The Y-axis stepper is mounted on the machine bed, and the input end of its power cable is unconnected. When you lift the gantry from the shipping carton, both the controller and the power supply are tethered to it by the wiring between them and the X-axis stepper and the Z-axis stepper. Six bolts are all it takes to join the two parts.īecause it’s easy to zap a stepper by miswiring the components, the Shark is delivered with all but one of the circuits connected. The Shark is shipped in two pieces - the base and the gantry - both in one box. And before you can actually run the Shark, you need to assemble it.
The toolpath files you create with it drive the Shark, and to run those files, you need a CNC Shark Control program, which you download from the Next Wave Automation website.
The CD that comes with the VCarve program also has a PDF of the 130-page manual, as well as PDFs and videos of tutorials. If you are creating a project part that must be worked by more than one cutter, you simply create more than one toolpath. You can see an animation of the cut being made and examine the result in 3D. The toolpath features of VCarve put you in command of what cutter to use for a selected vector, as well as the feed direction, speed and depth of a cut. You can add bits to the database, so almost any groove-forming bit with a 1/4" shank that you have can be used in the Shark. The list includes end mills and ball-nose end mills these are better known to woodworkers as straight bits and core box or round-nose bits. The program has a boilerplate database of 12 router bits in nine configurations. VCarve's singular value lies in its CAM capabilities. So if you prefer, you can draw in a CAD program. VCarve has tools for originating drawings, but more valuable is its ability to import files in many standard graphics and CAD formats. It's a CAM program because it calculates the path a cutter must follow to make the design. It’s a CAD program because you can design and draw in it. The Shark uses a popular CADCAM program called VCarve Pro, published by Vectric. It has a spindle lock, so only one wrench is needed for bit changes. This is a 1hp, variable speed unit that takes 1/4"-shank bits. The spindle mount accommodates a Bosch Colt motor. You can replace it easily: consider it a consumable and don't be reluctant to screw workpieces to it. It’s inevitable that, over time, it will be nicked, notched, grooved and gouged. A stepper connected to one end of each lead screw turns it in a precisely controlled way. The moving assemblies - the gantry and the router mount- are mounted on pairs of polished steel rods and are driven by Acme-thread lead screws. The frame of a CNC router must be rigid, and the Shark's construction ensures that it is. The gantry uprights are edged with aluminum angle, both to protect them from wear and tear and to stiffen the assembly. The individual pieces are assembled with machine screws and lock nuts. Though you might expect the structure to be steel or aluminum, it's primarily slick, white HDPE. (The Z axis range of the CarveWright is a mere 1".) The workable X-Y area is 13" by 24", and the range of the Z axis is 4-1/2". The spindle is mounted on a moving gantry the work must be secured to the machine’s stationary bed.
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