I need for ya'll to put ya'll thinking caps on

[bergerud]

I think you just got lucky. The machine will try and carve the 0.00 part of a carve region and that means it usually skim mills the top of the board. A shim can get the bit above the board. On the other hand, a 0.00 carve region which is all at 0.00 will be "jumped" over. The board will not be touched.

[myshop1044]

close but no horseshoe. kt you converted the text into a pattern and it does leave it at the same level as the board.
attached are 2 tests, first is using a 1/16 shim and all it did was carve it not as deep as it should, it removed the top paint.
the second attachment is both carves together. the top is KT's version, a pattern of the text, it is very close to the top, but as you can see
the paint is gone also. think of it as whole board as being blue or the original cypress surface, all grayish in color.
Thanks for the interest. I'll keep thinking about it.

Perry B.

[ktjwilliams]

If it's that close , Just hold a thin sliver of wood or something under the bit when it's finding the surface ..

Kevin

close but no horseshoe. kt you converted the text into a pattern and it does leave it at the same level as the board.
attached are 2 tests, first is using a 1/16 shim and all it did was carve it not as deep as it should, it removed the top paint.
the second attachment is both carves together. the top is KT's version, a pattern of the text, it is very close to the top, but as you can see
the paint is gone also. think of it as whole board as being blue or the original cypress surface, all grayish in color.
Thanks for the interest. I'll keep thinking about it.

Perry B.

[ktjwilliams]

Oh and yes I did make the text into a pattern ... Sorry I forgot to mention that part ...

[Wood Art 1]

Perry, Here is a test that doesn't touch the surface of the board. 1) I used a piece of fuzzy cedar - determine the approximate surface depth that you want to leave pristine. If the surface is painted and dead flat - no warp - 1/32" should be plenty. If the surface is really irregular, it may require 1/4". Remember this number - will use it later. 2) Set up the text in designer. 3) In this example, I used a depth of 0.500 and a height of 999 (the top of the letters will be at the maximum height for this pattern). I want to end up with a carve that is 1/4" deep from the top surface of the board. 4) Set feather to your desire - this is 1/2". 5) Save MPC and upload at quality you desire - I used draft for this test. 6) Load card into CW - when you get to select bit and install bit 7) Install the bit with a spacer (equal to the surface depth you determined in step #1 - I was real strong here with 1/4". Used a piece of metal 1/4" thick and held it between the bit collar and the collet to leave the bit 1/4" proud. (In most cases 1/16" or 1/8" would probably be plenty. Machine finds touch plate and finds surface. 9) Screen says "Carving Pattern" - STOP. 10) open cover, loosen bit - insert all-the-way into collet - tighten bit - close cover. 11) Press ENTER and watch the show.
The variables here are the depth of 0.500 and the surface depth that you want to leave pristine. In this case 0.500 depth and 1/4" spacer means the actual depth of cut is 1/4". Start with 0.375 depth and 1/8" spacer means actual depth of cut is 1/4". You will have to decide what looks best for your project.Attachment 77900

[myshop1044]

Houston we have a answer!!!!!!!! , I would like to give Jerry ,aka Wood Art 1, for his input. After a time on the phone this after noon he was able to solve the problem.
It is very easy answer. Slide the bit down ,then side the bit up.
attached is my version with paint on the top of the wood to prove Jerry's answer really works.
We that theory in mind I will work on creating flat surface pattern of a test bird, so I can give a custom feather to it and not touch the surface
of the cypress.
one more time Thanks a lot Jerry.

[bergerud]

Not to rain on the parade, but is that not the same as the shim method? (Good idea, though, to make the carve deeper to compensate.)

[Wood Art 1]

Dan, my apologies to you. Mea Culpa, Mea Culpa. I thought that the bit touch on the bit plate also determined the surface, thereby requiring the bit be extended. So what is the purpose of the the bit plate? The shim method is a lot easier.

[bergerud]

Your thinking makes sense but I do not think you have to do it.

After the touch at the bit plate, the machine knows "about" where to expect the board surface to be. The touch at the board is all that is needed to determine where the top of the board is as long as it is not too far out of the expected range. If we were trying to change the depth too much, we would get an error. In that case, your method would be required. I recall cases where it was desired to V carve down in a pocket. We could only touch down an extra 1/4" before the error. To go deeper required moving the bit between the touches. (The other way though, down not up.) I do not know how far up we can go before we get an error. I have used the shim method quite a bit and never had an error. The shim does not need to be very thick to get the bit above the surface.

One can also just lift the head a little. After the touch on the board, just raise the head by slightly turning the crank. A little practice and that works pretty well.

[Wood Art 1]

Dan, thanks, your knowledge of the machines is superb. I learned a new thing today. I will try to remember to raise the head next time- you know about old dogs and new tricks.
Jerry