Software

[Frank barry]

Good morning all

Just popped in from the engraving section

I hope someone can help

I have a rotary engraving business in Ireland at the moment I use super pro 6 I know its old but it works I do my art work in CorelDraw and import it into super pro 6
I am now looking to buy a cnc router as I want to do some wood carving and the like I have looked at art cam as a software crazy price and I would never use is so I am wondering if there is a cheap option or if there is some way I could use Corel for design as I do with my engraving machine

Thanks in advance

[John Coloccia]

I don't know what your needs are, but if all you need is some simple engraving and V carving, F-Engrave is free and people seem to like it. It can work with bitmaps. It's not great but it's good to get your feet wet started, at any rate. There are actually a lot of options out there....everything from free to many thousands of dollars (like ArtCam Pro).

[Bob Reda]

Unfortunately, when you want to jump to the 2.5 or 3d, the software has a tendency to get a little expensive. If you just want to carve premade models Vectric will give you a 3d toolpathing program that will only work on their models. If you want to make models in 3d you will need the more expensive software in which case I would look at the vectric software.

Bob

[james mcgrew]

You can download full version of vectrics aspire or vcarvepro and test as long as you desire,, you can run test toolpaths to check it on you machine, remember AC was written by the now owners and writers of Vectric,, Delcam would not listen to common sense and we all got the benefit of staid thinking !!

[Frank barry]

Hi again
thanks for the ideas
I dont mind paying a little for somthing that gives me options but most of what I will start out doing will be simple but I would like the option to make parts that are a little more complex
so for me artcam is out just would never use it enough to justify the cost yet i would like a step up from the free options

guess I want it all for a $ hahah

Frank

[Keith Outten]

Best Value in the CNC software realm goes to Vectric's Aspire. Its a bargain for the price.
Second place goes to Vectric's VCarve Pro.
IMO.
.

[William Adams]

No limit to what one can do w/ free/opensource software:

http://nodebox.net/code/index.php/Sundial

[Frank barry]

Hi Keith
I have looked at your above suggestion the only question I have is are they easy to use at the moment I am trying to get going on coreldrew and it takes some time so I dont want to bite off more than I can chew

[gary l roberts]

I use both Corel x5 and Aspire.... and confess that I move files between the two. In the CNC world you can not go wrong with Vectric V crave and Aspire for cost and function. The price tag for Aspire 4 was the cheapest and best value in my shop when compared with machines, product supplies and time vrs what it does. Superior function, support and a limited cost. Now if every other company would follow their process we all would be happier.

[Gene Crain]

artcam express

[Keith Outten]

Hi Keith
I have looked at your above suggestion the only question I have is are they easy to use at the moment I am trying to get going on coreldrew and it takes some time so I dont want to bite off more than I can chew

Frank,

I found all of the Vectric products to have a short learning curve over the years. Honestly this is the number one reason I am a Vectric fan, I am terrible at learning new software and the majority of whats available is way out of my league. I'm always amazed by the young guys and gals who can sit down with a program and lern to use it in an hour or an afternoon for that matter. When I bought my first CNC machine the software was terrible, shortly afterwards I found VCarve Pro and we purchased it at CNU for the sign shop. Just a few months later Aspire was released and I purchased it for my sign shop.

I rarely design in Corel Draw anymore as I have learned to use Aspire and it has been improved over the years. Aspire version 4 which just came out last week is amazing software, the upgrades that Vectric continues to provide make their products the best buy in CNC software IMO. Its difficult to improve on a great program but Vectric does it year after year.....I'm a big fan of theirs because I am able to use their software to run my CNC machine and I can't say that about any other program.

There are some power users here who can use any software on the market. They produce some fabulous projects and I don't mind admitting that I am envious of their talent. Because I am at the other end of the spectrum I am glad to have software that I can learn to use and stay in business. Sad but its true.
.

[Frank barry]

Thank you all for your advice it is fantastic to have experienced people to ask

Keith I am with you on this one I don’t want to spend my time learning software I want to spend it making parts I will look up Aspire 4 and see where it takes me

Thanks again
Frank

[Andrew Werby]

You might also take a look at DeskProto. Although it's mostly oriented towards 3d carving, it can import 2d vector files and apply them to a 3d surface. It also supports rotary toolpaths, which most low-priced CAM programs don't do. You can download it from www.deskproto.com and use it free for a month, which really helps in deciding if it's right for your application. And if you qualify as a student or hobbyist, rather than a commercial user, you can get a big discount on the already-reasonable price.

Andrew Werby