Profile cuts on 0.78” thirteen layer ply resulted in zero tear-out on top OR bottom. Gotta love it!
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Did you do that in one pass? If not, what was your depth of cut?
I went with the Vcarve default for a two-flute 0.25” cutter which I think was 0.21” Depth of Cut. That translated to four passes and at a feed rate of 120 inches/minute it was a quick job. The sheet was only 17” by 27”. The machine was my Shapeoko XL Pro with only the Makita trim router equivalent spindle.
FYI, they’re parts for a vacuum clamping gimbal system.
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BTW, that first pass depth of cut is KEY for a compression bit.
You need it deep enough to engage the DOWN cut.
If it’s not deep enough then it does an UP cut.
Too shallow a first pass and the magic is gone. 
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Ahh yeah, that’s what I was wondering about. I’d never used a compression but, but figured that your pass needed to be at least as deep as the upcut bit is tall. Good to know, thanks!
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Any final pass?
Depends upon where. This will be a vacuum clamp so tolerances are important wherever a vacuum needs to be held. Yes, tight tolerances and hence finishing passes were used for:
- inlet hole for the vacuum tubing
- tracks for rubber gaskets
- holes for metal tubing
The rest of the profile cuts were done without a final pass.
If you’re curious, what I cut was designed based on the system below.
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Interesting. Thanks!
