WELCOME!


It is hard to believe that it was only seven years ago I witnessed a CNC router in action for the very first time. I was fascinated and simply had to have one! Although I had been in the creative end of the three dimensional sign business for most of my life I didn't really know what I would do with one - but I just knew it could do fantastic stuff.

Through extensive research I quickly found out that with the relative simplicity of EnRoute, CNC routers were capable of just about anything imaginable. This journal will chronicle that journey to date and continue each week with two or three entries as we continue to explore just what is possible with this wonderful software... -dan

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Fox medallion

With the client approving all the artwork to date it was time to create a few samples. These would help double check all decisions and also ensure the contractor and trades were on the same page, knowing what to expect. First up was the Fox medallions which will be used in various sizes and in diverse locations.


I created the vectors in EnRoute and then used the jigsaw tool (pictured) to create the staves of the barrel.


The outer ring and the barrel top were the first relief created.  I used the render button to double check all was well.


Then I selected the outer staves of the barrel and built each separately, creating random heights with slight variations. Each was created as a separate relief.


Then the sandblasted wood grain bitmap (from my TEXTURE MAGIC COLLECTION) was imported and applied to the barrel top.

Since bitmaps can't yet be rotated inside EnRoute I selected all the pieces and rotated the reliefs to apply the textures to the barrel staves. At this point everything was merged together for form one relief.


To create the fox I used an STL file I found at www.3dmodelclub.com I've used their files before on some of my projects with good success. I resized it, positioned it and then merged it to the barrel top I had created previously.




Just like that it was ready to tool path and send off to the MultiCam. 

-dan