DIY CNC - Drag Knife Mod - Cut Vinyl Stickers!
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
- Over the last couple months I've been having my CNC do projects that didn't require a router or spindle. I've used it for laser-like woodburning and as a plotter with great results. For this project I wanted to have the CNC cut some vinyl logos. This was a very simple mod that used a cheap $10 drag knife and a very basic 3D printed mount with zip ties. The results were awesome. There are a lot of possibilities with this little knife. Thanks for taking a look!
Link to the little drag knife: vicious1-com.m...
Nice video, thanks for adding the link to my site! The tip should have an offset of 0.25mm if your CAM allows for overcut you can get some really sharp corners. As for the blade stick out I use way less. I have a little tutorial on how I set it on the site. The basics are you want so little it will only cut the vinyl and not touch the paper. You can test it by hand then just drop it in the machine.
allted Awesome. Thanks for the tips. Great little cutter.
I am SO buying one of these by next paycheck,I would buy it now but I've just spent half a paycheck on tools and upgrades for my 3dprinter.
So I'll have to wait another two weeks *gasp*
Ok the tool isnt expensive but the shipping to europe is nigh on prohibitive, 3x the price of the tool itself. By the way... extra blades?
nvm. found'em
@@djeeno esticazzi?
Good rule of thumb is to set the blade to only stick out of the holder the thickness of a standard business card.
Can i put this cutter to my 3d printer to cut leather 1-1.5mm thick? Thanks.
Thanks for sharing. You got me with the Opel logo.
How do I make my cnc 3018 sound like dying robots?
I picked up a cutter holder and blades on eBay for 7ukp (the one you suggest costs a lot to ship to the UK), it seems to work ok
search for "Holder for Roland Vinyl Blade"
have ypu tried cutting paper or craft paper with it? how long does the blade last?
would send me pict, of your cnc machine design,, please,,,,
What software did you end up using with this? Thanks!
4:25 how software?
Interesting. I wonder if there is a good way actually mount it inside the router's spindle. Thinking of trying something similar, so thanks for link to that neat-looking drag knife.
Thats what Im going to try. 1/2 in collet almost fits. A little tape I think it will fit snugly.
you just used some ties and rubber bands, the simplicity shows that it can be just done. thank you, gonna turn my 3d printer to be able to do it for custom mask for models.
shipping costs are tooooooooooo much
but thanks
Thanks for the video. I ordered one of these today on Amazon. So the blade spins inside the housing on bearings?
I think it's just a magnet and air around it but it moves extremely well.
Kind of funny, because your offset is almost exactly what my very expensive plotters have from the factory.
Thank you, finaly I know how the machine cutter work.
wow those drivers are noisy ^_~
Gr8 video. Is it a diy CNC machine? Can U cut 5mm foam board? Cheers
Are you zeroing that on top of the decal and then giving it ?? downward?
It's been a while since I made the video but if I remember correctly, yes, zeroed and then did a very shallow "cut" to cut the vinyl.
see at 1.50 'Flexure Gripper and Demo Board' a neat flexure for this
How do you set the z axis? Do you set it so the tip of the blade just barely touches, than add a 1/32 of - z in the software? Also what feed rate did you find best?
thanks.
Hi. I too plan to do some vinyl cutting on a small CNC machine using the same drag knife. I believe the knife should orient to the cut as the blade point is slightly off centre but also seen people using software to determine order and direction of cut and specify radii. What software did you use? Do you have to go into such detail about the cut or will the knife simply rotate as cut direction changes? Thanks for the video.
The blade is held in by a magnet, so it is free to spin in the direction it is being pulled.
Hello po watching from world gee.
How accurate are these cuts ? Lets say you cut a square 1" x 1". What are the final dimensions and what is the inner or outer curvature radii ? A simple test would be to get some kapton tape on a surface and just cut a square. Then measure with calipers. Great idea BTW. I might invest in one of those cutting heads for $10.
Accuracy depends on the quality and calibration of your CNC. If you can cut a 1" square with a fine tipped router bit, you can do the same with the drag knife.
very interesting thanks- would this drag knife cut through timber veneer? Are you using chinese cnc kit machines? cheers
Thanks. This knife is too small for any kind of wood veneer. The CNC I have is a homebuilt oddball thing that has evolved with lots of modifications. This is the basic machine: ua-cam.com/video/PpMEa_tRkmg/v-deo.html
Awesome video. Sadly, I was already subscribed.
Great machine! May I know the name of the software you use at 4:24, please?
he says it in the video Cut2D www.vectric.com/products/cut2d-pro
Is special gcode generator needed? Or any tool path generated by freecad or inkscape will work?
Ordered one, will need to fabricate a mount, thanks for the video! Later, Murph
Hi Murph. Thanks for your comments.
great !!!
It looks alot like the drag knife that I found on Aliexpress(with 15 extra blades)
This is pretty cool. Thanks for sharing, I'll be testing this aswell! Results were super crisp
It works pretty well. Thanks for your comments.
I am getting ready to mount mine to my CNC machine. Why did you need to make the mount slide up and down between those 4 rollers?
Sturdiness so that the blade can not tip in the holder.
@@HalfAssHomestead I just mounted mine in the collet of my CNC on a totally flat surface and it worked great
Are you having to do any Gcode lifts when you turn sharp corners?
No lifts on the corners, the cutter just pivots.
Computers are everything
so, dumb question, why not put a drag-knife in a collect holder on the original motor instead? Just disconnect the power to the motor. I plan to try that using a foam base plate to absorb any over shot with the knife going down.
It could be done but a more complicated adapter would have to be designed. This was a simpler way in my view to get it done. Best of luck.
I was thinking the same. If the cutter diameter is smaller then make a split V block with an OD enough to clamp the cutter. 3d print it since plastic would likely be strong enough. Failing that get a split rod and use a V file. You could add a spring and magnet in there if there's enough space.
Can't you just put it in the spindle like a bit and leave it turned off?
No, because the holder is essential in making the blade work.
Do you have a semi-soft surface, that you put the vinyl on - or is it just a piece of plywood, MDF or similar ?
Just a flat piece of plywood, nothing fancy.
machine music.
que programa uso para eso
is your mount on thingiverse?
noisy
Thank you, this is perfect for my CNC. Thanks for the video and the link. I have ordered one and will test on my CNC.
Hi Bruce. Thanks for your comments. It's a cool little cutter.
hello ...thank you for your video ...still you satisfied with it? can it used with any cnc router?
Thank you for your comments. I would imagine any CNC could use a similar mod. Best of luck.
@@drez20001 where to buy?
@@nacefsofiene4828 go on aliexpress and look for plotter knife
Nice vid! Is it possible to adapt this drag knife onto a 3d printer?
Thanks
Thanks. Some folks have done that. The MPCNC can do both 3D printing and use this drag knife. ua-cam.com/video/B3hCXXCczBI/v-deo.html
The Ultimaker can be modified as well. community.ultimaker.com/topic/16402-cutting-vinyl-with-an-ultimaker-2/
What offset do you use on this one and how can you messure it right???
The offset is almost exactly as what every factory plotter has. Don't worry about that, just position your vinyl so that it doesn't go where it can not be cut.
Хорошее видео, спасибо!
Hi ! Do you need some special software to generate the tool path or it works like a normal cutting tool ? Thank you !
No special software needed, other than what is typical for CNCs. To cut the vinyl stickers I just set the cut depth very shallow, say .0625 or so. Just enough to put a little downward pressure on the cutting edge.
Thank you !!!!!!!!!!!!
Does it need a drag knife toolpath??
@@shenavlogs6291 I didn't use anything special to use the drag knife. The only thing I did was to sort of trick the software into thinking it was making a very shallow outside cut. Best of luck.
how small do you reckon the text cut be cut to? i might need to apply some to project boxes
It works great for larger text and images but with my CNC for really small stuff it doesn't do as well. With that said though other folks have been able to have good results with small cuts. Thanks for your question.
The size of the letters only depends on your patience in weeding out those parts you want revealed.
Great job!
Hi Justin. Many thanks.
How do you transfer the pieces, say for the android logo, so squarely and accurate ?
Similarly to the way the UA-cam sticker was transferred but very slowly.
Thanks for the video - it inspired me to fit a drag knife to my cnc - and it all works great !
Hi Julien, awesome! Glad it helped. Fun project.
Clear transfer tape works the best, because you can see your design through the tape. Regular masking tape works as well, so long as you are using dark colored vinyl.
Your video was interesting enough to go and order the little drag knife, looking forward to setting it up on m y CNC
Excellent. It's a fun little tool to play with. Best of luck.
@@drez20001 Hi mate,
I got my drag knife and playing with it. I expected the blade to stick out from the bottom before pressing on the top to actually take out the blade.The blade adjustment just dosent seam to let it out the bottom. Did you find this ???
@@terrybrockhoff8168 Hmmm. Mine adjusts as needed and works very well. Not sure what to suggest other than reaching out to the seller.
Great & smart job man.
Many thanks! Fun stuff.