Scanned item...carved...too small!

[geddins]

First off, let me say "thanks" to all of you that share so much info on this forum. Now off to my problem.

I've obtained a scanning probe....scanned my project (a guitar neck), downloaded the scan, opened it with CBPE, clicked "life size" and it appears to be the right dimensions.

I then import the scan into Designer and put it on my project....and it's REALLY small....like 4.5"x2". So I change it's dimensions in Designer to what they are supposed to be...it "grows" and I upload the project, run it, and the resulting carving is about 1/2 the size it should be.....

What am I doing wrong? I know it's a "me" deal...I'm just lost.

Any help appreciated.

Many thanks
G

[Jeff_Birt]

clicked "life size" and it appears to be the right dimensions.

Make sure that you are choosing the correct scan resolution setting in CBPE, the setting should match what resolution you scanned at.

I then import the scan into Designer and put it on my project....and it's REALLY small....like 4.5"x2".

Imported the original scan or an image created with CBPE as above or a pattern created with CBPE?

I upload the project, run it, and the resulting carving is about 1/2 the size it should be.....

Sounds like you told the machine to keep it under rollers and scale to fit. Your actual board needs to be at least 7" longer than the virtual board in Designer. This gives 3.5" on each end so there is enough stock to stay under the rollers.

What version of Designer are you running. I would recommend updating to 1.126 as the probe software will now automatically detect what resolution your scan was done in and keep it the correct size. (Sort of like life size in CBPE).

[geddins]

Thanks Jeff....I think I will grab 1.126 (1.125 now) and give it a try. I also think I messed up and DID let it scale the project now that you've said something about that.

Sorry for my brain Fart!

As always, I appreciate the answers!

G

[mtylerfl]

Thanks Jeff....I think I will grab 1.126 (1.125 now) and give it a try. I also think I messed up and DID let it scale the project now that you've said something about that.

Sorry for my brain Fart!

As always, I appreciate the answers!

G

Hello geddins,

Yep, a lot of problems are avoided if you simply make your real board 7" longer than your "fake" board in Designer. The accidental resize problem is at the top of the "pilot error" list when the board is made too short.

Check out the Dec '07 issue of the CarveWright Tips & Tricks Newsletter http://www.carvebuddy.com/PDFs/CW_Ti...icks_Dec07.pdf for setup tips that will eliminate the most common (and totally avoidable) carving problems folks have.

[geddins]

Hello geddins,

Yep, a lot of problems are avoided if you simply make your real board 7" longer than your "fake" board in Designer. The accidental resize problem is at the top of the "pilot error" list when the board is made too short.

Check out the Dec '07 issue of the CarveWright Tips & Tricks Newsletter http://www.carvebuddy.com/PDFs/CW_Ti...icks_Dec07.pdf for setup tips that will eliminate the most common (and totally avoidable) carving problems folks have.

Thanks mtylerfl....let me ask another quick one if I may....when you say make it 7" longer than the fake board in designer are you saying that I should have my carving sled be 7" longer than I need but still tell Designer the ACTUAL length?

Thanks

[mtylerfl]

Thanks mtylerfl....let me ask another quick one if I may....when you say make it 7" longer than the fake board in designer are you saying that I should have my carving sled be 7" longer than I need but still tell Designer the ACTUAL length?

Thanks

Hello,

Let's say you layout a project in Designer that the finished size will be 9.25" W x 16" L x .75" thick. Layout all your design elements to fill that space as you wish. The only area you need clearance on is the top of the board IF you have a cutpath at the top. In that case, leave at least 1/2" from the top of the board for the cutpath (NO clearance is necessary for the ends or bottom of the board as laid out in Designer). Also, NO clearance is required at ANY of the edges if you are doing a design that has NO cutpaths.

After you're done laying out your project, save it, and upload it to the memory card. Now, keep in mind that if you have cut paths near the ends of the board, you WILL get a FALSE error message asking you to Auto/Manual jig or Ignore. You can safely click IGNORE, since your real board will be 9.25" W x 23" L x .75" thick. NOTICE for this example that the real board you put in the machine MUST be 16" + 7" = 23" total length.

(Again, read the Dec '07 Tips & Tricks for more details)

No, it is not necessary to tell Designer what the length of your sled is - you layout your design on the software's "fake" board using the actual finished dimensions of your project. When using a sled, just make sure that your sled with any "filler" pieces on the ends of your board will fool the machine into thinking that the board is at least 7" longer than the board you had in the Designer software (repeat...at least 23" long for the example stated above).

Also, when using a sled, there is currently no convenient method to use the actual cut path function on a sled-based project, so any cutouts probably will need to be done on a bandsaw/scrollsaw, or whatever.

That's because the machine will measure the total thickness of your board AND the sled combined, therefore causing the machine to try to do any cutpaths all the way through BOTH, which is what you DON't want.

Some folks have devised methods such as "fastening" a board to their sled with carpet tape or something similar, with a manually assigned 1/8" cutting bit to outlines and specifying a depth just beyond the thickness of the board stock so it won't cut all the way through the sled.

The potential problem with that method is that the machine cannot automatically leave the little "safety" tabs like it would on a normal cutpath. The cutout pieces could then fly around your machine like shrapnel and damage it and/or the bit if you have not carefully thought out WHERE to adhere the board to the sled.

Myself, I'd rather 'sacrifice' 7" of wood than risk damage to my machines or spoil a project and have to do it all over. Plus, I don't have to deal with cut path worries, nor fiddle with special rigs just to complete a project. An exception would be if a person is using expensive exotic woods and can't think of a way to utilize the costly scraps - of course, then a sled makes a bit more practical sense. Most woodworkers have no trouble finding uses for the scraps on other woodworking projects, though.

There are a couple of real experts here on the forum that use sleds practically all the time. I think AL (Digitalwoodshop) has used his machines with sleds more than anyone else on the planet. He is an excellent resource for questions and setup for sled-based projects and has posted numerous times on the subject. I'm hoping that he (and LG?) will put together a comprehensive easy-to-follow and understandable sled tutorial for the Tips & Tricks newsletter someday.

[geddins]

Thanks so much for your reply...again. I have downloaded and read through your Tips and Tricks and it's EXACTLY what I was looking for! I think I may have a shot at getting this done now!

Thanks again
G

[mtylerfl]

Thanks so much for your reply...again. I have downloaded and read through your Tips and Tricks and it's EXACTLY what I was looking for! I think I may have a shot at getting this done now!

Thanks again
G

Hello geddins,

You are very welcome. Please let us know how it came out and post a photo in the Gallery section if you have the chance!

[syxxstring]

Sounds like your mistake was in not trying to make a mandolin?