Overlapping Vectors for Multi Color Epoxy Inlays

[@butchmiller1498]

Oh my goodness. You so thoroughly and patiently explain and demonstrate what would think is straight forward, yet is not. By explaining the problem, with illustrations, it all makes sense. thanks

[@michaeldawes2152]

Brain. Fried! Great video Mark, learning so much from your videos, many thanks.

[@enricoschuler1013]

Thanks Mark your Videos are just great because you learn so much... Greetings from Germany

[@andreww6738]

As always, great video, and now I totally get why overlapping is required. Have a great week.

[@rocktoone]

Outstanding! Cant wait for the next one about order

[@williamstauffer1542]

Whew!!! I definitely got a lot out of this video. Excellent explanations of the process.

[@RobSandstromDesigns]

Well done Mark. I liked your use of color on the drawing to illustrate the overlapping vectors concept. It's going to be so nice when we get to the point of this pirate actually getting poured

[@richardpoulin2947]

Thank you Mark very impressive explanations. As I have said to you before you are the best teacher 👍

[@brooksmartin5183]

Great explaination Mark, thank you!!

[@garynanos3385]

Excellent! As always!

[@tbunton2928]

Great video Mark, tk you.

[@tonywilliams1720]

Thanks for the video and I already have some projects I want to do. However I think I'll wait until all the videos are completed to get the whole picture.

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Don't wait for me! By all means carry on! You can always get hold of Shane and Rob through their KZbin channels or Instagram bios. They're both happy to answer any question I haven't covered in my videos.

[@jonm189]

Superb video Mark, makes total sense. Why do you use a v-bit for carving and not a straight one - that way you wouldn't have the little snippet of wood at all and could theoretically sand to the full depth of the epoxy without worrying about it poking through. Cheers!

[@jonm189]

Just watching your Q&A and see you already answered this. Keep up the great work Mark!

[@mperry9025]

Thanks

[@thomashowiekitchens]

Hey Mark, great Video! How do you select the area that will be black? The outline etc. Thanks

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Thank you, Thomas. That will be in the next video in this series, so hold on tight!

[@anthonym2504]

Great video man! How much do you typically charge for your work. I'm always trying to figure out the fine line between fair and putting food on the table. Perhaps content for another video?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

I have to tell you, Anthony, I'm the wrong person to ask about project pricing, as I don't normally sell my work. With a wife, 5 kids, and 7 grandkids, they keep me pretty busy, so there isn't a lot of time to make projects to sell. I will take the odd commission here and there, and price is discussed with the potential client based on their budget, time constraints (if any) and their expectations. Time spent on design work has to be factored into the equation as well. Again, I'm the wrong person to ask about this subject. I would suggest getting into the many CNC groups on Facebook, or join your CNC router's support forum or support community and asking over there. There are literally thousands of people making and selling projects, and just about every single one of them has a lot more experience with this than I do.

[@bobfraile4252]

Excellent video Mark, as always!! One aspect that I am still struggling with is the amount of overlap needed to preclude the bare wood scenario you addressed. It has to be a function of the V bit you are cutting with and depth. Your graphic looks like a 30-degree V bit, so if you choose a 0.125 inch cutting depth, then an offset of 0.0604 gets what you pictured. Therefore, your 0.0625 is a good choice; but a 60-degree bit would require double that, or 0.1208 inch. Assuming my trig calculations are correct.

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Excellent point, Bob, and one I'll be getting into further during the Live Q&A. The short answer is that when your situation with a 60° v-bit arises, that's exactly when and why you would switch over to the 30° v-bit.

[@bobfraile4252]

@@MarkLindsayCNC Thanks Mark. I viewed Rob's video right after this one but after my comment. Your response and Rob's video clears it all up for me. Thank you.

[@garynanos3385]

Would you consider doing an episode on Mach 3?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

That's pretty open-ended. Is there anything in particular you'd like to see? Do knw that I don't use Mach3 to anywhere near its full potential. To me, it's just there to run the G-code I create in Aspire, so there's a lot I don't know about it. Also, I'll be making the switch to Mach4 in a few months, so Mach3 will no longer be my controller of choice. If you haven't already purchased a Mach3 license, I would encourage you to look into Mach4 instead. It's getting more and more difficult to keep older tech like Mach3 in use as newer hardware and software becomes more commonplace, and the older stuff becomes more and more obsolete. I've resisted upgrading for as long as I could, but even I'm seeing the handwriting on the wall. So, I'm getting ready to make that leap. I would at least check out Mach4 with an eye toward the future.

[@epeleg]

Great video Mark. How would you document the fact that you have to cut and pour the peach and brown layers before doing the black one? More specifically - how would you do this (i.e. document the carving order) with an image that does not have this convenient black line around almost every other colored area?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Excellent question, Eyal! If you caught last week's Live Q&A with Shane and Rob, that was the first question that was (more or less) asked. If you've seen any of Shane's short videos, you may have noticed strips of wide masking tape close to the edge of the board, with a bunch of notes written on it. (As evidenced in this 45 second video here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aIu5gHdoepuWeqs ) Those notes are basically a checklist of the cuts and pours needed for the project. He writes the notes on that tape so it is affixed to the project and won't get lost until he surfaces the board. Copious notes are also taken during the design process, detailing the colors, cuts, order of operations, etc... Those notes can be stored on a separate database file, spread sheet, word processor file, or even the Notes form in the Vectric software. I'll get into that further in the next video, when we get into the order of operations, toolpathing, and tools needed to carve the project.

[@thefilthelement]

It doesn't always apply, but in instances like this with such clearly defined black lines I vcarve out the global picture and fill with black then carve out of that the interior colors. It avoids hitting bare wood and helps the other colors be a little darker and more solid if not quite enough pigment is used

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Thank you! That's basically what I intend to do with this carving. I'll be getting back on this one very soon, so stay tuned!

[@thefilthelement]

@@MarkLindsayCNC and as always, thank you for the great informative videos and taking the time to answer questions and help others

[@sylvainforget2174]

I have not really explored this idea much but here goes: why not have a set of vectors for each colour and start the vcarve at say 0.06" except for black and make sure black is vcarved last when the other colours are hard. That way, each colour (except for black) will cover a little more than the final area and black being the very last colour will create the outline. It seems to me that would work and be quick. I cannot wait to try it out. As in the video, the wood outline would never show even after surfacing and sanding.

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Very interesting concept. I kind of like it. It might be worth exploring if you have the time and materials/supplies to do it. If you do, please let me know how it works for you!

[@joem2209]

I think I remember in one of the sessions with Shane and Rob, it was said that you could pour the entire outline in one color then cut the other colors. That way you don’t have to overlap since you won’t expose the wood on final surfacing. I know that wastes epoxy. Is this correct?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Thank you, Joe. The short answer is, not exactly. You'll still have to overlap where those colors meet to prevent a ridge of the first color from showing through after surfacing and sanding. In the pictures I used to illustrate the overlap, imagine a base color of yellow epoxy instead of the wood color. I'll illustrate what I mean in the next video, when we get into toolpathing and cut depths. That process isn't always done (it depends on the project,) and it's true that it may waste a small amount of epoxy, but that's unavoidable when you pour a base color first, then carve to pour other colors into it.

[@scottsargent2885]

That is what I was thinking, but instead of using a v bit, I pocket

[@ElCidPhysics90]

Why not just cut out an outline of the shape and clear out the center? You could fill in with a base color or clear resin?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Move on to the next part of the series. That's pretty much what I did.

[@scottsargent2885]

Why not just pocket with end bills instead of using bit?

[@MarkLindsayCNC]

Two words - square corners. You won't get square corners or sharp points with an end mill. That's the advantage of using a v-bit and the V-Carve toolpath.