Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

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wcw7398
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Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by wcw7398 »

My first two lithophanes were 8" x 10" in .25 corian done from separate photographs. They are (at least to me) fantastic. My third attempt, not so much. It was a much smaller attempt, also a different picture, of 4.5" square also in .25 corian with the same settings as in the previous successes; .04 ball nose with a set over of 8%. Cut depth of .21.

The resulting precut image was full of what looked like pock marks and pointed peaks. Nothing about it resembled the smooth even flow of my first two attempts.

I fiddled with the depth of cut and was able to smooth it out, but lost a great deal of detail and with a setting of .04 to achieve this, not much light is going to pass through.

I was also able to smooth it out by increasing the image size, but of course I don't want to end up billboard that won't fit in my house.

Any ideas would be very much appreciated, and thanks for all the great help and ideas on this forum.

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mezalick
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by mezalick »

I would think that if you, as you have done, reduce the design by 75%, then to achieve the exact same results, you should reduce everything by 75%.
This would include the size of the bit as well..
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calgrdnr
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by calgrdnr »

Picture would help . My guess is to high resolution for size will need smaller bit. Try v bit tell soft ware it is0.031 ball nose

wcw7398
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by wcw7398 »

I'm away from my shop, so can't really post a pic for a while. Thanks so much for replying. Resolution issue seems likely.

calgrdnr
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by calgrdnr »

http://forum.vectric.com/viewtopic.php? ... lly#p44737

I believe 4.5 x 5 just a guess very long time ago :)

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Xxray
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by Xxray »

Hard to say exactly why, if you reduce the size and use the same bit then you can expect a loss of resolution.

If cut of depth is not enough to let sufficient light through, sand the back down.
I use a drum sander, real quick - Orbital and mouse will work too but takes some time. Hold it up to the light every so often so you know when to stop.

You can get the brightest whites paper thin in this fashion without much risk of breaking through.

I also spray a coat of matte clear coat on them, to my eyes makes them pop a bit better.
Doug

wcw7398
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Re: Guess I got lucky on first couple of lithophanes

Post by wcw7398 »

Great ideas all. Thanks everyone

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