Whenever I make an SVG in Inkscape or other software, any lines I create end up being followed by my glowforge as an object - like a very thin rectangle - and the result is that since the cut laser goes down both ‘sides’ of the line the kerf is wider than expected. The lines I make are very fine.
What is the proper procedure for making a cut? I want the laser to turn on at the start of a line, follow the line, and turn off at the the other end without making a round-trip.
If you are using an Auto-Trace on what I call a “Coloring Book” image, the auto trace will place a path on either side of the black line that it sees. Auto-trace routines place a path into the interface every place a color change happens.
I’ve actually got a little writeup on it here:
To avoid it, you will want to do a center-line trace on that kind of image.
(Line #62 at the link below:)
Did @Jules answer your question @glowforge17 ?
Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Thanks @Jules! I think so - at a minimum I didnt realize the problem. As for how to avoid it in the future, that I’m still working on.
That’s good to hear! I’m going to close this thread, but if you have further questions about specific design processes or software, I expect you could find a helpful tutorial in the Tips and Tricks area. If not, you could post on the forum and see if someone has suggestions for you.
If you run into any other trouble, please start a new thread - we’re here to help!