Noob Simple Engraving Software Frustration

[Mrfix71]

G'day!
I got excited and bought a set of 3018 machines on FB marketplace a couple months back. Eventually got one to communicate with my laptop and have tried a simple engraving project...3 lines of text on a 1x3" name plate. I have followed a multitude of walk-thru guides and run into a never-ending list of issues, such as the mentioned software is out of date, is now a paid version, does not share file format with other software thru the CAD/CAM/Machining process, or does not allow me the simple layout I am wanting. The best I have been able to get is a couple completed samples where the lettering is very distorted from the drafted project and appears to be a communication problem. Somehow the fonts are smaller ("smooshed") and a couple of the same letters on each will repeatedly be shifted down from the others. The name plate is not moving nor is the servo drives sticking.

What is the most simple approach to engraving text in those common plastic name plates? My intent is to start learning CNC by creating some plates for historical items, vs using the old pantograph machine I've used for years and messing with all of the letter sets that have to be put together each time.

 

[Mike Sandor]

I’ll jump in here with a few questions.
First, when you say communicate with your laptop, what does that mean?
Typically, a table top router, or any other cnc, will run utilizing its own “computer”.
You should be able to power up your machine and manually move all axis. Can you do this? Are they moving in the correct direction?
I assume there is some readout on your operating screen. Is it set up in inches or in metric. When you tell it to move a given amount, does it? Is it accurate? Do you run Mac 3 or something else?
Typically, you would have some type of software, such as Vetric Aspire. This software is kinda expensive but they offer a trial download for free. Easy to use. Typically, you would download a drawing file to Aspire. You would then determine the size of project, place your drawing on the appropriate starting point, (x,y) location, and then choose what you what to machine, choose the desired tool. You choose depth of cut along with other options. You can also simulate cutting prior to actually cutting the part.
Finally, you need to convert all of this info into G code, which this software does for you. You need to determine what type of post processor your machine needs and choose that from a drop down list. If it is not identified in the list, Vetric can usually assist you in working up a correct post processor.
Once you have the g code, copy it to a thumb drive and transfer too your machine controller.
Without knowing more about your machine, it is a bit difficult to really get in depth, but what I described is what I use on my machine and is a pretty standard way of developing cut files, at least for hobby use that is.
Good luck.

 

[RJSakowski]

https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/2015-potd-thread-archive.103234/page-73#post-298744If your machines use G code commands, there are several ways to do engraving. I did some fairly complicated engraving by creating the artwork in SolidWorks and importing the solid model to my CAM program where I created the necessary G code. A description of the process is in the link below. Altogether, there was more than 250K lines of code.

Post in thread '2015 POTD Thread Archive'

May 6, 2015

In appreciation for taking care of our home while we were in Europe for six weeks last year, we decided to make a brass plaque for our neighbors. The plaque measures 6.5 x 8.25 x .25 and has an old Chinese proverb that describes our neighbors.

Rather than just put the English proverb on the plaque, I decided to put the Chinese characters as well. I found an on-line site that does English to Chinese translations and got the nine Chinese characters that loosely translate to the English.

The characters were copied into an MS Word document. Word seemed to think that they were a font, in...

• RJSakowski

• 

Another approach was to use the engraving software resident on my CNC mill to create text. An issue is that there aren't many single line fonts available so you end up with text which is an outline of the characters unless you use an engraving tool that is wide enough to bridge the internal space of the characters.

 

[Mrfix71]

This is what the 2 machines look like:

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse4.mm.bing.net%2Fth%3Fid%3DOIP.zzcGP2I3TC_clRS32C9OfQHaHa%26pid%3DApi&f=1&ipt=398b64146ec999417d99cfbdadf414d2342d63287983ecb5611b4b1ab21f83f1&ipo=images

One of the little 3018 style machines, one has a Makerbase MKS DLC32 controller board that would not be recognized by the laptop when connected via USB. Looks like it has a wireless card on it, but I could not get the machine to show up on wireless network. The other has an unknown board that I could not find any info about on the internet anywhere, but will be recognized by my laptop via USB and connect in UGS. I do have an offline control module ordered so I can run the files on an SD card.
I have tried drafting the text layout in Inkscape and saving the file as an SVG. Also have tried repeatedly following the walk-thru guide to convert the Path to G-Code under the Extensions drop down. This message pops up: "Switch to another tab to run the extensions. No changes are made if the preferences or help tabs are active."
Trying the same in Fusion360 will not allow saving as an SVG nor other format that I can use in UGS or convert to G-Code without upgrading to paid subscription.
Easel appears to be the most popular but does not allow the text to be centered, or import any SVG file created in another application.
Each program I try has a quirk that does not follow the walk-thru demonstrations, either due to software updates or is not compatible with another program needed in CAD/CAM/G-Code process.

I am not willing to spend hundreds of dollars on pro software starting out and so many others I see and read about are using free software for simple project like this. As a newbie, I do not understand all the code and rely on the software to do the simple tasks I need.

Find myself jealous of the neat projects I see people work on, but get frustrated at how many hours I spend downloading and trying different applications I have read about on websites and Youtube talking about amazingly simple ways to engrave text. If it didn't take so long setting up the letters as well as the limited font sets I have, I would keep using the old Scott pantograph engraver.

I have ordered another, highly reviewed, controller board in case the unknown generic board is a culprit and an offline control module so I can run the files on an SD card directly on the machine. Both were relatively inexpensive investment in this venture.

 

[Mrfix71]

RJSakowski... I think those metal plates turned out awesome and am reading thru the process you shared