cleaning up the points and sides. There seems to be an overlap in this last part of the toolpath that does more damage to the design than it cleans up..

I’ve tried everything I could think of in playing around with the tool settings, but I can’t seem to get it right.. These are the latest settings i used:

Am I missing something? Or am I asking the impossible from this type of tool? Again I’m really sorry if this is a dumbass question, but I would love to know how to fix this (if possible), or create this design in a different way..

Thanks in advance!

[Adrian]

Looks like the bit isn't the angle you think it is, the Z-zero has not been set right or the tool/machine is flexing.

[joeporter]

Your preview looks good, so your carving should look good.. I would check for flex in the machine. Unplug your router by all means, but power up the control box and stepper motors and check for any kind of flex or looseness by hand. It looks like the distortion is in one direction more than the other. Also, make sure your router bit is not slipping and that the router bearing is not loose. But, your design looks great and shows a lot of talent so you are about 99% there and I wish I could do nearly as well....joe

[LittleGreyMan]

Looks like the bit isn't the angle you think it is, the Z-zero has not been set right or the tool/machine is flexing.

Adrian's suggestions are not exclusive. Check the 3 points.

Maybe a 3mm depth pass at 40mm/s in this material is too much for an x-carve.

[Leo]

I agree with Adrian. Looks like the v-bit is not the same as the 90 degree programmed bit. I think more that than flexing.

[mtylerfl]

The bit angle is easy enough to check, so you can either confirm or eliminate that as the problem right away.

How about the "flatness" of the thin material as it is being machined? Any chance the material is "bowing" up and down whilst the bit is cutting?

[Kelly_Bie]

Hi All,

Thanks for quick responses! I'm out of the house this weekend, but i'll check your suggestions and post an update as soon as i do

Have a great weekend!