Possibly. I have no idea how to print 3D since I have not had my SM1 machine very long and I have not yet come to understand the 3D printing process. I have used the laser and the CNC aspect of the machine. The failure in the block etching was not understanding why the wood created an issue for me.
My solution was not to waste the 1200 blocks of spruce but to find another way to process them. My flat clamp jig is that method. It can do with a few tweaks but it is now complete and working.
I will include a few images to demonstrate. The first image shows the holes for the stainless steel dogs that the clamps are fixed to and these have been cut in the jig top. They were 20mm holes that were 20mm in depth and they were cut with a specially designed forstner bit. The additional space at the corners of the block holding square were to ease blocks that may have been oversized.
The next task was to add the clamps and try out the jig. You can see the block in the jig and the very snug fit it makes once the clamps are closed.
Once the jig has been attached to SM1, I use a centering block so that the end-mill bit starts at the centre of the block.
Carving a block was possible without the block being pulled out of the jig by the machine.
A carved block… very roughly carved but I was experimenting with a cutter and workspeed. All things being equal I would have expected the cutter to rip the block out of the jig if the cam clamps were not holding it.
More anon…