A little help please Doing an engraving path on premium birch plywood. These numbers are approx 15-20mm tall. Using a 30 degree sharp point bit. First pass is 0.4mm deep and 2nd is 0.6mm deep. Running 40IPM and RPM around number 3 on the Makita. Anything else I can do to eradicate this chipping or is this the best I can get, especially as its plywood?
Most likely yes. You can try masking the area with masking tape before the engraving. And of course, make sure the bit is really sharp. Even a little dull bit will chip the material.
I do a fair amount of engraving type work and the number one cause of ragged cuts is the quality of the material. But the number 1.1 cause is dull bits. If you have good quality Baltic Birch, you will see a little fuzz on the cuts. If you are getting chipout with good BB then your bit is at fault. And when you said 30 degree, my mind leapt to those terrible bits you can get on Amazon - 10 for $15 or so. No carbide in sight on those things. If that's what you have, toss 'em and get a decent quality bit .
