I'm back in school....cause I can
- Thread starter BossDog
- Start date
Self Made Knives
Well-Known Member
Mike, Boss has already answered you, but why do "I" want a cnc mill? Because its fun! Probably over 20 years ago, back when I was in college, I was eat up with this stuff and built a cnc etch-a-sketch. I popped the knobs off and mounted stepper motors on them. The way I built it, you could slip the steppers off, put the knobs back on and hand it to someone and blow their mind. It was a lot of fun. My goal back then was to build an XY table for cutting steel parts for motorcycles and cars. We were all playing with HP plotter files and writing our own programs back then.
I got away from all that but its always been on my mind. Knife making has made those times come back to mind lately, as I've made a couple folders. Things like cutting an arc in the tang for a stop pin or drilling holes in multiples is where I'm thinking. I've had a Carvewright cnc wood router for about 10 years, and its ok, but it extremely limited and the software is all proprietary. I've been thinking about cnc carved knife scales a lot too, but the Carvewright just seems to much trouble to try and get it to work.
Making jigs, fixtures, work rests, grinder attachments, tools, etc. are all on my mind as I get started with cnc stuff again. Do you need it? Heck no! Do I need a 1000hp Corvette? Heck yeah!
Self Made Knives
Well-Known Member
Ken, I'm going to try the AutoCAD Fusion 360 I think. I've been sitting here for the past 3 or 4 evenings bashing my head against the screen with this FreeCad. I've been trying to import DWG and DXF files from previous designs and was starting feel like I must be stupid or something! Got on their forum and one of the developers tells me that is a bug with importing! Apparently, it wasn't me, whew. I guess if you want to use FreeCad, you have to do everything metric, even if you import something, has to be in mm. I can't hack that.
J S Machine
Well-Known Member
Tracy, great to hear you have chosen to learn about CNC and machining. I've been doing it for about thriteen years now.
In my opinion, the real advantage to a CNC is the repeatability and the time saving. I bought my Tormach machine for one reason..to save time. I have been a hobbyist knifemaker for about eight years now, and I have produced some very nice stuff, but I cannot find the time to do it while working a job 65+ hours a week. I also have two little girls, I'm a training officer at my local vol fire dept, and have countless other projects going on. Finding time for knives is frustrating.
With CNC, I can finally start to prove out programs and processes, and let the machine do most of the grunt work. Then, I can spend minimal time doing cleanup and final finishing. I'm looking forward to heading into making knives for sale, and I hope to have a table at Blade in ATL next year.
As far as CAD and CAM, I learned in Mastercam. I am a programmer for a living, so I use Mastercam at work. I also have learned AutoCAD and Solidworks as well. Solidworks is pretty awesome, but I cannot produce code from it. Engineering uses it at my work and I got hooked up with a seat of it. Unfortunately, the other day I found out that they are taking my seat and giving it to a new hire. I hate I will no longer have it, and I hope I can find something similar for solid modeling because it really helps visualize things.
We also have GibbsCam at work, which is another very expensive CAM program. I have never looked into any of the free or cheaper ones, but I may have to if I ever leave my place of employment, because most are very expensive and most normal Joes like us just can't afford them unless we run a machine shop or big business.
Tracy, one piece of advice I can offer is this, and you can take it to the bank. When you start to learn CNC, make an effort to learn code and how to write it by hand. Don't spoil yourself with post processors from CAM software right of the bat. I can't count how many people I know that depend on CAM software and its post processor to drive their CNC, and never learned about code from the get-go. Once code is produced, they don't even know what it says, and therefore they cannot edit, or understand the problem when something is not right.
I wrote programs by hand and learned code for a solid year before I was ever able to touch a CAM program. This was one of the most valuable things I ever experienced in tech school.
CAM and post processors are absolutely necessary on large complex parts with miles and miles of code, but if you don't know how that code is produced and what it means when you load it into the machine, you are crippled. TRUST ME.
In my opinion, the real advantage to a CNC is the repeatability and the time saving. I bought my Tormach machine for one reason..to save time. I have been a hobbyist knifemaker for about eight years now, and I have produced some very nice stuff, but I cannot find the time to do it while working a job 65+ hours a week. I also have two little girls, I'm a training officer at my local vol fire dept, and have countless other projects going on. Finding time for knives is frustrating.
With CNC, I can finally start to prove out programs and processes, and let the machine do most of the grunt work. Then, I can spend minimal time doing cleanup and final finishing. I'm looking forward to heading into making knives for sale, and I hope to have a table at Blade in ATL next year.
As far as CAD and CAM, I learned in Mastercam. I am a programmer for a living, so I use Mastercam at work. I also have learned AutoCAD and Solidworks as well. Solidworks is pretty awesome, but I cannot produce code from it. Engineering uses it at my work and I got hooked up with a seat of it. Unfortunately, the other day I found out that they are taking my seat and giving it to a new hire. I hate I will no longer have it, and I hope I can find something similar for solid modeling because it really helps visualize things.
We also have GibbsCam at work, which is another very expensive CAM program. I have never looked into any of the free or cheaper ones, but I may have to if I ever leave my place of employment, because most are very expensive and most normal Joes like us just can't afford them unless we run a machine shop or big business.
Tracy, one piece of advice I can offer is this, and you can take it to the bank. When you start to learn CNC, make an effort to learn code and how to write it by hand. Don't spoil yourself with post processors from CAM software right of the bat. I can't count how many people I know that depend on CAM software and its post processor to drive their CNC, and never learned about code from the get-go. Once code is produced, they don't even know what it says, and therefore they cannot edit, or understand the problem when something is not right.
I wrote programs by hand and learned code for a solid year before I was ever able to touch a CAM program. This was one of the most valuable things I ever experienced in tech school.
CAM and post processors are absolutely necessary on large complex parts with miles and miles of code, but if you don't know how that code is produced and what it means when you load it into the machine, you are crippled. TRUST ME.
I agree.
The CNC class I have started requires you learn to hand code first before they give you a student copy of Mastercam. I already have a license for Solidworks standard so I won't be using their student copy of Solidworks (also free for a year) due to the student limitations on it. When I get my CNC (a year or two from now, maybe/probably a Tormach) I'll probably end up with Mastercam but don't look forward to the purchase price.
The CNC class I have started requires you learn to hand code first before they give you a student copy of Mastercam. I already have a license for Solidworks standard so I won't be using their student copy of Solidworks (also free for a year) due to the student limitations on it. When I get my CNC (a year or two from now, maybe/probably a Tormach) I'll probably end up with Mastercam but don't look forward to the purchase price.
Self Made Knives
Well-Known Member
On this topic, based on Ken's suggestion, I got Autodesk Fusion 360 a couple days ago. So far, wow! This is nice. The FreeCad I was messing with is like a paper airplane. Fusion is a fighter jet. A lot to learn, but very promising.
Don Robinson
Well-Known Member
Boss, if you had mentioned a couple of years ago that you wanted to learn that, you could have come here and spent a couple months with me and I could have taught you more than that for free!
Sadly, I have sold my machine shop during the last year or so. I REALLY, REALLY miss those machines. They were like old friends to me. I enjoyed simply being in the same room with them.
That's a result of getting old.:sad:
Seriously, I know you'll enjoy learning the new skills.
Sadly, I have sold my machine shop during the last year or so. I REALLY, REALLY miss those machines. They were like old friends to me. I enjoyed simply being in the same room with them.
That's a result of getting old.:sad:
Seriously, I know you'll enjoy learning the new skills.
Don, I know what you mean with the above statement. I spent 30 yrs bumming on sailboats, bumming the islands, etc and didn't have room for "toys", but now I'm a landlubber I've got room for my "toys" (lathe, mill, etc) - times when I don't really have a project, I can just stop 'n admire them sitting there.
Ken >