I am new to the CNC industry and do not know what design software program I should use to create design work for my CNC cutting system.
The best software program that I have found for creating design work for CNC cutting systems are graphics design programs like Adobe Illustrator or Corel
Draw. I recommend Corel Draw for most of my customers because it seems to be more user friendly and there are lots of how to videos to help with learning the basics. Also, the cost of the Corel Draw software makes it easier to afford. One your purchase a software design program I would highly recommend investing in a digitizing pad. This will allow you to utilize a stylus pen instead of a computer mouse when creating your design work.
I have the DXF file I purchased in my CAM program and I want to cut it but it is not recognizing cut paths, order of cut paths and offsets of cut paths. You advertise these files are cut ready so why do I have to do I have assign cut paths, order the cut paths and select offsets for the cut paths?
The DXF files that are created are about 95% cut ready, it would be nearly
impossible to make a DXF File 100% cut ready because of all the variables that
need to be taken into consideration (size of design, method of CNC cutting,
pressures, speeds, amperage etc…). By selling the DXF files the way they are
each customer is spared the extra time it would take to edit the DXF file if it
was provided in a format that did not match the requirements of your CNC
cutting system or process.
Now that I know what design I want to cut, how do I get rid of the other design?
Most CAD based programs will allow you to select and delete any design work that you want to remove very easily. Most of the time you can select the image you don’t want to cut and hit the delete button to remove it from your CAD or CAM program. (I would suggest saving the remaining design as a separately named file). If you save your current design with the same file name you will not be able to utilize the other design in the future if need be.
I have tried several times to cut a design but the results are not working and I am ruining alot of material, what can I do to be able to cut the design work correctly.
After reading through the above question I would suggest isolating the part of the
design work that has the closest cut paths and try cutting just that section of
the design work on a scrap piece of material before trying to cut the entire
design. I would also recommend spreading out order of your cut paths so that cut paths are not being cut one after another in a small section of the design work (this causes excessive build up and will result in larger cut paths and increase the chances of parts of the design work falling apart unexpectedly)
I started cutting one the DXF files and alot of the design work did not cut correctly (pieces of the design work is falling out unexpectedly)?
First I would want to make sure you have selected the correct design for your
particular CNC cutting process. If you are using laser or waterjet you want the closed cut path version of the design work. If you are using a plasma or
router you want the open closed cut path version of the design work. If you are utilizing a plasma cnc you will want to make sure you are utilizing a fine tip consumable of between 20-40 amps to ensure that your cut path is less than .0625″ wide. (the smaller your cut width the better your
cut results will be). Most of the time customers are utilizing plasma consumables that are 40-80 amps and the resulting cut path is larger than .0625″.
If you are unable to utilize a fine tip consumable of 20-40 amps you
will need to increase the size of the design work or edit the design work to
provide more distance between cut paths. My rule of thumb for creating sufficient distance between cut paths is to measure the width of a single line pass and multiply it by 1 1/2 times. This ensure that the design work will not
melt out utilizing a CNC plasma cutting system. If your cut path on a single line cut is .0625″ then you would want to make sure that the distance between most of
your cut paths is atleast .09375″
Now that I know why there are two designs included how can I tell what design is used for waterjet/laser and what file is used for plasma/router systems.
By studying the images below you should be able to determine what design is a
closed path only design and what design contains the open cut paths.
I open/imported your DXF file and the design work looks very distorted and there are circles everywhere.
This can result from internal settings within your CAM program that are attempting to put an offset to the existing cut path or your CAM software may not allow for the cutting of very acute cut angles.
You can edit most CAM programs to turn off the offsetting feature or
reduce the offsetting value to very small number (.001″). You can also edit your CAM software to allow for acute cut angles. As a last resort
If you are still experiencing problems with the features of your CAM software I
would recommend emailing their technical support team and providing them with a copy of the DXF file so that they can help with troubleshooting the problem you
are encountering with their software.
I open/imported your DXF file into my CAM program and the cut paths are splined. How can I fix this problem so the design work cuts better?
The DXF files that are sold on the website are polyline DXF files and are optimized
for CNC cutting processes. If the DXF file imports as a splined DXF file it could be due to version of the DXF file your CAM program is based on. To fix
this problem you can try exporting your splined DXF files from AutoCAD in a R14
or 2000 DXF format. This will help to produce polyline DXF files that will work as suitable cut paths in most CNC software programs. As a last resort If
you are still experiencing problems with the features of your CAM software I
would recommend emailing their technical support team and providing them with a copy of the DXF file so that they can help with troubleshooting the problem you
are encountering with their software.
I have a CAD or CAM based program but when I try to open or import the DXF file my computer program freezes or I receive an error code.
Often times when the computer program freezes it is because the amount of information contained within the DXF file is very large for the software program to
process. Sometimes being patient with the loading process will allow you to get to the next step of actually cutting the loaded design work. If you are
receiving an error message you will want to make sure that you are utilizing a
DXF file with only closed cut paths for CNC waterjet/laser cutting
systems. Most of the time when error messages are being displayed it is due to information being interpreted incorrectly between software programs.
If you have a CAM based program set for waterjet and laser cutting
methods it may or may not recognize open cut paths/single line cut paths. When you try to load a DXF file with this type of cut path into a CAM based program it can often result in an error. The best way to resolve this problem is to
change the internal setting within the CAM based program to allow for open cut
paths/single line cut paths or simple edit/delete out the open cut path/single
line cut path utilizing a different CAM or CAD based program. Other error codes may result from over lapping cut paths. Often CAM based programs
will allow you to search for overlapping cut paths that can then be fixed by
editing the existing design work. As a last resort If you are still experiencing problems with the features of your CAM software I would recommend emailing their technical support team and providing them with a copy of the DXF file so that they can help with troubleshooting the problem you are encountering with their software.
I downloaded the DXF file but I am unable to view it on my computer. What now?
First you will want to make sure that you have extracted the file if it was saved as
a zipped file. Secondly you will want to make sure the computer you are trying to view the design work on has a CAD or CAM based program installed on it.
Now that I am able to view the DXF files I want to know why there are two designs included in each DXF file.
There are two designs included in each DXF file.
One of these designs will contain open cut paths as well as closed cut
paths. The other design will include only closed cut paths. The design that
includes the open cut paths is intended to be cut utilizing a CNC plasma or
router cutting system. The design that includes only closed cut paths is intended to be cut utilizing a CNC laser or waterjet cutting system.
I just received an email from www.freedxf.com with a link that allowed me to download the DXF files. What do I do next?
Once you have saved the DXF files to your computer you will want to try and view
them in a CAD (Computer Aided Drafting) or CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing) based software program.
I just purchased a product kit from your website and want to know when I will receive my downloadable DXF files.
After your order is placed and payment is received you should receive an email from www.freedxf.com that contains a link that will allow you to download the DXF files
Is there anyway to purchase the Entire Collection on payment terms?
We work with our customers as much as is possible. If you want to explore different payment options, send us a message through the contact form.
Is there a discount for purchasing the Entire Collection of design work.
If a customer is interested in purchasing the Entire Collection of design work, the collection is available at the price listed on the site. After you purchase the entire collection, you will be eligible for discounts on future work.
How often are new product kits added to the website?
I try to add atleast one new product kit each month, however with the addition of new designers we are expecting to add more than one product kit each month.
Is there a discount for schools and do you accept purchase orders?
Please fill out the contact form with information about your school and what you are trying to do. We do accept purchase orders.
Are these DXF file compatible with my CNC cutting system?
Yes these DXF files are designed to work with your CNC cutting system. All intersections have been removed and the DXF file has been smoothed to reduce node counts. This ensure the design work cuts correctly and quickly.
Do you provide custom dxf design work?
Yes we provide a custom dxf design service. Custom design requests can be submitted through the custom design request form on the website (link).
Can I purchase a single file instead of the entire product kit?
Normally, files are not available for individual purchase. If you have additional questions, please send us a message through the contact form.
