Getting Started with VCarve Pro

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Patrick Clark
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Getting Started with VCarve Pro Before you even turn on the CNC to begin your first project you must first create instructions to tell the CNC machine what to do as it relates to your project.

1 Getting Started with VCarve Pro Before you even turn on the CNC to begin your first project you must first create instructions to tell the CNC machine what to do as it relates to your project. To create these instructions, you must generate something called G-Code (we will discuss this later). There are several different software tools that can be used to layout and design your project, and then create this G-Code. Some of these tools are free, and some can cost upwards of $1000 for each individual licensed user. As you can guess, this wide difference in price (zero $ to $1,000) results in a wide variance in terms of functionality. If you go out to the Internet, you will find evangelicals for each software package touting how it s the best to be used with the CNC machine. For most of the guild members who wish to use the CNC machine at the shop, there is no good reason to go out and spend their personal money and purchase their own software. Why? Because several years ago key guild members purchased CAD (Computer-Aided Design) CAM (Computer-Aided Machining) software that guild members can legally use for no cost to you. There are four different software products that they purchased, which will be used in the design and production of your CNC project. For the purposes of this initial document we are only going to discuss the first two software products They are: VCarve Pro Makerspace Both of these products are provided and supported by a company named Vectric. Vectric is a software company based out of the UK. They are highly regarded in the CNC community and because of that fact many CNC hardware manufacturers partner with them to provide software. Later in this guide we will install the VCarve Pro and Makerspace software. Makerspace is a complementary product used with VCarve Pro which allows guild members to download the VCarve Pro software at home, where they can create and refine their project. Then, when they are finished, they can save their project to a flash drive, and bring the flash drive down to the shop, so they can put finishing touches on the model (adding the G-Code). Then final VCarve Pro files can be saved back out to your flash drive, taken into the CNC room, and be loaded into the CNC machine for cutting operations. Now let s get down to the nitty-gritty the first thing we need to do is download your own copy of VCarve Pro on your home computer go to and you will see a screen with the top that looks like this;

There are trial downloads for several products, but right now we are only focusing one, VCarve.

2 Move the cursor over to downloads (it is shown in the red ellipse) and you will see Trial Software (as below). Click on it. You will see a screen, where the top half looks as below. There are trial downloads for several products, but right now we are only focusing one, VCarve. click on VCarve free trial (as shown in the ellipse above) You will now see a screen where the top half looks as below;

The file you are downloading and installing is between 150 and 450 megabytes, so it might take a few minutes.

3 Click on VCarve Pro Download (as seen in the above ellipse) Before you start your download, you will see a pop-up, like shown below, that allows you to sign up for the Vectric Newsletter. When you are ready, click on the Download button, as shown to the left, to start the download. The file you are downloading and installing is between 150 and 450 megabytes, so it might take a few minutes. Depending upon your browser, you might get some other minor prompts, but your download should complete normally. Congratulations! You have downloaded and installed the VCarve Pro software on your home computer. Now is a good time to tell your trial version, and the folks it back at Vectric, that you that you will be using your trial version in conjunction with a licensed copy of the VCarve Pro located in the Library of the shop. This section will provide information on entering the serial number into your home version of VCarve Pro that corresponds with the serial number already loaded on the machines in the shop library. First, double click on the VCarve Pro icon, located on your desktop, which was created when you installed VCarve Pro. In the upper left corner of the screen, you will see the screen below;

4 Click on Help, as seen in the ellipse above. In the upper left corner, you will see as per below; Click on About VCarve Pro as seen in the above ellipse. The screen will clear, and you will see the pop-up as shown below;

Click on the button, shown in the ellipse, as per above To make it clear the code you enter in must be EXACTLY as shown in the above ellipse and that is shown below in a larger (and more readable)

When you restart your trial version of VCarve Pro, it will identify itself as the Makerspace Client edition and files you create in your Makerspace Client edition can now be opened the Guild and the

5 Click on the button, shown in the ellipse, as per above To make it clear the code you enter in must be EXACTLY as shown in the above ellipse and that is shown below in a larger (and more readable) font When entered EXACTLY as shown above, click OK. That s it! When you restart your trial version of VCarve Pro, it will identify itself as the Makerspace Client edition and files you create in your Makerspace Client edition can now be opened the Guild and the toolpaths (G-Code) saved for the CNC machine. You can work with your files on your desktop, laptop etc. as long as you enter the same Makerspace ID into the trial version on each of your computers. You can also share files you create or edit with other members of the Guild. If you are sharing files, you must not share any patented or copyrighted files from a third party.

You re are now almost ready to start on your first project. So now you must answer the question? What do I want to make?

directly into VCarve Pro and start the design aspects your project (which we do not recommend).

The good thing about tutorials is twofold. First, you get acquainted with the software and learn functionality / workflow.

6 You re are now almost ready to start on your first project. So now you must answer the question? What do I want to make? Unless you already have a project in mind, we would suggest that you start simple Maybe a sign Perhaps a simple box Maybe a carved, detailed rendition of the Mona Lisa (probably not) You could jump directly into VCarve Pro and start the design aspects your project (which we do not recommend). Unless you are already familiar with VCarve Pro, we maintain that a better use of your time would be to first learn the functionality of VCarve Pro Below is a list of tutorials. The good thing about tutorials is twofold. First, you get acquainted with the software and learn functionality / workflow. Secondly, tutorials are an excellent idea incubator for coming up with new ideas, where you can use the tutorial project as a jumping off point, and then modify the project to your personal needs. Tutorials from Vectric The first set of tutorials, as seen below, are a subset of instructional tutorials that can be found on the Vectric web site. We show some of them below. If you are reading a paper copy, you can key in the web address into your browser, or find that item on the Vectric web site.

There are many other tutorials on the Vectric web site that can give you ideas and build your skills in using VCarve Pro.

Video 1- A 3 minute overview of making a sign with a CNC https://www.youtube.com/watch?

com/watch?v=cquux2xysww&index=2&list=plnb6ixm3mohu3yoco1eidz5ol10gpvyh9 Video 3- Basic shapes and text with VCarve Pro https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjcg5-xq3d4&index=3&list=plnb6ixm3mohu3yoco1eidz5ol10gpvyh9 Video 4 - Font Selection, Text Editing and Text on a Curve https://www.

7 There are many other tutorials on the Vectric web site that can give you ideas and build your skills in using VCarve Pro. Another source of information and inspiration is YouTube. Below is a set of basic tutorials that give you a good understanding of using VCarve Pro. Video 1- A 3 minute overview of making a sign with a CNC Video 2- Getting started making a sign with VCarve Pro- Basic Vectors Video 3- Basic shapes and text with VCarve Pro Video 4 - Font Selection, Text Editing and Text on a Curve Video 5 - Working with Graphics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqse2p_xvei&index=5&list=plnb6ixm3mohu3yoco1eidz5ol10gpvyh9 Video 6 - Using the Tool Path Function to Cut a Curve https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c6rmc3fthe&index=6&list=plnb6ixm3mohu3yoco1eidz5ol10gpvyh9 Video 7 - Cutting Flutes and Pockets https://www.

8 Video 6 - Using the Tool Path Function to Cut a Curve Video 7 - Cutting Flutes and Pockets Video 8 Pattern Cutting Video 9 Using More than One Cutting Tool Please go through some of these videos. Design a project that somewhat mimics what is being done in the video, but use your ideas and the new knowledge you are gaining to make that project your own. In the case of a sign put your own wording on it instead of using that in the tutorial. Go out to Vectric.com and look for other tutorials, or even go to another section of their web site that showcases new projects. The web site for the CNC machine also has part of their web site dedicated to providing users information for new ideas. Simply go to and Explore!!! What can be made with a CNC machine is almost unlimited and having the knowledge and skills to use this important tool add to your repertoire as a woodworker. Now let s fast forward and assume that you have thought things through, spent some time learning VCarve Pro by viewing a number of tutorials, and created your own project. Once you get through all the design steps

9 you must prepare your project for final machining. With the upgraded CNC, we are doing thigs a bit differently than before. The CNC room now contains the actual machine, and a PC that has the CNC instructs processing software (Mach3) located on it. You cannot use that PC to modify your project design as before. The expectation is that you will have a ready to cut project on a flash drive when you go into the CNC room. Then it is a matter of taking your wood, cutters, and flash drive into the CNC room and making magic happen. While you are learning VCarve Pro, it is a good idea to invest in some CNC cutters. The Guild does not provide cutters, so this is an investment that you will need to make. Ask any Guild member knowledgeable with CNC as to what they recommend that you purchase to get started. As a part of the VCarve Pro design process, there is a Preview Toolpath feature. The advantage of this feature is that it gives the user an accurate and realistic 3-D representation of what your workpiece will look like after it has gone through the CNC cutting stage. You can actually watch the virtual bit spin around and move through your virtual board. It shows the cutter path, the passes that will be taken, and the sequence of parts and toolpaths. Please use this preview function to simulate your CNC cutting. It saves time, prevents waste and mistakes, and makes for an overall better project. As you are finishing your design, there are a couple of other tools that you can use to review your project. The first is Create Job Sheet, as shown below.

The second tool is the Toolpath Summary / Time function. This is a good tool to use as a check to confirm that what you are planning to cut, is reasonable. Why?

We have seen complicated projects take up to 12 hours of cutting to finish. This extreme length of time can create many issues.

10 The second tool is the Toolpath Summary / Time function. This is a good tool to use as a check to confirm that what you are planning to cut, is reasonable. Why? When cutting small or simple parts, the time to cut them is quick. But as your skills progress, and you move into more complicated projects, cutting times can be an issue. We have seen complicated projects take up to 12 hours of cutting to finish. This extreme length of time can create many issues. If nothing else, you can use this function as a planning tool so you can reserve an appropriate amount of CNC Room time, without infringing upon other peoples scheduled time. If you use the Preview Toolpaths function correctly, you will not run into any surprises once the spindle is turned on and has started cutting. It is an anxious feeling to start

This will then serve as the beginning for the instructional aspects of actually setting up and using the CNC machine once it is back at the Guild.

11 cutting with the CNC, knowing it has its own mind, and that mind is totally out of synch with what you had in your mind. The last section will show, step-by-step the process of saving a project to a flash drive, down in the library with Makerspace, as G-Code for the CNC machine. This will then serve as the beginning for the instructional aspects of actually setting up and using the CNC machine once it is back at the Guild. If you have made it this far, we assume that you learned VCarve Pro, created a project (along with toolpaths), and saved your project out to a flash drive from your home computer. When you come into the library, there are 2 PC s that can be used to read in your files and write the toolpaths out so the CNC machine can read them. Simply insert your flash drive and open your project in a normal fashion, as seen below. Select your file location, and then select your project. When you select your project, VCarve Pro reads it as a Makerspace file, and goes out to the Vectric web site to confirm that the Guild as a current Makerspace license. When that is confirmed, VCarve Pro checks that the Makerspace ID# on your project, matches exactly, to the Makerspace ID# in the PC you are working on. Assuming that everything is correct, the file opens. Once opened, your project should look identical to how it looked at home. Take a few minutes and confirm that everything is as you expect. You are now ready to write out your toolpaths.

Highlighting the toolpath list, or highlighting an individual toolpath, will make that toolpath(s) available to be written out as G code.

12 In the lower right corner is a list of toolpaths that you created as a part of designing your project. It is these toolpaths, which were written out as a part of your project, that will now be discreetly written out as the individual G code toolpaths for the CNC machine to use. Highlighting the toolpath list, or highlighting an individual toolpath, will make that toolpath(s) available to be written out as G code. When you click the save toolpath button you will then get a prompt with the parameters for which this toolpath will be saved. Most importantly on the prompt shown below is that of the Post-Processor. The purpose of the postprocessor is to customize the G code so it is directly usable in the software and hardware which will which is used at the Guild. For the purposes of VCarve Pro, you should always select the Legacy 3 Axis CV Arcs (inch) (*.txt) postprocessor.

subdirectory for which you wish to write the G code.

13 Clicking on the save toolpaths to file will present you with the prompt shown below that allows you to select the device and subdirectory for which you wish to write the G code. Below is shown in example of G code that was produced for the CNC machine at the Guild.

14 You should now have G-Code toolpaths written out to your flash drive. We suggest looking at the files before you close your file on the library PC. The G-Code file will be a *.txt file, be mostly indecipherable, and contain thousands of lines of instructions that only make sense to a CNC machine. Assuming everything is OK, it s off to the CNC room where the real fun happens. Revision 3 January 2019

Tutorial Engraving Badges

Getting Started With Tutorial Engraving Badges VCarve Pro Disclaimer All CNC machines (routing, engraving, and milling) are potentially dangerous and because Vectric Ltd has no control over how the software