Successful photo Vcarve

[jerrywi]

Hello group;
I thought I'd share a PVC project with you.

I've been Practicing cutting photos for a while with limited success.
I've used different woods, router bits and depth of cuts, etc.. the job cut well however the detail was poor. it seemed that you could see the image only from a distance and the board tilted slightly. Even then the image was Barely perceivable.
Most of the boards were 8 x 10 inches to stay in line with the original photos.
So I set my projects aside and went about adding new shelving in my work shop. I was using the Typical shelving material, particle board with a white laminated skin when the light bulb above my head went on.
I remember reading the forum about staining the boards to bring out the contrast and detail of the cut image, which I tried with little success. It seemed the stain would soak in too deep not allowing the surfaces to be lighter than the groves.( I tried staining before and after the cut) and also the size of the board should be larger to improve the details.
So I cut one of the shelves to Approximately 13 x 15 inches and the results were fantastic.
The image can been seen from any distance and no tilting of the board was needed.
The attached photos were not stained, however I'm thinking if I do decide to stain it for even greater detail, the laminated skin would resist the stain for a while until you can wipe it off. leaving the depth of the groves stained and the surfaces clean and white.

Thanks for letting me share and thanks to the forum for giving me the ideas.

Jerry

[samr77]

That looks good.
I have been working on pictures also but I am not satisfied with the quality I have been getting.
Can you give us the setting you used to cut this??

Thanks,
Sam

[jerrywi]

Hi Sam;

Glad you like the cut.
I've experimented a lot with the software , woods and tool bits to get something that really looked good.
As I said earlier, must of my projects had to be viewed from across the room and slightly tilted so the light hits it just right to see the image. (I thought this was Unacceptable )

The board I used has a high contrast from the surface of the white laminate to the brownish particle board groves.
I think this makes a big difference in the quality of the image

The settings I used are as follows:

Material size: = 11.2 inches wide x 13.9937 inches High
V-bit (60 degree 0.25 inches)
Carving Max. depth= 0.03 inches
Line spacing = 122%
Number of lines = 403
Distance between lines = 0.042 inches
Line angle = 33.0
Increase contrast = 61%

I hope this helps you and let me know how your next project comes out

Thanks again for your comments

Jerry