Hack of the Week No.94

This hack was inspired by a finished project hack we received from Don Harding!  What a great looking green finish.

Our version of this "Luck of the Irish" decoration was created using models from these projects:

The font we used to simulate the v-carving on this layout is call:  Umber SSK

Note - This hack was assembled in Aspire V8 for presentation purposes.  It could have been done in VCarve Pro V8 or VCarve Desktop.

Don's inspirational finished piece! 

"This Plaque was Machined in Oak.
The Stain was hand mixed with Fast Sol Dyes
that I picked up at a finishing class 100 years ago.
I was hesitant on mixing with alcohol or water.
I mixed with alcohol and you see the results. GREAT!!
Blue (GN) Yellow 4 (GN) = GREEN I learned that
blue and yellow =green from my great granddaughter
she is 6.
Sealed with my usual Matte Clear spray.
Gotta go get another project to do."

Don this looks so nice!!! Thanks for sharing and inspiring this Hack of the Week!

His version uses the ribbon from the Home for the Holidays No.2 CNC project.

A Little Something Extra

If you were green with envy like we were with the finish that Don achieved with his dyes the following tip might be helpful. The dye really makes the texture and grain of the wood look great.  We wanted to simulate that inside of our Aspire software so we created a custom material image that comes close.

Click image to zoom so you can see the folder location.

If you right click on the Green Pine image you can choose "Save image as..." and save it to your Vectric Material Images folder it will be available for you to use.   Once you do that the Green Pine material will be available in your "Appearance" dropdown when setting up your Job Setup in Aspire, VCarve Pro or Desktop. 

Note: if you have your Vectric software open when you add any material to the materials folder you will need to restart your software before it will show in the dropdown.

Why not hack together your own layout mixing and matching models from other projects or from your own library!  For some great inspiration check out our  hacks page!

Be safe and let the chips fly!

The Design and Make Team

Greg has all the best seasons covered!

Two of the best seasons, we all might agree on, should be the BBQ and holiday season!  Greg has them both covered in his latest projects he submitted.

"I just downloaded the Home for the Holidays No.5 and there are so many great ideas here. I started with this one but not sure which one I want to do next. Thanks for the new project and thanks for the ideas! This is going to make a great gift."

"The Board is ¾” cherry and the stockings are cut from ½” cherry and glued on. I’ve got a couple of coats of wipe on poly so far. The font on the board is Grand Hotel, and the font on the stockings is Cooper Black."

We love that this will be part of someone's holidays for years to come! The contrast in the mold board finish and the stocking... but the pop of the paint on the holly is the perfect festive touch.  

"Here’s the project that you were kind enough to help me with. As you may remember it’s a hack using Western Saloon No. 1 and Grill Master No. 1. "

"The plaque is Maple, the Bull Skull is Yellow Birch and the Steak, Ribs and utensils are Mahogany."

 

"Attached are a couple of "in the process" pix. After your tutorial and suggestions I decided to carve the plaque and ribbon and do the other models as an applique, and it's working out great! A little more sanding and touch up before I put the final finish on it."

We are so glad we could give you a hand with this one... it turned out so nice!  Excellent job Greg!

Update Nov 30th, 2015

This is a response to a question left below.

"For the Christmas project I used a 1/4" end mill for the roughing and pocket and a 1/8' ball nose for the finishing toolpath on the plaque. I used a 3/16" ball nose for the finishing on the stockings as they did not too much detail. I used 1 60 degree v-groove for all the text. 
On the Q-master sign I used a 1/4" end mill for all the roughing and clearing and a 1/8" ball nose for all the finish except for the banner where I used a 3/16" ball nose. Again there wasn't as much detail so I thought it might save some time, and it's easier to sand the broader surface. I hope this helps! Greg"

Thanks again Greg for sharing these projects with us!

Henry Landry is now "Weekend CNC Warrior" Approved!

Henry sent in this project hack he laid out using a couple of our projects and some models he had in his own library... a real hack!  He used models from our  Farm Fresh No.1, Grill Master No.1 and Pick-Up League Hockey CNC projects.

 

Henry's finished project is  hand painted and looking pretty sharp!

"Now a few coats of varnish and a felt backing"

With those finishing touches we are pretty sure the "Landry" family will love it!   

 

Henry's layout in his CarveWright software using the PNG version of the projects.

 

Thank you Henry for sharing this project with us!  

Consider yourself...  Weekend CNC Warrior Approved!

Be safe and let the chips fly!

The Design and Make It Team