Carving a spherical Earth with epoxy oceans - 4-sided 3D rotary CNC routing with the Shapeoko

By Dennis Van Hoof, from Top o' Arts (topoarts.com).
This video shows the process of 4-sided CNC routing a spherical 3D Earth with a diameter of 200 mm (8 inch), using my manual rotary setup for the Shapeoko XXL. The Earth was carved from a solid piece of tree trunk with a diameter of 250 to 300 mm (10 to 12 inch), and the oceans were filled with a layer of 5 mm (1/5 inch) epoxy resin.
Check out the KZbin video where I introduce manual rotary CNC routing with the Shapeoko XXL by carving a koi fish ( • 3-sided rotary CNC rou... )
Software used:
Meshmixer to create the 3D Earth STL files
Vectric VCarve to generate the tool paths
UGS Platform to send the Gcode to the CNC
Materials used:
Tree trunk of 250-300 mm (10-12 inch) in diameter and 375 mm (15 inch) in length
1/4" steel octagonal rotary plates
Epoxy resin and different blue dyes from the Epoxy Resin Store
3 inch roughing bit: Amana Tool end mill #45210-3
3 inch finishing bit: Amana Tool ball nose #46286
Music: Alex Dee Gladenko - Beach Party

[@shanejensen3497]

I love how you combine epoxy and wood in your creations. Great work!

[@lily.3560]

Honestly enjoying these videos.

[@diogenes848]

This rotatory indexing gig should be more common. It completely transforms what is possible on a 3 axis system. Well done.

[@VAdu56]

MA-GNI-FI-QUE.....!!! Super Bravo !!!

[@satxsatxsatx]

Amazing. Wonderful The CNC machine was a minor character in this play. The conception, engineering, innovation, and finished artwork were the stars.

[@Shorrey]

And this one is some another level! Why did google showed me this chanel only now!?

[@terryvanbrug]

Very cool, I was wondering how far we could get milling 4 sides using VCarve, this was the answer I needed 👍

[@harshabugatti]

Great job.. Mind blowing...

[@protozoa3878]

You are the man!! A very Smart man.

[@WimVelden]

Hij is weer goed 👍👍👍

[@adrianbeltran6391]

Every time I watch your videos, I realize how beautiful and vast the possibilities are. Appreciate how you go in depth to help us learn too 👍

[@manuelrosquete6818]

This is a great way to make a Death Star

[@GGGG_3333]

It's like a treat every time this guy uploads 👍

[@GGGG_3333]

Idea for the next video: 5 axes 4 dimensional tesseract 😬

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Zero calories, so indulge! ;)

[@johnscasting4367]

Great job fantastic videos

[@coulterjb22]

Really nice!

[@1949lwd]

Wow! What an ingenious project. Before watching the video, I could not imagine how you did this. After watching it, I am very impressed.

[@paulrcreech7731]

Smart man great job

[@lesbodwell8739]

Absolutely love your creativity!

[@marc6003]

Really awesome stuff you're doing mate, congrats

[@shaundowns493]

I think this is the best use of a shapeoko that I have ever seen, what a amazing way to use this machine

[@cyanidebass6519]

awesome set up and results !

[@stevenmarsden9]

I've never commented on KZbin before. Honestly your work is great. 👍 you have me thinking about my own machine now haha.

[@greener121]

Dennis, this has to be one of the coolest cnc router projects that I've seen. Great Job, love it!!!!

[@iandlv6835]

Dennis, you’re an artist, an engineer and an artisan. Your projects are inspiring and frustrating at the same time. Inspiring in showing us what’s possible, frustrating in that most of us would acknowledge we could never be that good. Please continue to put up these amazing projects, they are a joy to watch.

[@toolsarecool]

Mind: blown! Fantastic process, breathtaking results. Grandiose!! 🙌🙌🙌👏👏👏

[@desertmulehunter]

Colors are wild, nice work!

[@BrianHeplerSasquatch]

Beautiful work, Dennis. You should be proud.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thanks for your kind words, Brian!

[@richardvamosi1500]

This earth with levitating magnetic equipment will be more epic! :) Thanks a lot. :)

[@TheMendo2]

Bravissimo complimenti

[@jacksonmagriplis6617]

Cannot wait for the next video, well done mate👍🏻

[@traviszadikem6645]

You should do a lot more of these. I'm looking at purchasing the shapeoko xxl and could definitely learn from you

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

I have a DIY project almost ready. Stay tuned...

[@redycardenas9117]

This guy is amazing!. You really have the tricks of how using a cnc. Good job and keep us inspiring with new projects like this.

[@DCDLaserCNC]

That is awesome! I always enjoy your thinking outside of the box methods. Great job!

[@JamsterJules]

That is awesome. I never though of manually rotating a piece. Well done fella.

[@paulkaveney1913]

Beautifully done! I just love how the epoxy resin resembles ocean currents. It's mesmerizing. You did an amazing job, Dennis!

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Yeah, I was happily surprised too! :) You never know how the epoxy turns out to be until the very end.

[@Dev_Everything]

That sure is a cute ear ring you got on there

[@cardman2207]

You are an incredibly thoughtful and creative user of your cnc. I just finished building one and am just learning how to use it, but hope to be making things like this someday soon!

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Be confident and don't be afraid to make mistakes, but learn from them. :)

[@dineo1664]

Holy ..... ! I watched a lot cnc videos. This one makes me freak out. Extremely good work! WOW!!! Im Amazed. I never saw something genius like this !

[@michaelosullivan8288]

This looks so amazing how earth turn out excatly same big ball of map and its nice see everyone doing their amazing woodwork design in future and wish you are best wood work projects and thanks for sharing a video of how it works and turned out pretty amazing with 100 percent of clear to see whole map nicely neat patterns

[@pgsibilo]

You're a god-send buddy, thanks alot 👍👍👍

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

DIY project coming up soon. Stay tuned...!

[@bloemundude]

The oceans have the pleasing element and palette of van Gogh's "Starry Night". Beautiful work and VERY clever techniques.

[@brianconley1732]

This is the most incredible video I’ve seen

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for your kind words, Brian! I'm working on the female torso that you mentioned earlier, and make it into a 4-sided version out of tree trunks and epoxy. Stay tuned...!

[@DistantVision85]

Was going to use a similar method to carve 3d pipes out of square stock. Nice to see the results of such an application.

[@patchmack4469]

so glad i found your channel - your cnc work is epic - and loving the violin mix of wood and epoxy resin, i been watching some make cool violins on another channel and suggested this very thing, thought it might be quite a challenge but your already doing it, very cool - liking the earth you made, stand works well, mmm and you made a torso - so your next challenge then - up the anti with a cnc cut Atlas to hold your Earth????? hehe

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Hahaha, I love your idea! :)

[@HappyTailsSupport]

You are not a woodworker...you are a Woodgineertist! I saw your koi vid where you made the rotary table. Amazing. You set the CNC bar just high enough for the rest of us to bump our heads, lol.

[@HappyTailsSupport]

That's Wood Engineer Artist for any that can't figure it out.

[@fournierluc2205]

Very nice, once again you really demonstrate how to think outside the box. Keep up the good work.

[@hanaanrosenthal]

BRiLLIANT!

[@maxor1986]

This channel gets better and better. I've watched a lot of CNC related stuff in the last weeks because I want to get a CNC machine as well. You sir have the most impressive stuff I've seen so far! Amazing technique!

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for the encouraging comments! That keeps me motivated to keep posting more.

[@navid9852]

Great work! Love the water texture!

[@cauaandrade793]

Vc é muito bom mesmo! Parabéns Estou começando no mundo cnc, posso dizer que vc é o melhor que já vi até o momento

[@dennisnewsky7890]

Hello! It looks amazing! Thanks for the great video and detailed explanation of the process. =)

[@MrBobbyd45]

Another great project. At the rate the oceans are filling with plastic we may really have epoxy oceans in a few hundred years..LOL

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Sadly, you are very right. I might also have to change the oceans on my globe due to the rising water level.

[@youngster30uk]

Yep, thats real cool. Nice work. I am just getting into CNC as a hobby, dont think I will be pulling off anything like this for a very long time, but its really inspirational though

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

You'll get there.

[@DownhillAllTheWay]

You were told the earth is *NOT FLAT?!* - You're talking to the wrong people! 🗺

[@lrdijkema]

Vet mooi gedaan Dennis.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

;)

[@marcosrivera9598]

Your skills are amazing. I am honestly jealous. Wow man!! I would like to do that to my shapeoko!!! It's been so long since I've used it. I got a 4x8 machine with 4 axis and my shapeoko has been collecting dust. It might be time to modify the set up and get more out of it. You're amazing dude.

[@fatwallet13]

Brilliant, well done.

[@rickvanhooren548]

That’s a beautiful globe you made. Very impressed with your set-up. Cheers from Ontario. +1 sub.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Bedankt! :)

[@iforce2d]

I just watched a bunch of your videos. You do so many projects involving rotation, I'm surprised you don't just install a 4th axis.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you! Unfortunately, the Shapeoko circuit board is not compatible with a 4th axis, so I had to be a bit creative making a manual version. Also, the software to design and CNC that kind of stuff would be far above my hobby budget.

[@dzee9481]

Very Well Done Video. I love the fact you used a Shapeoko CNC to make these awesome 3D items. I like to see what processes you go through to making this work on your CNC. Machine that have a similar foot print could make nicely descent 3D objects. What software you use and what steps you go through to making it work the way you expect it to come out. If that is your secret well, I understand if you want to keeping it your self.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for your kind words! I try to show as much of the relevant information in my videos as is possible, without boring the watcher with too much details. Each of my videos highlights another aspect of 3D projects with the CNC. If you watch all of them, you get a pretty good idea of the entire process, and answers to your questions. Note that I'm not an expert with Meshmixer to design the 3D objects. I use the very basic principles, and there are many excellent videos on KZbin that explain these features much better than I can.

[@Makerperpassione]

This is fantastik! Thank for video by Marco from Italy!!!

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Stay safe over there! Our thoughts are with the people of your country.

[@Makerperpassione]

you are really kind! thanks for the solidarity best wishes to you and your loved ones!!!!!!!

[@AhmedxAG]

I love this guy

[@ARepublicIfYouCanKeepIt]

Dude, that's just plain genius...and beautiful!

[@helioshaul3924]

Fantastic a feast for the eyes.

[@KeithOlson]

I am in *awe*, but... the bubbles. THE BUBBLES!!! :sob:

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Yeah, water has bubbles.

[@philipbyrnes7501]

What a very clever job you’ve done. This is a wonderful inspiration for me, thank you for sharing it with us. Wonderfully beautiful work and seriously smart adaptation of your machine to do the 4th axis work, really clever, thank you

[@blueroseyt]

Dennis, truly an assume job, i don't have have a 4th axis on my machine, but I do have the height , never thought of a manual 4th axis, i am totally gonna use your idea, I'll send the vid when it happens, thank you so much for sharing.

[@patspm]

Awsome ! thanks for this beautifull video , and for sharing !

[@rickmccaskill7888]

Love this project. This is the coolest project I have ever seen. Thanks

[@gerardmourits8709]

Awesome piece Groetjes van zuid Holland

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Bedankt!

[@chuckmoney1688]

Very nice work, gives me something to aim for.

[@brianconley1732]

You’re an epoxy wizard dude!!!!!!

[@pickinnick100]

Ideas: Use the Shapeoko to mill precise adapter plates that have locating holes of a smaller ID than your indexing bolts. Taper the ends of the indexing bolts so that they accurately index the adapter plates at each 90* rotation. Cool project!

[@neobaggins3718]

These hobby grade machines aren't up to the task of machining steel. Maybe if he made it out of aluminum, but even that's a stretch. The spindle is an off the shelf router.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Yeah, that's why I only marked the "punch" holes with the CNC and then used the drill press to drill the holes in the steel plates. Much faster that way.

[@budmckinney6824]

Two weeks and 90 hours later he has a replica of earth. The lord created Heaven and the earth in less than half the time. Just kidding it looks amazing. Blessings, respect, and love to all

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Ah yes, and I believe he just snapped his fingers. I tried that first, but nothing happened. ;) Thank you for your kind words!

[@tonyuntalan2566]

Thank you so much

[@stephenslade2317]

Amazing work Dennis, but I’m wondering why you don’t fit a 4th axis? It would have been an easier job, but your method of making it is very impressive, keep up the great work 👍

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Unfortunately, the Shapeoko doesn't support a 4th axis, so I came up with this alternative. :)

[@martinburdge350]

Another fantastic piece unbelievable quality and detail in all your projects, Never get tired of watching your work and just wondering do you have a web sight to purchase any of your work please.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for the praise and kind words! I don't sell much of my artwork, as most people would be unwilling to pay the price for the time and effort as well as the blood, sweat and tears I pour into each unique project. I currently have only some of the violins made out of olive wood (kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5qzY5Whe7qdb5Y) for sale on Etsy. My website is topoarts.com

[@elafricano2995]

you are genious Dennis, a proof of humain mind at its best, well done mate

[@isaiahhiggins]

He didn't look too psyched when he was talking about redoing the finishing passes 😂😂😂

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Nah, just gives me more time to spend with my family, while the machine is doing the work. ;)

[@watchnlearn2731]

A spherical earth. Now that’s a novel idea

[@stephenwebb1978]

And another brilliant job!

[@bentebrunsvelt319]

Beautyfull work and good 👍👍❤🏆🏆

[@unknownpersonofnointerest2743]

My god that’s beautiful. Great video! Are you willing to share the files or let me know where I can learn how to do what you’re doing with these 3D carvings. Gorgeous work

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you! There are plenty of 3D earth files available to download for free from common websites, like Turbosquid, Sketchfab, Thingiverse, etc. You just pick the one that is exactly what you're looking for. I can't explain much better how to do this than what I sow in the video. It might be helpful to watch my other videos to learn more about the rotary setup and designing the 3D tool paths.

[@unknownpersonofnointerest2743]

@@dennisvanhoof9958 Thanks for the info about resources. Your video was well done and thorough. I’m just brand new to the concept. I’ll be looking into those sites and have since watched your koi fish and Mother Nature carving videos. Great job! Thanks once again and I subscribed as I look forward to your future videos/projects.

[@bobbonham4823]

LOVE IT! Wow! Thanks for the video.

[@Bigwingrider1800]

WELL DONE BROTHER, LOOKS GREAT..STAY SAFE

[@ExposedInfinity]

this guy is my CNC hero.

[@pauposts]

This is very cool... once again, fascinated by the custom octagonal plate you created.... Sidenote: Watching this inspired me to google "how much is sawdust worth?"

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

If you have a hamster, it's worth a fortune! ;)

[@RickSwartwood]

WOW!!! You've got skills!

[@Section59.]

Not sure if anyone else has mentioned this before, or if its relevant or needed but ill chime in anyway. Your locking mechanism for the rotation, have you considered adding springs and a lever so you can pull them out and release again to re-engage, rather than threading nuts and bolts constantly? Basically, a spring loaded bolt. Other than that, amazing work. :))

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thanks for the suggestions. You're the first with this idea! :) I doubt that there is a spring strong enough to withstand the forces of the router, yet light enough to be operated by hand, though. I'm also not sure if it will really make a difference in time; the minute it takes me to tighten the nuts is nothing compared to the many hours of carving it takes to machine something like this. But it's a great thought! I just finished a project with an even easier method to make a 4-sided Corinthian (Greek) column, using a simple "lock & key" technique that anyone can use (no need for a complicated setup; just a few scrap pieces of MDF are all you need). It'll take me some time to compile the video, so stay tuned...!

[@oguntheprojectking6561]

Hey Dennis. I’m in America and I LOVE your channel brother thank you for posting your artwork. I was wondering if you have any plans available for purchase of the gig you created ? Plans and/or precut materials. I’d love to make a 4 sided Shapeoko of my own as I have the same model from February of Th is year. Thanks again.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for your kind words! I don't have any plans for the rotary setup, as it is pretty straightforward to make. It is best explained in the video where I carve a koi fish from plywood for proof of concept (kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y6PIhJitatpohcU). I'm confident that you can make your own rotary setup after carefully watching that video. At this point, I'm not selling anything that I made with the Shapeoko, but I have a few cool DIY projects available for free! A butterfly as a beginners project (kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5uXi4pmqKmiqqM), and a sea shell box for more advanced users (kzbin.info/www/bejne/eIm6mpuqd9FsrpI). Hope this helps!

[@MakeTinkerShare]

Holy Crap!!! That's amazing! Great job!

[@mjdthemaker7574]

That is very smart. I like it a great deal.

[@georgefrench1907]

Bravo!

[@8thsinner]

That is really very stunning. The additional design and construction of a rotary mechanism is simple and genius. I was looking up to see if anyone had made a 4th axis mod of this cnc and never found any. Question though, why did you choose to orient the rotary system in that direction?

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thank you for your kind and encouraging words! The Shapeoko circuit board does not support an automated 4th axis, so you have to be a bit creative. Also, I found the maximum distance between the X-gantry rail and the CNC bed too limited for the thick 3D projects I had in mind, so creating that gap in the CNC bed allows me to start with stock that is twice as thick (and then the length of available router bits becomes the limiting factor). Two birds with one stone. :) The reason why I chose the orientation of the axis like that has to do with the metal support panels of the Shapeoko CNC bed; these run parallel to the Y gantry rails. There are 3 of them: 1 on each side and 1 in the middle. Completely removing those was not a straightforward option, as they help not only to support the CNC bed, but also to make the setup as square as possible. I still decided to make the hole in the CNC bed as large as possible by moving the center support panel slightly to the right, and securing the panel with its left side screw holes to the right side screw holes of the CNC frame, which determined the limits of the right side of the hole. The back end of the hole is limited by how far the router can move back until the gantry hits the Y-limit switch. The left side of the hole is limited by how far the router can move until the gantry hits the left Y-rail, and the front is limited by the space I need to insert and secure the bolts that hold the stock in place. I try to explain this at a very high level in one of my other videos, where I introduce the manual rotary setup: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y6PIhJitatpohcU Hope this clarifies!

[@8thsinner]

@@dennisvanhoof9958 Well, sort of. Thank you for the detailed response. I am only beginning my journey into the cnc world, I have wanted one for ages for completely different areas of interest and for a long time thought any cnc machine quite beyond my reach. I don't know why but recently I have been walking the path towards getting one in my head first and trying to understand how things get done. The language and codex of terms is still a little confusing but it is starting to make sense. And from the machines available and project documentation like yours it helps me make sense of those limitations. I am still quite lost in terms of understanding cutting tool path types. How you initially concieved of a 3d model in a tri planar design, cut on a 3d axis system was really quite confusing too, that koi process though just about makes sense now. Your minds eye is impressive. Now that you have both a triplanar rotation and quadplanar rotation option though, what are your pros and cons to each? I would assume the tri is more suited to longer thinner models, where as the quad suited to more bulky squared items. Which would make it possible to do your earth sphere in tri cut pattern but only on a much smaller scale because you would tip would be so far away from the z axis which wouldn't allow for much detail there. Unless you were making just plain spheres or something and took slower more detailed cutting paths maybe. I dunno. Would there be any project types that require using all 8 angles of rotation you now have access to? If you can already make a sphere with 4, how much advantage would the 8 give? hope you don't mind my probably silly questions, your patience and willingness to share is appreciated.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

​@@8thsinner Well, if you're new to CNC, I strongly recommend starting with a few cutting boards and nameplates to familiarize yourself with the basics of handling stock material and designing tool paths. I can imagine that all the 3D stuff is a bit hocus pocus when you have not seen the different cuts made with an upcut or downcut bit. But to answer your question about advantages/disadvantages of fewer/more sides when making 3D rotary cuts: fewer sides means shallower angles and cut depths at the outskirts of your project. 4 sides is the most intuitive, but 3 sides allows you to make use of the geometry of a triangle for larger objects. 8 cuts is getting close to a cylinder, and requires more individual carves (more hands-on time), with potentially more carving scars between the individual cuts, and a more complex tool path design. In general, I look at the overall shape of the object I want to carve, and determine the minimum number of sides I need to get the job done. It's a balance of how much manual work you are willing to do to get to the areas that the router bit could not reach due to the angular limitations, and making sure that the router does not bump into the material when digging deep into the stock or getting close to steep angles.

[@8thsinner]

@@dennisvanhoof9958 I would definitely not be jumping into big projects without getting used to things first. But at the same time in my researching it now I am looking for the project potentials because I have a lot of product designs in my head already. Everything from prototyping inventions to stuff around the house. But I also want to be able to see the options and upgrades that are likely and possible with each of the different machines. From what I have gathered so far I am looking the pro xxl model for the extra rigidity, work space potentials, ultimately less confusing set up with what I would consider essentials like the bit setter, power button etc. Although I have noting in my head yet regarding your use of the slotted table for rotary working, I want to be able to utilise that if I can so knowing this is possible in advance I can plan my table mounting around this configuration and go about making this up now, or at least designing my table around this idea now. The extra table size of the larger machines will make the use of scraps more accessible in repeatability in a design once cut ten fashion that will hopefully enable the sales to actually pay for the damn machine. They say it's usually pretty easy to make your money back in a short time with simple projects but I don't know, I guess time will tell on that one.

[@kipsimpson2332]

Really inspiring.

[@saintely475]

You can also speed up the process by redesigning your bolt stops that way you don’t have to unscrew/rescrew every time you turn the globe 90*. Stack your bolt stop like so, bolt head, washer, spring, square tube with a nut securing the bolt in place on the cutting side of the square tube. That should allow you to just pull back on the bolt stop instead of having to unscrew then every time.

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Good point. But compared to the many hours of carving time per side, the single minute it takes me to turn the stock is kind of negligible.

[@JimmyGOliver]

Incredible!!!!

[@jlg23us]

Great work, ever think of adding a 4th axis to that machine?..

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

Thanks! Yeah, I investigated this option. But my understanding is that this version of the Shapeoko is unable to accommodate a (CNC-driven) 4th axis. I'd have to sacrifice one of the other axes, or install a completely different circuit board (which goes beyond my practical engineering capabilities). Also, I'd have to purchase and learn CAM software that supports a 4th axis.

[@jlg23us]

@@dennisvanhoof9958 i think the controller would be a breeze for you, and you seem to have a great amount of machining know how with all of the fixturing you've developed. Think youd surprise urself.. There are some simple controllers that would integrate simply... do you know the current draw of the steppers in the shapeoko?

[@dennisvanhoof9958]

@@jlg23us Thanks for your faith in me! I haven't really looked into all the technical specifications. I'm still hoping that Carbide 3D will market a kit one day. :)

[@FKreider]

Beautiful!

[@danielloewengrube]

Sooooo wonderful.👍👍😎