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Thread: Woodworking wizards in Mach3
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14th February 2013, 12:28 PM #31Member
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Yes, I'm still working on it, but due to a family member being diagnosed with a serious illness 5 weeks ago, my available time has been reduced to nearly zero. But I'm slowly getting back into it.
I've found that while the simple dovetails I showed a few weeks back was relatively easy to do, dovetails that are larger than the tool diameter present a much greater challenge.
For example, with a 1/2" dovetail bit, a socket for a 5/8" wide tail is as simple as moving in, move over 1/8", and move back out. But when it's 2" wide, it's a completely different toolpath. I've spent about 20+hours on the code to do the roughing passes, and discovered last night that while the toolpath looked good in Mach3, it wasn't 100% accurate. So I have to carefully rework about 1000 lines of code to get it right.
Here's a sample of what I've been working on:
dtsample.jpgGerry
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13th April 2013, 08:25 PM #32
Hi Gerry
Are you still working on this, or has it become too difficult?
I would reallly like to buy this off you ASAPBob Willson
The term 'grammar nazi' was invented to make people, who don't know their grammar, feel OK about being uneducated.
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13th April 2013, 09:39 PM #33
ahh when a good idea for a program gets out of hand , and mind boggling
best debugged 2 months later , with a fresh start from the simple "workable code "
at least you know 1 way that didnt work ) ,. dont let that stop you ,
as Edison once said , he found 1000 ways not to make a light bulb , before he succeeded and found 1
i do a bit of VB6 , lol , and yes ive spent months writing a program , to ditch it , rewrite from scratch in 2 weeks , 10x better 10x faster , with a new insight , how it needs to be set out from the start , only too get too a point 2 months later , when a full rewrite is needed again , because of a new insight on how it should be set out , ????
keep with it , ??? $10 a copy , 100,000 sales , world wide ????
???A faridy could not have imagined how popular this "mach" program would be
PS , well done .how come a 10mm peg dont fit in a 10mm hole
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15th April 2013, 03:32 AM #34Member
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Things just aren't going my way. 3 weeks ago I went away for a long weekend with the intent on programming for 3 straight days. The night before, I came down with flu like symptoms that kept me in bed for 4 days.
I should be back working on this this week, but unfortunately it's going to be at least a few more months. I'm not going to set a time, but I have no plans to abandon the project.Gerry
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7th May 2013, 02:35 PM #35
Have you at least finished the half blind dovetails part?
I could buy this from you now and then get the rest when you finish.Bob Willson
The term 'grammar nazi' was invented to make people, who don't know their grammar, feel OK about being uneducated.
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11th May 2013, 11:59 AM #36
I was drawing some "real dovetail templates " and nutted out how to get tool paths from any bit measurement
thought it might help you
I want to work out how to do that in , math ? generate tool paths with only width / depth and angle of bit measurements and "dovetail size" and "draw side length"
so the " cut depth" of a bit ,inverse tan from "bit angle " to work out "cut offset " length( i need to Google the formula )
the 2x"cut offset" is subtracted from the " bitwidth " to find "small bitwidth" diameter
("dove tail size "x2) - ("bit bottom width "/2) -( "small arc" diameter/2) =" center offset" of arc's
?? not easy
1.JPG
"bit width " - x2"cut off set" = "small bit width"
2.JPG
Correction , as the bit over cuts the small circle , it would need another (-"CutOffset" ) at the very end
So , Arc Center Offset = 2xDovetail size - Bitwidth - 2xCutOffSet
3.JPG
Cutting DoveTails larger than the bit
So "dovetail diameter "- "bitwidth" = "DovetailOffset"
4.JPG
small arc diameter = "DovetailOffset"
Arc Center Offset = 2xDovetail size - Bitwidth - 2xCutOffSet -DovetailOffset
large arc diameter =( 2xBitWidth - 2xCutOffset ) + DovetailOffset
The board "clamp down" off set = 1/2 small arc diameter + 1/2 large arc diameter
Clearance , could be worked out once again with tan
so clearance /2 ,inverse tanned with the angle will give you a height
the height could be taken away from the CUT DEPTH , and the tool path worked out , but when the part is cut , the cut depth is correct giving a set clearance distance
5.JPGhow come a 10mm peg dont fit in a 10mm hole
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13th May 2013, 11:44 AM #37Member
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Not sure exactly what your asking, but this may help.
so the " cut depth" of a bit ,inverse tan from "bit angle " to work out "cut offset " length( i need to Google the formula )
the 2x"cut offset" is subtracted from the " bitwidth " to find "small bitwidth" diameter
Small bit width is large diameter - (2* cut offset) Edit: Didn't see that you already had this.Gerry
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13th May 2013, 11:48 AM #38Member
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For the most part, yes, I've had the half blind dovetail portion finished for a long time. Just need a few hours to tidy up the g-code generation.
However, it's far from a finished program, and at this point isn't capable of running as a standalone app.
If you really need software right now, or even in the next few months, you'd be better off buying something that's available now (Even though it probably won't be as good as what I'm working on). As I said before, I can't give a timeline on when I expect to see a finished product. It will be finished at some point, but unfortunately, it's just not a priority in my life right now.Gerry
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19th May 2013, 06:29 PM #39New Member
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I just ran across this post and thought I'd give an update for those interested. The website is not updated regularly but the dovetail wizard is currently in good working order, and has been for quite some time.
Here's some videos of the software being used:
Home built CNC router cutting dovetails - YouTube
CNC - dovetail wizard - YouTube
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20th May 2013, 11:46 AM #40
Hello Al65 and welcome to the forum
I looked at your site over a year ago and at that time you had
Pricing:
- Blind Dovetail Wizard
- Full license: (USD) $29.00
- Through Dovetail Wizard
- Not available at this time
- Box Joint Wizard
- Not available at this time
fYou do appear to have given up on the project,or at the very least decided to take a very long holiday and that is why Ger is now programming a wizard thatwill make all the dovetails that you are not making and possibly even rabbits ears as well.
I will have a look at your stuff again, but I really can't see paying $30 for a part program that doesn't seem likely to get finished.Bob Willson
The term 'grammar nazi' was invented to make people, who don't know their grammar, feel OK about being uneducated.
- Blind Dovetail Wizard
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20th May 2013, 05:39 PM #41New Member
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Thanks for the welcome.
The original project was for blind dovetails. It is not part of a program, it is complete and working. And at only the cost of about one bought out drawer it will easily pay for itself on the very first project.
That said, there were future plans for creating other (separate) wizards to do other types of joints, depending on the need. Unfortunately, the need at the time was not great enough to justify the dozens of hours it takes to properly plan, research, develop, program, test, and bugfix a wizard with as many user options as are necessary to create a complete and complex "professional" wizard. In fact, I have yet to be asked about a box joint wizard (which would be the easiest, but least useful).
Also, some people have used the blind dovetail wizard by setting the cut depth to the thickness of the material, in essence creating a type of through dovetail joint by being creative with the existing software, which decreased the need for a true multi-bit through dovetail wizard. This doesn't mean that I won't release a true through dovetail wizard, just that it isn't of high priority for me right now.
I am a cabinetmaker by trade so I do these things in my spare time, and usually only as I need them for my shop. I have rough working programs for other joints, but none are polished and capable of being released for public use (I wouldn't release anything without proper programming boundaries and sanity checks which could lead to machine damage or personal injury).
I look forward to previewing Ger's wizards, and I really can appreciate all the work that goes into this type of program, from the gui to the gcode and everything inbetween.
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20th May 2013, 07:09 PM #42Every day is better than yesterday
Cheers
SAISAY
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27th October 2013, 07:37 PM #43
So Ger
How's the programming going?Bob Willson
The term 'grammar nazi' was invented to make people, who don't know their grammar, feel OK about being uneducated.
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28th October 2013, 02:00 AM #44Member
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I'm actually working on it right now. I've added about 20 lines of code in the last 6 hours. Those 20 lines required fixing another 20 lines of code. It took hours of testing to find minor little bugs that show up when you change the width of the dovetail by 0.01.
I probably have another 10,000-15,000 lines of code to write. And about 50 hours working on the interface.
The most complicated thing is trying to figure out the best toolpath strategy for joints that are larger than the tool. The goal is to eliminate as much chance of tearout as possible, especially when a tail falls along the edge of the stock.
Now that the cold weather is here, my plan is to work on this most evenings during the week (when I get home from work).
Sorry it's taking so long, but I want to release a full featured, fully functional app the first time.Gerry
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28th October 2013, 10:43 AM #45
OK, that sounds good Ger.
Ummm I just did a calculation based on your figures and if you are only writing about 20 lines of code every 6 hours then it is going to be a fairly long time before you finish.
15000/20=750 lots of 6 hour blocks= about 2 years to go if you have a few days off at Christmas etc.Bob Willson
The term 'grammar nazi' was invented to make people, who don't know their grammar, feel OK about being uneducated.