[CarveOne]

cambam makes my head hurt

i mostly will be cutting 2d wood but there will be a fair amount of 3d wood and styrofoam too i kinda dig the liths too

I started with CamBam beta and could do most 2D things with it eventually but after buying Vcarve Pro I found its interface to be much easier to learn and use. Then I got the Aspire upgrade and have really had some fun with the 3D stuff so far. I still have a lot more to learn about it.

[Trotline]

Bob has the right of it. Almost anyone who regularly uses any CAD/CAM package has a lot of time invested in it, and wouldn't be using it if they didn't think it was the best for their needs. From what I've seen, though, none of them has anything that could really be described as a gentle learning curve for the true beginner. Aspirin is your friend.

Most of them offer some sort of free trial, and it's highly recommended to make use of that. Often enough, little things that seem awkward in one program, but intuitive in another, for a particular user, ends up being the deciding factor.

Although I don't use CamBam now, it's what I started on, and I agree that for the price, it's tough to beat. Aspire, BobCAD/CAM, ArtCAM, MeshCAM, all of those are bigger, more full-featured packages. They cost more, (sometimes a LOT more), but many users find them worth it.

Luke

[boxbuilder10]

havent had much time lately but i have cut a few test pieces. i will get vids up soon(i hope)

next on my list is getting my switches hooked up if i can figure out how, and get all of the electronics in an enclosure.

on a side note i have managed to get a lot of good usable parts from the local salvage yard. mill faced 6061 in every size possible at $0.60 a pound,small pieces and anything plastic they just give me (igus cable track,switches etc.) if you have a salvage yard close i would suggest being friends with them

[boxbuilder10]

MOV013 - YouTube
i think i got this youtube thing worked out. this is a video of my machine cutting a little sign out of african paduk

[boxbuilder10]

here are a few pics of the new aluminum parts made by my machine for my machine.

remember i said to be friends with the local salvage yard, i stopped by sat to make my rounds an came across a huge bin of tooling from a local factory a lot of it was new and a lot more was freshly sharpened i picked a few that i could use and when i went to pay they said "its not enough to even weigh" so they gave it to me. i'm going back tomorrow!

[Bob La Londe]

Well, you are officially my hero. Not only did you get it running on your self imposed deadline you found a salvage guy who doesn't want new price for used parts.

[boxbuilder10]

well the victory is short lived. i've torn the machine down to replace all of the plywood parts but hope to have it back up tomorrow

[boxbuilder10]

i got off work early today so i decided to put my machine back together. it took most of the day but its up and running.

i still need to install the home/limit switches and make an enclosure for the electronics i still lack 1 piece of cable chain, but im sure i'll pick it up at the scrapyard sooner or later....you just never know what will come through there!

after i got it up and running i cut a few gears for a friend (just to make sure it still worked).:cheers:

now i guess i need to take a cad class at the community college since i have zero experience

[boxbuilder10]

it has been a while but i finally got all of my switches installed and calibrated and made an auto zero plate, put all of my electronics in an enclosure, added a relay for the spindle. i think the only thing left is to install the rest of my cable track (as soon as my buddy gives it to me) and ...........make some money!

[malcmpatel8]

I'm running alibrecam standard and want