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Need help with workflow on a project!
Hey! So I'm working on some projects trying to get my workflow as solid as possible. I've followed a lot of tutorials but not many of them are really doing anything like what I'm doing so a lot of the tips aren't really transferable. I was wondering if someone could take my files and quickly show me the easiest and least painful way to accomplish what I want.
So here's the DXF and PSD files, you can probably ignore the PSD but I'm just keeping my whole workflow in there.
So what I need to do!
I want to make this layered art, have it cut out, then paint each layer different colors for some cool effects. I know I could just have it cut out of a single piece, but then painting it would be a nightmare. A lot easier to just paint each layer then stack them.
So in the dxf file, (PSD may be more clear), you'll see a top layer, that's supposed to be the top layer. The next shape is the next layer, and so on. On the bottom, I'd have just a solid piece as a base for it to sit on (and plug the hole of the smallest layer) and I'm ready to go. So in the end, that's 7 layers. (6 with cuts)
Now, I need these to be a specific size. For simplicity, I'll say 10"x10". But I want a 1" 'built in frame' that's flush with the top layer. this 'built in frame' will be on every layer so when I stack the pieces, there will be an inch of nothing around the whole perimeter. It'll only really show on the top right, bottom middle, and left middle, because on the other sides, the top layer and the frame will be flush.
The DXF layers can overhang the actual piece a little, it's okay if a tiny bit is cut off. it doesn't need to fit perfectly. In fact, the 'faux frame' should cover the edges at least a bit. Think of the frame as a mat that is on every layer. I uploaded a render of this faux frame and how itll look when all the layers are stacked. (Final.png) Theres a blue line on the image, but the 'frame' is exactly the same height as the top layer. (It's built in to each layer)
Okay, so that's how it's supposed to look once it's assembled, BUT I'm not cutting it out of a single piece of material. If I was, I could just make toolpaths and have it cut that file shown in Final.png
I'm not sure exactly how sketches and bodies and whatnot work. I've followed tutorials but I don't have a complete grasp. Let me know if I'm making this more complex than it needs to be. Here's what I'm trying:
Im trying to make a 10in x 10in sketch with a 1in offset(for the frame). I need to somehow turn that into 2 bodies. One that's 10"x10", and one that's just the 1" perimeter. Each of the 6 layers I need to cut separately is 1/8" thick. So I make 6 copies of the 10x10 body, extrude each of the 6 sketch layers onto each of those bodies, then I take the 1" border body, make 6 copies and merge each copy with each layer that now has a hole in it.
Now I can just set the 2d toolpaths on each body and cut them each out 1 at a time on a 1/8" layer on my CNC and stack them. Since my pieces of material are actually 12"x12", I can make a corner square and a quick toolpath to cut out the piece at exactly 10x10 so each pieces frames line up perfectly.
So that's the workflow that's in my head. It's probably an extremely inefficient way of doing it. Since I'd be doing hundreds of these projects, would there be some sort of way to make a template so I don't need to do all these steps each time? Is there a better way to do it?
I'd really appreciate if someone walked through the projects real quick and let me know the best way to pull it off!
Fusion