Hi All, Good evening from North Wales.

[robdl1981]

Hi all

Just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Rob I'm from North Wales and I have decided to jump feet first into the world of CNC. I have purchased one of the 3018 Pro Chinese machines and so far it seems very capable. I am wanting to get into aluminium pet tag engraving which mainly uses anodised aluminium. So far I've had mixed success but need a bit of help going forward I think. Anyway, it'll be nice to get to know you all and hopefully in the process help each other out.

Rob

[visedge]

Hi Rob, welcome to the forum!

I saw a good video recently where a guy was using a spring loaded bit to drag engrave aluminium Dog tags. What type of engraving do you intend using?

[robdl1981]

Well so far I just have v tip engraving bits. I am trying to find the correct feeds and speeds that doesn't break the tip.

[Doddy]

I saw a good video recently where a guy was using a spring loaded bit to drag engrave aluminium Dog tags.

+1 for this - I did make a similar device and it was as good if not better than my attempts with a V-bit. Part of my problem was, I think, a random bunch of anodised aluminium sheet (offcuts from eBay) which was gummier than a fruit pastille - cut poorly and suffered a lot of tearing when engraved. The spring-loaded drag bit resolves a number of issues including the gumminess and flatness.

From my experience - probably worth sourcing/buying a proper drag engraver.

Don't kid yourself with your machine - try to get a good understanding about any backlash that you have, and the rigidity of the frame - no point looking for precision engraving if the machine is distorting under lateral loading. Also examine and understand the stiffness of your spindle mount.

[Clive S]

Yes, three series is very gummy try 6 series or even 7 series

[Kitwn]

I bought one of these drag engravers a while back. Haven't used it much as yet but the tests I did looked good whereas the 22 degree PCB engraving bit I tried just made a mess. The spring loaded engraver is also much more tolerant of uneven surfaces.

https://www.engravingbit.com/Drag%20engraving%20tool.html

Kit