Cutting board...

[David Harvey]

I recently did this cutting board with VectorClip3D artwork of the rabbit model. I used a commercial cutting board and machined this into the back side of the board (15" x 12"). Cut3D by Vectric was used to generate the toolpaths.

After machining, I moved it to my Laser Engraver and engraved the design into the wood around the rabbit carving. I used a .0625 Dia. Tapered bit with a step-over of .0063...took about 3 hrs to carve in the 'Bot', but I had 'no' finishing work after it was done.

As final touch, I coated it with Canola Oil to bring the luster in the wood back up. The carving was .436" deep and shows good depth and detail.

The flip side of the board is your conventional cutting board. When not in use it can be flipped over and displayed in the kitchen.

[Anthony Welch]

As a contributing "lurker", that is a beautiful work of complimenting tools. Having those two tools and the software, only the imigination limits what products like this can be done.

I'm wondering that Vetric does 2D also, why couldn't the border be done by the shopbot also? After rereading your post, I assume that is was quicker to do the 2D w/the laser.

Out of your listed repitwar(sp) of tools I only have a mini lathe. Like I said, "a contributing lurker".

Nice job.

[Keith Outten]

David,

Very nice work and it shows real versitility. I really enjoy projects that I can use both the engraver and a CNC router, it makes unique and interesting products.

Keep em coming

.

[David Harvey]

Thank you all.
Yes, I could have easily carved the design into the board on the CNC, but I wanted a combination of roughness (router carving) mixed with delicate detail (Laser) on the same piece. I thought it might provide some contrast and a little 'eye-candy' when viewed.
This was only some play-time for me. I really enjoy doing dimensional carvings/signage for fun and/or profit.... been mostly fun though.

Hopefully I'll get to post some more dimensional projects soon.

[Larry Bratton]

David:
Now, for the burning question (no pun intended), if you were to sell this, how much would you have to charge for it to make a profit??? Could you sell it for enough to pay for the machine time etc etc. (Beautiful piece anyway)

[David Harvey]

Larry,
Thanks! I like burning, btw.

I did this for fun and didn't do it for the purpose of selling it. Don't get me wrong, if someone came along and wanted to buy it...good, consider it gone.

I learned early on, doing crafts isn't a money maker. You had better be retired, in no debt and have a 'burning' desire to just do something that you can be congratulated for with a nice pat on the back and a dollar or two compensation so you can afford to buy some oil for the ole rocker.

In general, you won't make a living do crafty things on a very expensive machine, in my experience.

I do this as a hobby and don't need to make a living at it, but it does pay for itself with the type of work I bring in...mostly from industry. I do these crafty projects to sharpen my skills on the equipment and because I enjoy doing them for my own satisfaction. I display them so they themselves 'state' loud and clear...this is something I 'can' do if you really want it...or this is my capability...what you would you like in this line?

I would prefer to handle pricing on a custom basis, per customer need. If I were looking for a cutting board like this, I probably would not pay more than... $45.00 for it. If I wanted it to be personalized for a special occasion, I might go $60+. If a customr came in and was looking for a special gift for his wife's birthday or something , I would probably do this for about $65.00 with a custom personalized message engraved at no additional charge.

If I wanted to make this item a continuing product line with an optional personalized message, I would setup and run a quantity of the boards on the CNC (less the message) and then pull from that for each order and do a quick laser engraving with their custom message and charge about $45.00 ea.
Trouble with this, though, is that I've now elected to commit sizeable amounts of labor and machine time to a single product line with hopes of selling the same thing over and over. Guess I had better be ready to do some mass marketing (more expense) or have a contract with Wal-Mart in hand first.

In short, this equipment we have gives us the capability to do 'many' things. The equipment is expensive and has running costs. Find what your area market is interested in and concentrate on providing what they are generally willing to buy. This will define a product line that you can do in reasonable quantity, that requires little setup time per and makes you money.

The occaasional walkin that wants... 'a cutting board or something'...you can handle, but because it's custom you can charge for it and make a profit at a reasonable price that won't drive them away, because you aren't relying on just 'this' to make a living. This special 'crafty' stuff is the gravy, not the bread.

Well, gotta go and setup a large print job for tomorrows run, Sorry for the long post.....

See ya

[Larry Bratton]

Your right!