looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

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turbocvette
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Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:39 am
Model of CNC Machine: 5x9 diy cnc router

looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

Hi I am still fairly new to this cnc. I built my machine and have made some products as well as made a few dollars from it in the past few weeks.
I am having problems with the cut2d not cutting the way I want it to. Imagine I have a squire box with 1 corner rounded and the other 3 sharp corners. When I cut this piece it will cut the rounded corner first and then start to cut the rest of the piece after. To me it should just cut the entire piece in a single swipe. I watched all the cut2d video's but they just import the files etc really wish they would go over the drawings etc. I would upgrade but I am afraid to because or these factors so far. My friend has a different program that was cheap and super easy to use also seems like it does more? I feel if I had some videos of how to on the drawing side of things I would appreciate vectric a little more. Basically a piece that should take 1 min or less take 3-5 minutes because of this issue. If anyone has a how to video on all the features including the drawing part of it I would greatly appreciate it.

eph210
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by eph210 »

Is the rounded corner joined to the rest of the square? If you can select them separately then they have not been joined. Cut 2D will finish one path before moving onto the next one. In VCarvePro you right click and choose join, press j or select one of the join icons from the drawing menu to join two vectors or close an open vector. I expect Cut2D to have similar options.

turbocvette
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

yes they are all joined together at the end of my drawing session. So when I click on the piece it highlights the entire piece unless I have holes or something thet need to be routed on the line or inside etc. Really it works the way it is but would cut down the cutting time significantly if it just does it in one tool path.

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Rcnewcomb
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by Rcnewcomb »

yes they are all joined together at the end of my drawing session
Are you grouping them or using the join command? Grouping means they would all select together but would generate an individual toolpath for each vector. What does the G code look like?

See the attached file for an example of the vector you describe. Try it in your copy of Cut2D.

I've also included the G code for reference.

Code: Select all

T1M6
G17
G0Z1.0000
G0X0.0000Y0.0000S12000M3
G0X0.2500Y0.5000Z1.0000
G1Z0.0000F30.0
G1Y5.5000F100.0
G2X0.5000Y5.7500I0.2500J0.0000
G1X4.4971
G2X5.7500Y4.4971I0.0254J-1.2275
G1Y0.5000
G2X5.5000Y0.2500I-0.2500J0.0000
G1X0.5000
G2X0.2500Y0.5000I0.0000J0.2500
G0Z1.0000
G0Z1.0000
G0X0.0000Y0.0000
M30
Attachments
SquareCurve.dxf
(6.54 KiB) Downloaded 226 times
- Randall Newcomb
10 fingers in, 10 fingers out, another good day in the shop

turbocvette
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Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:39 am
Model of CNC Machine: 5x9 diy cnc router

Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

Thanks!!! yes I was grouping them and not joining them. Also one more question if you guys/girls can help.
How do I select only 2 different vectors? If I am saying that correct? Sorry I am still new to a lot of this.
Here is a description of what I am talking about.
lets say I am drawing and I have created multiple lines, curves, etc. The way I have been grouping them is highlighting the entire work piece but what if I only wanted to group/join just 2 of the items together? Sorry I know this is probably a dumb question but I did it once on accident and cant figure out how I did it.
I am not very cnc familiar but it is critical for my business to learn this stuff. Once again thanks for the help!! greatly appreciated.

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Adrian
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by Adrian »

You can select more than one vector by holding down the shift key and then clicking on each vector you want to select.

Sweep selecting is also a good technique to learn as well. Hold down the left mouse button and drag the mouse from left to right, a dashed box appears, when you let go of the mouse all of the vectors that are entirely within that box will be selected.

If you sweep from right to left instead then any vectors that have any part within the box will be selected.

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FixitMike
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by FixitMike »

Click on the first vector. Control click on additional vectors.

Or if they are close together, click and drag from the lower right to upper left a box that encloses part of each vector. All vectors with any part in the box will be selected.

(Assuming that Cut2D works like V-Carve Pro.)
Good judgement comes from experience.
Experience comes from bad judgement.

turbocvette
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

Thanks!! I still have a lot to learn on this machine but its going good so far. I have restored cars etc but have never been challenged like this before. I built my 5x9 table for less than $2000 and its already paying for it self in the short time we have had it running. I feel like I am missing features that may not even be on cut2d. I used a friends cad program and it was nice and easy but he has been using it for 6 months now so he is very familiar with all the controls etc.
I am not sure if cut2d can do this or not but he can select say 2 different circles and space them apart simply by typing in a measurement.
His cad program was $50 not trying to say cut2d sucks just think I don't know how to use all the features yet. I see tons of tutorials cut2d but they all upload a part first anf don't go through the drawing process like selecting 2 items, measurements, etc. Does anyone have a good video that covers that?
Once again guys/girls thanks for all the help! maybe one day I will be able to help someone else.
I am sure a lot of you use these tools for business so together we can help grow the economy again!

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Adrian
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by Adrian »

Cut2D is aimed primarily at producing toolpaths for parts drawn with other programs. It's a CAM program not a CAD program. That's not to say you can't do a great deal with it's drawing tools but in comparison to a dedicated CAD package it's going to come up short but then the CAD system can't create toolpaths...

You can space things by typing in measurements though. When you have a vector selected press the M key (or click on the Move icon) and a form will appear on the left where you can enter absolute or relative co-ordinates. Use relative co-ordinates with the relevant anchor to space things.

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martin54
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by martin54 »

As Adrian says cut2d is really intended as as cam software for generating the toolpaths to actually cut parts out, doubt that your friends $50 cad software is able to do that, if you are looking for software to actually do the drawing then vcarve pro would be a much better package & there are lots of tutorials covering drawing you could watch before you buy it to see if it is right for you. You could also buy the same cad package as your friend & then export the artwork as an eps & import it into cut2d the same way you have seen in the cut2d tutorials or there are free cad programs such as inkscape you could use, no idea what sort of help is available for it though or how easy it is to learn.

turbocvette
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Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:39 am
Model of CNC Machine: 5x9 diy cnc router

Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

Thanks for all the help! Right now I am just doing very simples shapes etc. I will look into the vcarvepro videos. And no my friends program does not do toolpath etc just drawing. I want more use out of this but want to understand all the basics before I upgrade to anything. This was my first year in business and I underestimated how much tax we would have to pay so I am on a very tight budget until the bills get paid etc. But just off this thread I have learned so much and it is greatly appreciated. Thank you. :D

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martin54
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by martin54 »

I don't know if it's just me but my view is if you are running a business then you should be prepared to invest in that business, that means looking about & buying what works best for that business not just what you can buy cheaply, time saved using the proper software will more than cover any additional costs then it's all extra profit.
Can't be all bad though, if you have had to pay more tax than you thought then you must have made more money than you anticipated. Find a good accountant to work with, it's amazing just how much they can reduce your tax bills :lol: :lol:

turbocvette
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Joined: Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:39 am
Model of CNC Machine: 5x9 diy cnc router

Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by turbocvette »

I agree. I just don't want to spend to much on this until I am more familiar with all the different options etc. Basically I want to get my feet wet with cut 2d for a while and get used to using different software, tooling, edge finishing, etc. Its a lot to take in being a guy that doesn't have to much time to play with it and absolutely no cnc experience! haha I am willing to learn more and more and spend my spare time searching and coming across words or abbreviations I don't even know what they mean. 3 weeks ago I couldn't tell you what ipm meant lol. Also I have no machining experience really. All we have ever done is routing acrylic with a simple vacuum table and a jig. Recently this past week I have been working the machine more and more. We love it! Just need to find all the capabilities it has using cut2d.

phred
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Re: looking for videos cut2d drawings etc.

Post by phred »

look under examples for the widget drg this shows how to draw from scratch

phred

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