Looking for material to make lithopanes

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adze_cnc
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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by adze_cnc »

From the Vectric Forum archives: Candlestone or Corian for lithophanes?

stevelod
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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by stevelod »

Wow, that's impressive! Now I'm convinced I've been wasting a lot of time and bits. It would take me at least 24 hours to carve an 8 X 10 with a 1/8" shank engraving bit. Any faster and the bit would break. The kicker is, it looks like you're getting much better results than me. This is the last on I did and it took 18 hours. it's only 7" X 7". My 1/32 TBN should arrive tomorrow.
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Quarter_inch_engraving_bit.jpg

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adze_cnc
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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by adze_cnc »

stevelod wrote:
Sun May 28, 2023 11:18 pm
...with a 1/8" shank engraving bit. Any faster and the bit would break.... My 1/32 TBN should arrive tomorrow.
And the shank size for the TBN bit is?

stevelod
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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by stevelod »

1/4" shank 1/32 TBN.

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by adze_cnc »

I wonder how a 1/4" shank engraving bit would behave?

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by Xxray »

stevelod wrote:
Sun May 28, 2023 11:18 pm
Wow, that's impressive! Now I'm convinced I've been wasting a lot of time and bits. It would take me at least 24 hours to carve an 8 X 10 with a 1/8" shank engraving bit. Any faster and the bit would break. The kicker is, it looks like you're getting much better results than me. This is the last on I did and it took 18 hours. it's only 7" X 7". My 1/32 TBN should arrive tomorrow.
Yes, you will get much better results in a far shorter time frame, win/win [will probably have to wait an extra day as MON is a holiday, assuming USA] 1/32 also work great for plexi 3d, and wood for that matter.
3.jpg
IMG_3641.jpg
Doug

stevelod
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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by stevelod »

I've used 1/4" engraving bits had results not quite as good as the 1/8" engraving bits. My hunch is the ball tip will be able to carve a vertical line to a certain depth while an engraving bit is limited to the angle of the bit. I think that geometry may be more of an important factor than tip diameter for the resolution.

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by Xxray »

stevelod wrote:
Mon May 29, 2023 1:45 pm
I've used 1/4" engraving bits had results not quite as good as the 1/8" engraving bits. My hunch is the ball tip will be able to carve a vertical line to a certain depth while an engraving bit is limited to the angle of the bit. I think that geometry may be more of an important factor than tip diameter for the resolution.
I see your point and generally agree, but tip diameter [and I'm sure you are aware] is an important factor in getting detail. For instance, using a 1/8 TBN, it would not be possible to make a detailed 8x10 such as the one I posted, perhaps one much larger. 1/16, maybe, with stepover dialed way down.
Not sure of actual tip size of engrave vs TBN, or if such a spec is even available for an engraving bit, but obviously it comes to a needle point with a set angle, thus it would be almost like a roughing, or repetitive, cut with a flat bottom, whereas a ballnose is capable of actual sculpting and thus much better suited for this type of work [not to mention they are far more robust, and thus can be worked at max speeds]. So optimally, if a 1/16 could get the same resolution as a 1/32 on a given sized work-piece, you could of course use either but 1/16 would be much more efficient with a large savings of time for the same result. There may be a science to predetermine this important factor, but for me its always been trial & error, with stepover being the largest determining factor in resolution and cut time.

I have always used engraving bits for, well ,, Engraving, and etching where fine detail is required at a very shallow depth, almost a scratch.
Doug

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by adze_cnc »

That's what I was thinking on the bus this morning. 1/8" shank engraving gave better results than 1/4" engraving but is prone to snapping so we need to use a tapered (angled) ball end cutter. But, what are the angles and flat diameters of the 2 engraving cutters? 1.8" cuts better than 1/4" implies the 1/8" has a smaller side angle than the 1/4" one but...

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by stevelod »

Thanks to those hard working Amazon drivers working on Memorial Day I received my 1/32" tbn bit. The results were as good as anything I've done with an engraving bit (maybe better) but it only took 1/4th the time. I'm finished using engraving bits.This 4" x 4" took less than 2 hours to carve.
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Hank.jpg

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Re: Looking for material to make lithopanes

Post by Xxray »

Looks pretty sharp, 1 other thing I'll point out is that not all 1/32 bits are created equally, I have had luck trying cheap made in china bits but the quality with them is spotty, a top of the line bit from precisebits/amana ect can make a noticeable difference with everything else being equal.
Doug

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