3D Soap Dish

Hi all,

Heh - this isn't the first soap dish I've made and I doubt it'll be the last, but after seeing an abysmal design the other day (honestly, how can anyone make a soap-dish that doesn't work properly..?!) I thought I'd model one and cut it as a 3D object. The idea was that the ribs would droop in the middle so as to cradle the soap, whilst the troughs were to drop away at the edges to facilitate draining.

A couple of in-progress pics below. I've made it from a scrap piece of Sycamore I got given a while back. Still needs a bit of sanding and then a couple of coats of varnish. I've modified my CAM files since the first cut (for speed and efficiency) and I may make a special in African Black Wood. It'll be a nice prezzie for someone at some point..!

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Wal.

Il'l try this on a bit of sycamore I have, might even use a bit of zabrani I have been saving for years.

Can you give a clue to the cutter you used

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Originally Posted by johnsattuk

Il'l try this on a bit of sycamore I have, might even use a bit of zabrani I have been saving for years.

Can you give a clue to the cutter you used

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Sure - I used a 4mm square end mill for the roughing and a 4mm ball nose for the finishing. In all honesty a 3mm would be better for the finishing pass, but you'd need a long neck/flute or a shaft no thicker than 3mm to avoid rubbing on the steep sides... I may flare out the troughs and the front and rear faces a bit on the newer model to make it a bit easier to cut...

Wal.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

Wal I think you have too much time on your hands:beer:

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Originally Posted by Clive S

Wal I think you have too much time on your hands:beer:

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Don't you mean my impeccably clean hands, Clive..?! ;)

Wal.

EDIT: To be honest, whilst seeming a bit self-indulgent, there's a fair bit I'm picking up with regards to how VCarve handles 3D objects - specifically how it cuts 'em. i.e. cutting along the troughs is A LOT quicker, but frustratingly if the 0.3mm step-over falls on an area that it's not allowed to get to the bottom of, it just ignores the bit that hasn't been cut - of course, you can get around it by narrowing the step-over or adjusting the raster angle - both of which increase cutting time, but them's the breaks, I guess. As a side note, I ended up going with a 45° raster angle, which gave me a decent enough finish in the troughs but wasn't ideal on the steep sides - using the 45° angle stressed the tool a fair bit too - leading to this:

https://youtu.be/0CwjH17jqV4

Will you be making your newer model available to us, a bit of taper would help with the cutter choice and perhaps the look.

Only got a 5mm ball nose long enough at the moment so will have to get a couple of long 3mm ones.

I cut the Grunblau soap stand a couple of years ago.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by johnsattuk

Will you be making your newer model available to us, a bit of taper would help with the cutter choice and perhaps the look.

Only got a 5mm ball nose long enough at the moment so will have to get a couple of long 3mm ones.

I cut the Grunblau soap stand a couple of years ago.

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Yep, sure - I'll try and make the changes at some point today, but other things may get in the way... certainly happy to share it. Nice work on that grunblau dish.

Wal.

EDIT:

I've got a new model made now - preview the .stl here or download the .stl from here.

Cut a pair in a bit of yew

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Nice one John - can't wait to see 'em lacquered up! The figuring on the one on the left looks ace.

Wal.

Left one, right one needs a bit of filling of exposed wormholes :grumpy:


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A rub with a waxy rag and some cork pads
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Heh, very cool. Cheers for posting the pics, John.

Wal.

Nice work - almost makes me wish I used soap.

May thanks Wal for sharing this nice simple very tactile design, my daughter commandeered it as soon as she saw it.:beer:

One in Sycamoor for my grandaughter.

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