I just wasted another sheet of proofgrade draft board on a shop design. This time its all about kerf. My machine has a narrow kerf apparently as I can almost never use designs with multiple attachment points like boxes without building the design completely by my own hand and testing testing testing. I’m very frustrated this time as I thought everything looked easy for the Medium Hardwood Art & Pen Stackable Holders. I am very happy I didn’t use my proofgrade hardwood on this first pass.
So what do I do about the kerf issue with shop designs or the dashboard templates for boxes?
How do I test these pre-made designs before pouring money into material?
I would really love the stackable art pen holders, but now I’m concerned I’ll just waste more material on this.
It is unlikely that your machine has a narrow kerf compared to other machines of the same wattage, but kerf can be a tricky thing. The kerf for draftboard may not be the same as it is for the suggested material of medium hardwood even if they are similar in thickness.
For this particular design, the parts slot together rather than using notches. I find slots more forgiving and easier to sand down if the fit is too tight. To test, rather than cutting the entire file, I suggest cutting one end piece and one side piece to see if they fit together. If it fits, proceed with the rest of the file.
As for kerf in the dashboard template boxes, you input your own kerf which you can determine by cutting the linked kerf meter file from the material you intend to use.