clear irons game board

Yesterday the fellas from Clear Irons (Eric and Robby) came up to Milwaukee so I could assist them in cutting a large walnut game board table. Clear Irons just purchased a new Laguna 4'x8' CNC router and so they visited the studio to learn about setup on the router. Eric wrote some code using HSMWorks and then we worked through the use of this code on my router that uses Mach3. The piece required two sided machining so I went through that with them. We had a couple glitches due to warped wood, but things worked out. It was really good to meet Robby and see Eric again and to share a little time chatting about design, ambition, business, and future plans while the router was running. It had been over a year since Eric and I had gotten together for some studio time so it was a long time coming.

Clear Irons is as busy as ever, and Eric's business is doing really well (thus the reason I don't see him much). I can tell Robby is a valuable asset to the company and that he is continually growing in all of the roles that he fulfills there. Their business capabilities are growing, as their shop is very well equipped to do everything from ideation, working prototypes, to production ready drawings. 

Design work and prototyping is the bread and butter but recently the fellas also made an attempt to create some awesome side projects after-hours, that allow them to play and have fun. Go check out their etsy site and see their awesome wallets and sketchbook covers and tell them that Frankie sent you. I've been using my Eric Larson designed wallet for six years and I'm happy to say that it's aging well and getting better with time. You won't need another wallet or sketchbook cover once you invest in some of their goods.

pantograph router

And yet more...

dcrl cnc router making dust

Chad and I made some router dust on Saturday. We worked on cutting out Emily and Jon's chair in some cheap ply. We have the router dialed in now and now the students can make adjustments to their files after they respond to the cheap ply cutouts. Once we have their designs dialed in, they can pump out as many chairs as they can afford or desire. It was cool to see a full sheet of ply turn into a 3D chair in less than 30 minutes of cutting. Note: we still need to hook up the dust collector. Baby steps... 

large cnc router cutting

We started using the large router this past week. Things were going well until we discovered that our computer has some pulse interference. Oh well. We'll get it optimized or switched over and hopefully we'll be in business again.

another raoul woodcut

I stayed at the studio late last Saturday and cut a woodcut for Raoul.

yoko's woodcut table

I helped Yoko cut a new woodcut printing plate/table last Friday. It uses the entire sheet of wood and slots together.

cnc router dust shoe

I installed the router mount, router and dust shoe (from Kent CNC) on the large CNC router on Saturday in between all of the stuff that was happening in the DCRL. The dust shoe is impressive. I really like the magnetic brush section that allows for easy removal and installation. I first saw this on Arthur's blog a while ago and I'm glad I bought this. It should really help with the dust.

Aaron and I calibrated the router to make sure that it was moving properly and then we ran some test g-code on it. It works beautifully and now we just need to tighten all of the base bolts and put in the reinforcement braces on the stand. It should be ready to run some pieces once we get the spoil board mounted. Aaron has been a huge help this semester. He's really  taken the lead on a lot of projects in the DCRL. He's been handling all of our software install and computer maintenance as well as becoming the resident expert on Kinect 3D scanning. I'm proud of him for taking on a leadership role and using his skills to make the lab a better place to be. I really appreciate the things you're doing and the sense of community you are creating, Aaron!

Check out some of his videos from the DCRL here.

raoul test plate

On Saturday I ran a long "value chart-like" woodcut test piece for Raoul. We're testing out different things for a series of future prints. All of this testing should prove to be very beneficial in the future.

cncrp router

I finally finished putting the z axis for the CNC router together. Chad helped me get the gear rack installed, and then I worked on getting a desktop setup with Mach 3 and I configured the XML file and connected the motor controller. Everything moves properly now. Today I cut some mdf and put it in place on the bed. This thing is huge! The travel is insane; between rails the table is 54" and as you can see, the 8 foot sheet doesn't begin to cover the entire bed. I think I'm going to get some t slot extrusion to put down for clamping. I still need to finish reinforcing the table and need to hook up the spindle. Should be cutting by the end of the week though.

raoul's woodcut 2

I did some more cnc woodcut work for Raoul on Wednesday. We learned some things about the fine lettering he was wanting and how to get good quality cuts. We outlined everything first and then when we cleared the area with our pocket operation, we would not have any tear-out. It worked great.