I currently have the full AUTOCAD Inventor suite on my work PC and was going to use it to make my initial drawings then convert the .dxf to .svg then use makercam to create the .nc and start cutting.
I am getting confused with trying to get the part I cut, or draw with a sharpie in the router, to come out the size I need it to be. The scaling does not always seem to be the same.
Where might I be going astray?
I am not opposed to ditching the use of the AUTOCAD Mechanical I have access to, if something will work better in the process.
I also use autocad for drawing. I use Estlcam for applying toolpaths because there is no need to convert to svg (I am not familiar with svg format) Might be a little oldschool to avoid this svg stuff, but it works for me. Estlcam is also a little more intuitive in my opinion.
I am working with the Estlcam and the scaling issue does not seem to be present. My 12" circle looks to be on size when I run the .nc in ground control.
I am however having issue with the z axis when I run the .nc in GroundControl.
GRBL might be a better choice, worth a try.
When configuring the CAM settings, make z=0 be the top surface of the material to cut, with positive values of z above the surface and negative values during cutting.
That worked. The test circle was the correct size without any need of scaling or the .svg conversion.
The Z axis worked as it should this time also.
Estlcam is well worth the money.
A little late here, but I see you have made headway. No scaling issues for me and I should have mentioned the GRBL selection. So, my workflow is: draw in autocad, apply toolpaths in Estlcam, send nc file to Maslow. Seems to be the least amount of fuss for me.
