Using a sled

[Jcpb321]

Couple of questions before I get in trouble!

I made the sled but have not used it yet!

when I use this sled do I need to add the thickness of the sled to my projects? sled is 3/4" and project board is 3/4"

When the machine measures the board is it supposed to measure the entire length of the sled or only up to the end of my filler pieces, I am concerned about the weight when it measures?

John

[liquidguitars]

check out the tips and tricks PDF's..

and some information here.

http://forum.carvewright.com/showthread.php?t=14648&highlight=designer+make+sled




when I use this sled do I need to add the thickness of the sled to my projects? sled is 3/4" and project board is 3/4"

yes and no.. if you use the cut tools " now that they work with sleds !! you need to set Designers thickness the same as the stock you use.

[Jcpb321]

Thanks LG,
I am making a little headway with this but I guess I am a little gunshy on using it!
I have been reading the T&Ts, past messages on the board and have a lot printed out too, just read the thread you referenced.
Really impressed with your work, have printed some pics and took them to my workplace to show others what has been done with the CW and believe me they were nothing but wows........ especially the ones who play instruments!
John

[CarverJerry]

Hi John, I use a sled all the time as does LG, When using your sled, assuming you have the 7"+ added to each end, tell the machine not to stay under the rollers, and as far as thickness the machine will find the top surface and go from there. I posted a picture of my sled a while back, take a look at this (#19) http://forum.carvewright.com/showthread.php?t=14648 it may give you some ideas. Make your ends a little more than 3 1/2" , when I make another one I'm going to make mine 4 " this time. Hope this helps you.

CarverJerry

[Jcpb321]

Hi Jerry,
Yes I do have an additional 5" at each end, right now I seem to be in denial!

Time to rototill my garden!

Al are you still looking for more machines?

[CarverJerry]

John, My old sled shown in the pic in that link that I posted has 3 1/2" ends I call them jaws. One is fixed (the end I load first) and the other is somewhat adjustable. I made them out of 3/4" thick material to match my material that I am carving. If you're lost feel free to pm me and get my phone #, maybe I can walk you thru, I'm eastern time.

CJ

[Jcpb321]

Thanks CJ, pm sent!

[Ropdoc]

Hello folks,

I am planning on using my first sled. Does the bottom main piece have to be 3/4" thick? I have some 3/8" think I can use. I plan on making the ends 4" long and the total width will be 13-3/4". The piece of wood to carve will be 8" wide. So I will build side rails to hold it centered on the slid.

Thank you,
Dave

[Kenm810]

Dave,

What you have is fine, I've used sleds only 1/4" thick while carving 1/4" Corain with out any problems. :smile:

Ps. I also leave an additional 4" at each end of the sled to be sure I'm always under the Pressure Rollers

[cestout]

I found that a sled with a base 3/4" will not allow cut thru. The machine does not seem to be able to reach that far down to find the thickness. A 1/4" base is better.
Clint

[wizer]

The couple of sleds I have made so far have used 4mm mdf as a base. I'm not sure what that equates to in fractional inches. It's 0.15748" I've had no problems. It can be a little flexible until you have fixed the ends and sides. But once they are on it's rigid. The beneifit I can see of this is that it's much cheaper and allows for deeper carving. It's lighter to carry too. The stuff I have used it actually the back off an old flatpack ikea bookshelf. I used the smooth formica side up so that the projects board can be double sided taped to it, but will come off easier later, without leaving too much residue.

[unitedcases]

I made mine a while back and for some reason decided to go with melamine board for the bottom. I cut the same stuff all the time though so I didnt need an adjustable one. I have the 4 inch pieces at the end and all I do is cut my board exact and drop it in. The sled will absorb a lot of vibration as well. Plus you arent wasting that 7 inches on the end when you have to cut the ends off. Also if you are a hair bigger that is fine, the machine will ask you if you want to center it. I guess it knows that we arent perfect.

[Kenm810]

Pretty much the same thing here, I've made a couple of adjustable Sleds, but have used them only a few times.
I also got to the point where most of the finished carvings I was doing were repeats of the same sizes and thickness,
but with just different Patterns or Graphics carved on them. So all my Sleds with Rails that I center my Pattern and Project Board on
(about 6 now -- I got rid of all the rest) have 4" spacers at each end and 1/2" bases,
also that mean it doesn't matter if I tell it to stay under the Pressure Rollers or not,
(which I haven't for 3 years) because I know it will anyways.
The same goes for my Carrier Boards without Rails.
It works for me -- Read the Manual, plus read the posts on the Forum
and don't be afraid to experiment a little to find what works best for you. :cool:

Ps. I hold my Project Boards in place with a few strips of AL's Masking Tape with no problems.