This latest assignment was to use the CNC machine. Due to the fact that the Nomad was down, I decided to use the Shapoeko.
As an avid Batman lover, I went on the noun project and found a SVG file of a batman face.
BATMAN SVG
I put this into Carbide Create. I went into the wood shop and cut out a piece of stock wood that allowed me to create the CNC cut. I decided to do a slight indention for where the eyes, and cowl would be. I then decided to do a full cut as a circle around the cowl so that I can have practice with the CNC in terms of cutting out pieces.
I had to take out the lip of the Batman face due to the fact that it made the Batman cowl look very weird.
One of the things that I quickly realized when doing this was that order of the cuts mattered. Originally I had the cut in order from doing the full circle and then the cowl. This caused the piece to go become separated and then create a safety hazard.
I went back into Carbide Create and created a different toolpath order in which my cut would first be done with the indentions, and then the circle cut would be created.
First Raw Cut
Above shows the cut that came out our the CNC machine. I saw that there were still some products of manufacturing. I decided to do some work and put some post process on to the cut. I first went from a low to a high grit with the sandpaper to achieve the finish I want. The picture below shows how the cut looked after I sanded it down.
Post Sanding
We can see that after sanding the cut, it looked a lot cleaner than what we had before. This was a great sign for us. However, there was more to be done in regards to this cut. I wanted to put a paint finish on it as well. I wanted to paint the top face red and the bottom face as well as the sides black. Below shows the finished project.
Top Face
Back Face
This project was very rewarding. Not only did it teach me one of the most integral skills any mechanical engineer should have, learning how to operate a CNC mill, but it also taught me how to think methodically. Not necessarily just doing random steps. I learned this most specifically when doing the toolpath part.
For the cost, the only things that I had to get besides the CNC machine were the pieces of stock wood and the paint.
Wood = $5
Red Paint = $2.50
Black Paint = $2.50
Labor: 8 hours x $7.25/Hour = $58
Total cost is $58.
