For this homework assignment we had to CNC Machine a shape and finish it. This assignment taught us how to use CNC machines.

First, we had to chose an image from the Noun Project. We chose to CNC an impossible shape.

With the right imagination and shading, this is an hollow box, but the sides never quite line up right.

We loaded the image into Easel Inventables to create a tool path. Our first run was with an 1/8 inch bit, step down .05 inch, and a total depth of 3/8. We machined it in a block of wax, as shown below.

We liked the raised edges on the left and bottom so we decided to have edges on our final carving. We also increased the step down distance to .06 inches and made the lines of the shape narrower.

We decided to make our final carving out of wood. We prepared 1 face of the wood with linseed oil. Then we carved the shape using the new toolpath. We had an unexpected problem because the wood was kind of “fuzzy” after it was milled. To solve the problem we used an exacto knife to shave off the remaining pieces of wood. The final product can be seen below, with contrast between fresh wood and wood treated with linseed oil.