bradleyheathhays Posted January 30, 2022 Report Share Posted January 30, 2022 Hey everybody. Hope this winter is treating you well. Now that I've been frozen out of my shop for a while I've been nosing around the net for some new ideas and came across what was probably a more popular art form in the 70s, but is still quite captivating....parametric wall art design (pic below)...which of course led quickly to studying the gorgeous CNC machines that produce these designs and their associated software. I like the tiling feature the X Carve Pro offers but I haven't read about it being offered on any other CNC machine. What Inventables calls 'tiling' is where you can cut pieces larger than your CNC table by sliding your wood/material through and let it do one section at a time. 1) Is there any way to make the AVID PRO 510 do this tiling function or is this something only Xcarve has right now? 2) V Carve Pro is SO expensive! Is there ANY way to get it cheaper than it's retail price? I've seen where you can get an activation code if you're part of an educational group, so wonder if that could be cheaper. Also, would be nice to be able to split a subscription with someone. 3) I believe I've seen where Fusion 360 was suggested as a good program to use if you're working with parametric designs. Any opinions on this? 4) And last, I'm still searching for the best forum to ask these kinds of CNC and software questions. If there's a more appropriate place than here please do let me know. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradleyheathhays Posted February 28, 2022 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 Anybody? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wingless Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 Welcome to the forum. Note that if the plan is to do multiple sections and reposition the work, then it will be very difficult / impossible to not have visible discontinuities at those locations. That problem is severely increased because of the complex 3D contours of the work. It is also required to have very fine step size, a function of both the tool and the software, to not have unacceptable stair steps on all those curves. There will be stair steps, but they must be as small as possible, if that is the desired end result. Small steps increase processing time and cutting time. Cannot help w/ the other questions... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jronman Posted March 14, 2022 Report Share Posted March 14, 2022 @bradleyheathhays Fusion360 is an excellent option. I currently subscribe to the paid version myself. There is a "free" version but I felt it was too limiting at least mr my uses. Last I knew you were limited with how many files you could have on your account at any given time. Also something as simple as installing a plugin is not possible on the free version. The free version also does not allow you to sell your plans. Do you currently have a cnc? If not an option you could look into is the Shaper Origin. The Shaper Origin cnc router can go just about as big as you would want as long as you have enough tape to place. The only drawback is you have to be at the router at all times while it is running. You wouldn't be able to send it a file click a button and walk away like you could with other cnc routers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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