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Hi i think i have seen a cnc router machine fitted with a card cutter fitted into the router.what i would like to do is cut stencils on my cnc machine.if this is possible to do could someone be so kind and give me some info where to get the cutter that going into the machine and also what software would i need to get many thanks tom
Dependis on what sort of media you want to cut stencils in really Tom, I know you can get a drag knife attachment for cnc machines but haven't actually used one myself so can't tell you just how good or bad they are. Software wise what are you using just now, you must be using some software to create vectors for the machine to cut so you should be able to keep using that,.
Hi its just to cut out say letters and flowers shapes and i use vcarve
If your using vcarve pro then you should be able to carry on using that, the only thing you are going to need to do is add some thin connecting parts so you don't lose the centres of certain letters & parts of flowers etc etc, easy enough to do by drawing something like a small rectangle & then welding the different parts together. To give you a better idea of how it might work with letters try doing a search for a font called stencil
You want one of these or easy enough to make if you have cnc machine and lathe. It's only skate board bearings in tube.!!
Drag Knife Intro - YouTube
Why would it not be possible simply to put a drag knife blade into the spindle (unbraked) and allow the spindle bearings to do the work? The spindle bearings are designed to cope with more than any loadings that card /vynal cutting would impose and provided that the spindle runs freely, I think that any of the offset round blades should work, provided that you can securely chuck the blade. I have not tried this but I will. I believe that most of the card/vynal cutters use a "nosing to set the depth and have a spring loaded "Z" to ensure the cut is limited to a set depth (that is how they can cut through the vynal leaving the backing sheet uncut. I would suggest that if using a drag knife in the router to place one of the "self healing" mats under the media. G.
Sure someone must have tried it before now Geoffrey, I think these drag knife attachments are spring loaded to ensure the blade stays in contact with the media & cuts correctly, the way you are looking to try wouldn't have that ability.
Other problem you might have is finding a blade with the right angle, a normal plotter blade is likely to be a bit to fragile for this sort of work so you would be looking at something a bit sturdier. Possibly scalpel or craft knife type blades.