Designing For Laser Cutting

28ten

Guv'nor
I cut some corbels this evening, they need some plasticard for the moulding but they should look the part. as soon as I have the ballustrade casting its good to go into the paint shop
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28ten

Guv'nor
Something I saw I Brecon on an HSBC bank of similar style was a chimney made from stone block rather than brick
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iploffy

OC Blue Brigade
Well there is the thought why do it in the first place?, not going to say any more as I might find all of my pages written in green and turned upside down and back to front:))
 

28ten

Guv'nor
Well there is the thought why do it in the first place?, not going to say any more as I might find all of my pages written in green and turned upside down and back to front:))
Because I can ;)

Its been chucking it down here so a site visit I had arranged has been cancelled, so to make up for the rotten weather I did a rotten job :)) bricks need to be 'laid' in Autocad and this is a side in progress. A large plain wall can be done in minutes by using an array, but as soon as it comes to window reveals in old buildings its a case of suck it and see (rather like the original brick layer) I have studied quite a lot of victorian brickwork to get a feel for their methods, so I can make a good guess. This method is quite time consuming but it does deliver the killer which is correctly bonded walls.

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28ten

Guv'nor
As mentioned elsewhere, im easily distracted and whilst I had planned to finish off the inner bogies for the mk1's I started hearing little voices and this manhole cover is the result. the stock is 6 thou so in effect it is engraved to 3 thou. It i far more impressive in real life as I struggled to get a decent shot.
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Paul Rolley

Active Member
greetings all,
I have been drawing up plans in AutoCad for a while, as I use it for work...... A friend is a school Tech assistant and has access to the Laser cutter in the school, I give him a set of my plans then he re-draws them onto his system, this seems very time consuming, but we are unaware of an alternative unless I download the program and draw it directly. ( I guess its an option but he is against it as its a school system and I have no knowledge of it at all.)

I have been cutting out coach sides in 4mm for my test trains stock and it works a treat. But I now want to do buildings and architectural features as shown on your pictures, what is the step forward do you suggest.

Paul. R
 

28ten

Guv'nor
He should be able to import a dxf. Most of the proprietary software with lasers requires a dongle to work, so that route is a bit of a non starter, what make is his laser?
 

Paul Rolley

Active Member
He doesnt know...... just a techee, but he informs me the package is 2D design.... version 2. but the discs he used to download the program and work from home have been lost, However, Im free to use his laptop, but not to view his images, or history?

i like this form of modelling for my scratch building, its cheap and cheerful and gives quick and neat results, I will try and attach an image of a high output ballast cleaner I made using it to cut sides from plasticard.
 

28ten

Guv'nor
He doesnt know...... just a techee, but he informs me the package is 2D design.... version 2. but the discs he used to download the program and work from home have been lost, However, Im free to use his laptop, but not to view his images, or history?

i like this form of modelling for my scratch building, its cheap and cheerful and gives quick and neat results, I will try and attach an image of a high output ballast cleaner I made using it to cut sides from plasticard.
Sorry i missed this :oops: 2D design plays nicely with CAM, I have never used it myself, i would guess it can import a dxf
 

Paul Rolley

Active Member
Classy stuff Paul! Will you have this for me to see through the lens next month?
Hi Chris, Yes, but it is now painted and weathered, but I have some of the construction pictures for you to look at on the PC when your here if interested, along with a pair of self propelling twin cranes that were made by a similar process, and if your not Bored, bored, bored, a pair of warwells built from a Model rail article detailed with some excavators, so I hope a few things to see, they aint up to the standard of the Plastic printed models that appear somewhere else. but at 3' they look like what it does on the tin.

Paul.
 

28ten

Guv'nor
Problem - little boys get hands on daddys n/s wire stash
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Solution - a wire holder:) unfortunately it doesnt sort them out.....IMG_1111.jpg

Some details, im thinking that I could engrave the wire sizes somewhere, the front lip is also too high, it just doesnt look nice
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I had run out of clear acrylic but I rather like seeing the tubes so as once some clear acrylic arrives mk2 will be cut. I think a smaller version for the odd lengths will be in order as well.

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