Hey guys, looking for some recommendations here. So far I have cut a few projects with a 1/4” upcut and some 60/90 degree v-bits. Everything so far has been in 3/4” ply or 3/4” mdf. I’ve had a request to do some lettering for someone, but the font is very thin. Honestly would be a great project for a home built co2 laser cutter, but mine isn’t done yet .
What is your favorite bit for cutting very fine details in something thin? I’m thinking I will do this from 1/4” material. Both ply and hardwoods if I can.
For reference, here’s a screenshot she sent of the font style she likes. She is wanting the font from thin material to be finished and then glued to a backer board.
If you will be cutting it out and then affixing it to the other piece, then I would look at either a 1/8" or even a 1/16" end mill. Those would probably be good enough to get down to that small detail you are looking for. Another option, if you are feeling froggy, it maybe doing it as an inlay, in which I would recommend a v-bit for that application. I am working on finishing my new frame, as well as needing to re-cut parts for my Meticulous Z, but as soon as I have all that back together, I am going to be attempting some inlay work to see how well it may work on the Maslow. Just a thought!
I considered the 1/16” bits, but wasn’t sure if anyone had any experience with them. This is my first dabble in the cnc realm, but they seem like they would be more fragile and require slower feeds and speeds? I honestly haven’t done much research on bits yet though.
I’m thinking if I stick with what I’ve done so far, with a pass depth of half the bit diameter, then I’d do 1/32” passes, needing 8 passes to get through 1/4” ply. Or should I go for even shallower passes because of the thin bit diameter?
I think with the speed that the Maslow runs at, using a 1/16" bit shouldn’t be an issue as long as you monitor it. but also as @Joe_85 mentions, the 1/8" should be good for this project. I only mentioned the 1/16" due to the small areas inside "L"s and the “e”.
I’ve used ACM board for similar jobs but not in that fine a font . being alum/plastic composite its a good finish and comes already in various colors and thicknesses .need to keep an eye on the cutter as it tends to stick a lump of alum. o the end with some bigger dia cutters. a slower feed rate on the x/y plane with a 1/16 will do a great job.
Thanks guys! I’ve ordered a 5 pack of 1/8 bits and a 4 pack of 1/16 bits to play with. I’ll post back some results when they come in. Oh and I got a pack of the 1/4 to 1/8 collet reducers too as I have the 1/4 collet on my makita router.
I’ll be interested to see how they do, I know how easy it is to side load and snap a 1/16 drill bit
They’re here!! I got 5 1/8” bits, 5 1/16” bits, and 2 collet adapters. Unfortunately though I won’t get to try them out until Monday evening as I’ve got several pins to work on this weekend and don’t have a cut file ready yet. (Not that I’m disappointed to work on pinball machines, I love them! I just have too many side interests these days )
2 months, that’s how long it takes to get things done around here . I finally got a chance last night to run some test cuts with the new bits. I’m pleased to report that they did excellent. I was honestly worried about the possibility of snapping them because of how thin they are, but I had zero issues. Collet adapter stayed tight and the bit cut clean. This was with the 1.5mm bit too. The first test was just cut in my mdf wasteboard, the second was cut from a plank of laminate flooring. Other than having some z-axis play and not getting all the way through, it cut cleanly on both cuts.
Absolutely! I have been wanting to build a home brew co2 setup, but now I may just wait on that. Mainly because someone in our house doesn’t think that is a necessary $2000 expense…but anyways.
For reference, here are my settings for the 1.5mm bit. Your settings may vary, and these may be too conservative, but they worked great with no issues on my setup.
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