DIY Copy carver

[Dan Voight]

After a week and about 9000 trips to the hardware store, I came up with this. Overall it was fairly in expensive to build. I took some ideas from various sources including a youtube series on how to build a CNC from scratch. That's where I got the idea for the linear bearings anyways. Overall, the duplicator is incredibly tight and smooth. I'm really looking forward to implementing it in my building process. Now I just need to figure out how to secure the template and the workpiece to the surface. I also plan on using the same linear bearing concept to make an overhead router that rises and falls (up around the pesky scroll) with the workpiece. Let me know if you have any good ideas about holding the plates down.

[sunburst]

Since you've gone to all that trouble already, think about vacuum clamping for the plates and templates. That can be a DIY project too, it's quick and secure once it's built, plenty of other uses in the shop, no extra hardware to carve into by mistake, etc..

When you start making some serious chips, you may have to find a way to keep them away from your linear bearings.

[Kip Carter]

Dan,
Thanks a bunch! There is a lot of good concepts you've put into this bad boy. I'm guessing you plan on doing tops and backs with this. If so, two things that I'd be considering is in lieu of the suggestion John made (which I really like) is a clamping jig. The other thing I'd be kicking around is how to do the setup so that my reference piece and my work piece are positioned consistently after I turn over the pieces to do the other side.

Very neat concept.
Kip...

[grandcanyonminstrel]

Dan:

This fellow has one of the better systems I've seen for holding down your templates and keeping everything pretty accurate:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1t2v0eBS3E

j.
www.condino.com

[Dan Voight]

I need to figure out how this guy secured his plates:

[Kip Carter]

HHG? I went to the web site and looked around. I didn't see how they were holding the pieces in place. but I like the jig he's come up with. I keep coming back to the same issue you do Dan....how's he holding that stuff in place?
Kip...

[Jim Baker]

Probably 2 sided tape.

[sunburst]

...or it could be hot melt. Then you can heat 'em up to get 'em loose.

[Dan Voight]

Double stick tape would work for sure. Stew mac's stuff is pretty sticky... almost too sticky.

[Kip Carter]

The Stew mac stuff ease up with a little heat?
Kip...

[Dan Voight]

or acetone

[MikeEdgerton]

How about hide glue?

[Mike Black]

My guess would be hide glue too. Plus a paper liner between. You can see it on the pattern and also on the piece at the end when he's doing the final passes.

Similar to Siminoff's removable back mandolin.

[Michael Lewis]

Look carefully at the pics in the video, you can see the heavy 'paper' between the base and the piece being carved. I think it is glued in place and released later by splitting the paper. Like Mario Proulx did with mandolin backs using a 'gasket' of brown paper shopping bags as a means to get the back off and back on for trial and error method of figuring out the bracing and graduations. The paper is much easier to 'open' than gluing the plate directly to the base. The double stick tape works but one has to be careful removing it as it grabs pretty well, and you could damage your plate in the removal process. Carpet tape. Figure out how much you need to hold the plate and don't use much more because it is a job to remove the plate after carving. One more point is the carpet tape can creep if overstressed but dried glue won't.

[P Josey]

Here's a tutorial I came across a few years ago, from the Gemini site, for a jig to hold the template and the tonewood for copying.

http://www.wood-carver.com/viola1.html

[Skip Kelley]

Dan, I made a carver from the copy-carver website. It is not as nice as yours! It works though. I secure mine by screwing them to the table. I leave plenty of wood to drill indexing holes with which to screw through. I'm sure you will come up with a great idea. Nice work!

[Stephen Perry]

I know a maker of violins who used double stick without any issues for plates. There are many different grabbiness tapes, I suppose he has his calibrated. I'd use register holes and posts so I could flip and do the interior. I'd probably do the interior first, actually.

I like the linear bearing carver - nice!

[MikeEdgerton]

He did the interior first in the video. There's a hole in the jig he's using to hold the blank and the pattern.

[fredfrank]

I notice he has a hand brake of some sort to keep the machine from moving in all directions at once. I wondered for a minute how he was able to make such straight-line passes withe each stroke.

[Kip Carter]

He did the interior first in the video. There's a hole in the jig he's using to hold the blank and the pattern.

Mike I think your confusing the two illustrations. The one you are refering to is the one provided by woodcarver at http://www.wood-carver.com/viola1.html. The video from youtube up higher in the thread, shows no clamps and so we were trying to figure out exactly how the pieces were held.

I agree with the earlier comment that it must be glue/brown paper/glue. Of course you can't tell it is HHG but could be.
Kip...

[MikeEdgerton]

You need to watch the video linked in message 4 and 5. I'm not confused at all.

[Kip Carter]

Mike??? Where do you see a clamp in the video in 4 & 5 (same video). Yes clamps are used in the link above but I'm blind or your seeing things if you think it is in the video. (either or nether may be the case).

[Bill Snyder]

Kip, where did Mike say anything about seeing a clamp. He said they routed the inside first, which they did.

[Kip Carter]

He didn't say clamp but I missed what he was pointing out (carving the inside first) and mistook it for the technique that was being used to hold the pieces.... SEE I AM BLIND! LOL

Sorry to confuse the issue. Fighting a bad sinus headache right now and I'm not functioning up to par.

Kip...

[Chris Baird]

Vacuum clamping is the way to go. More complicated to get going, but, so much easier after you are setup.