Tutorial #001 : Engraving Acrylic using ArtCam

Machining is not entirely about speed. Most of the time we need to get to know the properties of the material we are using. Engraving acrylic is almost the same as doing the machining process. To engrave the acrylic material, as per my experience, it is not about just the speed and power of the machine. So in this tutorial, I will show how I was able to properly engraved an acrylic material.

First, I needed a nice artwork. I know that Artcam, being a product of Autodesk, is fully compatible with dxf files. And I know that dfx files has been around for decades and a lot of clip arts can be downloaded freely on the internet. My friend google is always there to help, and within a few minutes, I found several free dxf files and I have chosen a butterfly and a complex star pattern.

Upon downloading, I immediately opened the dxf files in ArtCam(I assume that readers have already explored ArtCam and have background in cnc). I then created a 2D toolpath using the following settings:




 Note that I used very low feed rate and plunge rate. These settings are the most suitable using the Carver Cnc.

Now, I have to use this settings in GRBL Software to get the speed I need:

X-axis Feed rate : 625mm/sec
Y-Axis Feed rate: 625mm/sec
Z-Axis Feed rate: Not important but I used 75mm/sec
Spindle Speed: 4000rpm(to save electricity), but  higher rpm is better.

It is also important to note that I used a PCB 1mm diameter drill bit. I have also set Z-Axis depth at -10mm at 75mm/sec feed rate. Since it is just 2d machining, the Z-axis depth is constant.

And I got the following results:

It took less than 5 minutes to process the butterfly pattern while the intricate star pattern was less that 15 minutes.