carvewright tool

[redman1]

i just got my cw tool and i'm wondering how u do a cut out without it looking like it was hit by an arc light. there's noway i can sell a piece of wood lookin like that, it may take me a week to do it by hand, but it would look a lot better. i got this machine so it would'nt take me a week to do some of the pieces i do.

[ladjr]

Need more information. Can you attach your MPC for the project.

[chief2007]

Can you post a picture?

Also what setting did you use? Normal, Best or Optimal?

[Digitalwoodshop]

First Post WELCOME !!!! HOMEWORK..... Find and read the Tips and Tricks on the LHR page. Written by US with lots of good info.

IT is knowing HOW to do stuff with the machine that makes it great.

And when you do a Cut Out the Brass Roller between the Sand Paper Belts tracks the board position in the length or X Direction. IF you don't understand how important the bond between the brass roller and the board is, then the board can get out of position and what was once going to be a perfect cut path is now rough.... I use Masking Tape on the bottom of the board at the Brass Roller to give the Brass Roller something to bite into that makes sort of a Rack and Pinion locking the board in the proper position.

Then we have the 7 inch rule of wood.. 3.5 inches from the bit to the rubber rollers that hold the board flat to the table. Design a Project that lets the board be only held by one roller when cutting the end, can cause the board to tilt up and make lines in the carving OR loose the X Position. Again... Tips and Tricks has all the details. And I use 8 inches rather than have the board edge on the crest of the roller when it changes position.

This machine is nothing like a Table Saw where it gives predictable results every time. With the CW you need to understand what the machine expects to SEE from you.

In tips and tricks you will find info you need to know on....

Scaling, usually a new persons 2nd post... "My carving came out 1/2 the size I expected?" Answer in tips and tricks...

Board Thickness... How a 1/2 inch board can be TOO thin to use and how a Carrier Board or Sled can HELP...

Using the Cut Out tools for a nice smooth cut... Multi Pass Cutting....

And much more....

We call many problems like broken bits, scaling of image, and project failures "Pilot Error" as in the project crashed because the pilot did not know what the machine expected to see...

WELCOME !!!!

AL

[mtylerfl]

...
Then we have the 7 inch rule of wood.. 3.5 inches from the bit to the rubber rollers that hold the board flat to the table. ...And I use 8 inches rather than have the board edge on the crest of the roller when it changes position...
AL

Hi AL,

Great advice for our new user. Thank you for "always being there" for the newbies!

Something I've been meaning to mention about the reason you say you use the 8" instead of 7" you've brought up a couple times previously. The board shouldn't be able to "crest" even if you used the normal 7". The reason is that there is already a 'built-in' allowance to prevent that. If you measure between the center contact point of each roller, you'll see the contact point is about 5/8" shy of 7". So there is actually an 'extra' 5/16" allowance at each end of the board if a person is using the standard "seven-inch" rule. It comes close, but the board edges shouldn't "crest" on the edge when using 7".

Of course, using 8" (i.e., 4" extra at each end) is just fine and there's nothing wrong with that if that's your preference. Trivial info, but wanted to mention it anyway. :D

[Digitalwoodshop]

MT,

Thank You for that correction.... Never knew that....

Thank YOU for keeping us honest.... :)

AL

[mtylerfl]

MT,

Thank You for that correction.... Never knew that....

Thank YOU for keeping us honest.... :)

AL

Thanks AL, but you have discovered far more about the machines than most of us (probably all of us) ...I bet you still hold the World Record for usage hours on CarveWright Machines!!

The bit of info I shared is quite minor, in the scheme of things.

[liquidguitars]

I agree with Al about using 4" and not 3.5" as the extra will not hurt, also if you use sleds like we do, you have a good place to place the board under the board sensor.
we are a group of free thinkers and you will seea lot of ways to do things to make your projects shine...

[lawrence]

again, welcome Redman.

There are some "techniques" that will have you just about pulling the projects off the machine and selling them... I rarely sand my pieces. A lot of it is technique and experience in learning how to make it sing for you in the right tone.

Please post pics if able and your MPC as well as wood type and settings for carve and maybe we can help you figure out what went amiss.

Lawrence

[mtylerfl]

i just got my cw tool and i'm wondering how u do a cut out without it looking like it was hit by an arc light. there's noway i can sell a piece of wood lookin like that, it may take me a week to do it by hand, but it would look a lot better. i got this machine so it would'nt take me a week to do some of the pieces i do.

As Lawrence suggested, please do upload your MPC (i.e., the project file) and a photo or two of the project that clearly shows the cut out issue. Photos can often help when troubleshooting things like this. We can take a peek and see if anything needs adjustment with the layout itself (or not).

Finally, make sure you are using the most current software version (1.187 at the time of this writing).

Supply us with these additional details and I'm sure we can help narrow down possible causes.