Sun Symbol Of Palenque

Machine Type:

OpenBuilds LEAD Machine

Software:

CMS IntelliCAD, Cambam, etc.

Electronics:

OpenBuilds BlackBox

My hobby is re-creating Aztec and Mayan Glyphs. I redraw each design in CAD, then output for engraving. The OpenBuilds will be my second cnc router I have built. My first was the ShapeOko, which I scaled up to 1 meter x 1 meter. This was not meeting my needs and luckily OpenBuilds offered the lead screw driven machine. Now in process to complete the LEAD1515 build.

1st Step - recreating this Mayan Glyph in CAD, then will scale to fit the 6' x 9' section between my garage doors. 2nd Step - editing the design, joining polylines to create a single tool path where applicable. 3rd Step - selecting a material - will need to decide on scaling design to fit within the engraving envelope of the 1515 machine or break up design into sections to re-assemble after engraving.

01-27-2022 - Finished the re-creating of this design in CAD, spent about 4 months and mucho time in coffee shops to complete this task - now will begin the 2nd step of joining polylines to create the tool paths in CamBam. The OpenBuilds 1515 is 50% complete - waiting for warm days or the arrival of wood stove to heat garage to complete this part of the process. I have attached an image of what I am imagining for the final result. Will update once I ready to select material.

03-04-2022 - Completed the build on the 1515 and now confirming my CAD/CAM process integrates with OpenBuilds Control - some minor tweaking of the default post processor - all working good. Now working to reduce the number of individual entities in the design - began with approx. 5,000 - now at about 2,500 after joining as many polylines as possible - hope to reduce the number to below 1,500. My choice of material will be engleman spruce, this material is readily available directly from the lumber mill at various widths and thicknesses with reasonable prices. Attached the test of the Mayan Glyph for the star, Venus.

06-04-2022 - Running a little behind schedule - I am installing the electrical in my garage/shop. Plan to have a separate circuit for the router/spindle and another circuit for the BlackBox. I have attached some example of past projects using my old ShapeOko - just to provide an idea of what I plan to create - only on a larger scale with this new machine. I plan to use a v-bit with a 22 degree included angle - where various depths of cut will yield various line widths. I have the lumber and hope to start assembling this large panel soon. I also plan to have breadboard ends on this large panel to help maintain stability.

09-21-2022 - Just an update - finally finished the large panel. The Spruce from the lumber mill did not work out as anticipated - to many knots and most of the 11 inch wide planks split in the middle after allowing material to stabilize in my garage after milling to size, therefore, I secured some Douglas Fir and had better results after milling to size and gluing together the 48" x 84" panel. Now the task is to trim panel to size - some minor sanding to approximate a level surface - confirm location of registration pins and location of hold down locations. I will engrave some test pieces to confirm my depth of cut settings in relation to cut width.

10-01-2022 - Experimenting with two different v-bits, 22 and 45 degree included angles. Different depth of cuts yields different widths along the cutting path. Completed a test cut of some glyphs with different depths of cut for testing.

10-15-2022 - "fortis fortuna adiuvat" - began engraving the panel - already have 194 machining operations into this project with many more to go. Using a 30 degree v-bit at this time - I will switch to an 1/8" end mill for some of the pocketing operations. Since this panel is not super flat - I periodically adjust the Z axis 0. I am using the home position to register my X and Y zero position. I also have a witness mark at 1,1 to confirm that my home zero position remains accurate. Plan to finish before winter hits my little mountain valley.

10-21-2022 - Completed the engraving portion of this project. 652 machining operation. What remains are all the pocket operations where I plan to place stones found on my property. May rough polish them before placing in pockets. Then I need to determine what is the best way to seal this panel before attaching to the outside wall between my garage doors.

11-01-2022 - Completed all the pocket machining operations and other parts that I missed with the initial machining operations. Decided to seal this panel with a water base spar urethane. Happy with the performance of this LEAD1515. Spent approximately 6 hours per day of continuous operation. The only weak link in this setup - the ER11 router. I will replace with a proper spindle before my next large project. Waiting for an extra pair of hands to arrive to help me attach to my wall. I will follow up with surrounding this large panel with smaller glyphs to cover the empty spaces remaining. Also, I have the remaining task of hiking and searching my property to find stones to fill the pockets.