Making CNC files?

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project003

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so I have access to a CNC milling machine, but I have no idea how I would go about making those files. and if so, could I convert Pepakura files to a CNC format?(.dxf, .ac, .fbx) how would I go about doing that? Discuss!


-John Wayne
 
Your better of just making the model in nurbs or in SubD. Otherwise you would see polygons wich you really don't want since your gonna cnc it.

Just converting models would take ages since you can't have any tri in it.
 
im in the same boat as you and well ive tried converting them but the file always ends up really rough looking so ill be watching this. see if any one else post with a good idea like rundown's idea
 
at least for the machines where I hang out at, we just dump the file, slice it into sections to work with the shopbot and then let it go, then glue them back together. Sure you will still have a bit of a polygon look, but you can just bondo the wood out after that, it's not like it's any worse than the polygon look pep on paper has.

We're going to do this with a stormtrooper helmet in November, I guess if you are still having troubles I'll see about posting WIP pics of the process.
 
What, laying out flat pep and cutting the aluminum as if it were cardstock? You could but welding it and smoothing it wouldn't be worth the effort.

If, however, you mean milling a block of aluminum, it is a worse problem. There are not many if ANY readily available large scale fix axis cnc milling machines that I know of (if you have access to such a thing, then that's the exception that proves the rule, and you are rich enough to just hire some professionals to do all this for you)... So you need to break the model into pieces which need to be reattached. Then you have to smooth out the polygon shapes, and in the end you wouldn't be able to wear it anyways since it's a solid block of metal. So you're better off using wood for that procedure.
 
i do have access to six haas cnc macines for projects, however they do not belong to me they belong to my school, but we get to do personal projects as long as we program the machine and get the file and pay for the materials. my problem is finding the files for halo ive tried making them but they always end up lopsided or way to polygonal . and my process for wearing it would be to mold it and make casts of it. (and by NO means am i rich). thanks for the help it is much appreciated.
 
Your file format is going to depend on the CAM package you use to generate the gcode.

You can do the slice approach with 3D as well. I slice he model into 2" sections and mill it out on my router in foam. Foam is great for large volume items but is a pain to finish unless you buy HDU Foam.

Alumn is going to be real expensive due to the amount of time it takes to mill and Katsu is right about mills having small build areas (my router is 4'x4'x4", my mill is only 12"x6"x9").

I've also started playing with the idea of using pep to generate vectors to cut floor mat foam. They still need a work cutting chamfers by hand but it gives you a super clean line. Time wise it's night and day. For a odst chest it would take me a long time to mill (not even going to guess) in 3D. In 2D I cut all the parts in 20 minutes including pocketing some areas. It takes a little thinking ahead of time to get everything set the way you want but I think it shows some real promise for high quality low cost parts. I'll post some more pics tonight in my build thread showing the torso (still raw foam atm) and the helmet which has had a few finishing passes done.

For 2D I found exporting from pep designer to .eps keep the scale information (at least in Vcarve).

For small stuff don't forget about 3D printing ether. I saw a delta robot based 3D printer that has me wanting to build one... :cool
 
Yeah, if you are on a budget, cnc will not be the way to go unless you slice it as I and Gremlin have mentioned, and use MDF or something. A big block of aluminum is an expensive and unnecessarily heavy option, and even then I doubt you could fit a helmet sized block on a six-axis machine. You're looking at a couple hundred bucks BEFORE molding costs for aluminum big enough for a helmet. The cheapest and best way to use a CNC machine is to build two halves of the piece cut into MDF, and then smooth it with spot putty and bondo, and then vacuum form the halves and stick them together.

But if money is an issue, pepakura will be worlds cheaper since it gives the same result without buying wood or metal, and is wearable right off the bat without a mold or vacuum forming machine.
 
Well, i work with CNC allot, and you can make your own wit AUTOCad, and i think 3DS Max works aswell. If your not familire with AutoDesk products, it may be a long time before you grasp it, its not somthing you learn over night. But all in all, go for it, its a fun tool.
 
my project this yeas is to build not a helmet but a mk v shoulder. and we have stock big enough to use for it. and my instructor is giving me a dscount on the price. we are using solid works 2013 edition.. thanks though
 
Going to resurrect this to see if some new blood around here has any input. I just acquired a 3axis CnC router with numerous programs on it. Mainly it runs using G Code files. Do any of you guru's happen to have any CAD or even the GCode files for weaponry? Going to give it a shot with the new router, but can't seem to find proper files...or know of what i can do to transition other than slicing the 3d file type. Any suggestions?
 
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