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[Don Olivas]

I just received my machine, and I was wondering what the best wood for it would be?

[mtylerfl]

I just received my machine, and I was wondering what the best wood for it would be?

Hello Don,

Welcome! Congrats on your new machine. Be sure to read the Tips & Tricks newsletters when you have a chance - they will help you feel more comfortable with your new venture.

Use any wood you like** - I mainly use Select Pine and Maple...occasionally use Poplar and Oak. For fine detailed carvings, hardwoods usually yield less "fuzzies" than softwoods and require less sanding after machining. Open-grain woods like Red Oak may have a tendency to chip out here and there on fine detailed/raised/thin areas. Tight-grained hardwoods (like Maple, Cherry) are superb.

**straight, flat, dry, no warps or twists

[Botchla]

I had a question about cutting 1/2 inch marine poly board (starboard) since this is mostly what I would need one of these machines for. Im pretty sure starboard is more dense than most plastics so will the bit get hot or is it safe to use?

Thanks

[Rob Mulgrew]

Why are carves taking so much longer than they used to? When uploading a project the estimated time used to be almost right on with actual carving time but lately it has been taking longer than the estimated carving time to complete a project. Some times the truck zips back and forth super fast and sometimes it crawls. Any ideas? I have about 85hrs on my machine. Thanks
Rob

[fwharris]

Why are carves taking so much longer than they used to? When uploading a project the estimated time used to be almost right on with actual carving time but lately it has been taking longer than the estimated carving time to complete a project. Some times the truck zips back and forth super fast and sometimes it crawls. Any ideas? I have about 85hrs on my machine. Thanks
Rob

Give us an example of "so much longer".

[chief2007]

Could be that the default setting has been changed from default to optimal.

With that you may want to carve the project on normal or best, but it actually carves with the optimal setting and making the carving take more time to complete.

[Rob Mulgrew]

Anywhere from 10-45 minutes. I have been thinking about this and I suppose another factor can be the inconsistant temperature. Its really cold where I live and I heat up the shop and get the carve going. I dont like to run the heat non stop so I shut the heat off when the room reaches about 55 degrees and go in the house while it carves. It doesnt hold that temperature but I figured as long as the machine was warmed up it should be ok, but maybe thats an issue?

[fwharris]

Temp could be a factor but I also think the clock keeps running if it is sitting waiting for a bit change. Could that be part of your time calculation?

[Rob Mulgrew]

I just finished a carve right now. When I uploaded it the appx. completion time was 3hrs & 23min. The actual carve time was 3hrs & 41min with no bit changes. This one was not that bad but it is fairly warm now considering what it usually is. Some times I sit there and watch the truck moving so slow and some times it flies. Probably just an enviornment/atosphere problem. I checked the machine and it is still set at default for quality. Not a big issue at this time but I am just trying learn my machine inside/out and what causes different issues.
Thanks,
Rob

Give us an example of "so much longer".

[fwharris]

Rob,

Thanks for the carve time info. Part of it could be the low temp. causing things to move a bit slower.

I am not totally sure when the clock starts for the carve time but I believe it is as soon as you select the project you want to carve. The "default" setting on the machine means it will use the quality setting that is applied when the project is uploaded to the card.