Everything is evolving at a faster and faster pace and woodworking is no exception. I think we are at a place similar to when the skilsaw was widely adapted by framing carpenters in the early 1950s. It changed the way they worked and allowed them to build houses in record time.
After finishing my latest cnc project I was thinking about how cnc forces me to change the way I approach projects yet allows me to better fulfill my creative visions. Obviously with cnc I can do more precise and consistent cuts than by hand with the added ability of creating multi-level objects easily. Plus, the actual production of a complex project is relatively quick process.
The real change is on the front end. In the past most of my projects were sort of seat-of-the-pants as I figured things out on the fly and made changes as needed or improvised to create what I wanted. I seldom worked from plans.
The cnc changes that. Now everything has to be completely pre-planned down to the selection and movement of every tool. If you are someone who has always worked from detailed plans this may not be much of a change, but for me it means I can no longer work from just my usual quick sketches.
The design and tooling phase of this sign project took far, far longer than the actual production. Cutting time was around 2 hours as opposed to several days working up the design elements and defining the tool paths. Then again, I was actually working up the concept as I created the design elements in V-Carve which may have added to the pre-production time.
So, although I have to change the way I work, the trade-off is well worth it. I can now produce things I never could in the past and I can let my imagination have greater flight. This dimensional sign is a perfect example. It was made out of 1” HDU (15# Precision Board) and is roughly 17” x 20”.
After finishing my latest cnc project I was thinking about how cnc forces me to change the way I approach projects yet allows me to better fulfill my creative visions. Obviously with cnc I can do more precise and consistent cuts than by hand with the added ability of creating multi-level objects easily. Plus, the actual production of a complex project is relatively quick process.
The real change is on the front end. In the past most of my projects were sort of seat-of-the-pants as I figured things out on the fly and made changes as needed or improvised to create what I wanted. I seldom worked from plans.
The cnc changes that. Now everything has to be completely pre-planned down to the selection and movement of every tool. If you are someone who has always worked from detailed plans this may not be much of a change, but for me it means I can no longer work from just my usual quick sketches.
The design and tooling phase of this sign project took far, far longer than the actual production. Cutting time was around 2 hours as opposed to several days working up the design elements and defining the tool paths. Then again, I was actually working up the concept as I created the design elements in V-Carve which may have added to the pre-production time.
So, although I have to change the way I work, the trade-off is well worth it. I can now produce things I never could in the past and I can let my imagination have greater flight. This dimensional sign is a perfect example. It was made out of 1” HDU (15# Precision Board) and is roughly 17” x 20”.
