Use of STL file for vector based 3D CNC

[rgmcleod52]

I created a 3D design using SketchUp that I initially 3D printed using the Snapmaker 2.0. It’s basically a tile design based on a tile I saw at the Alhambra in Spain.

I have used the STL file I created to CNC the design into wood. But when using the STL file in the CNC mode the head moves in a scanning motion back and forth. This means that diagonal lines in the design are jagged rather than smooth.

It seems that creating an SVG file would be the right thing to use, but so far I have not found the right set of tools to take the STL file and convert it into an SVG file that contains the various depths of the design. In searching for a solution most articles or videos are for cutting through the material rather than cutting different depth channels in the material as I would like to do.

And other articles are for taking an SVG file and converting it for 3D printing - not what I want to do.

What tools/apps do people use to take an STL file and create a vector based 3D design? I can’t be the only one who wants to do something like this.

Regards,

Rick

[clewis]

@rgmcleod52

And other articles are for taking an SVG file and converting it for 3D printing - not what I want to do.

I have not attempted this. But my experience is that if you have a process going in one direction, you can usually reverse it using the same tools.

[eableson]

For anything related to CNC work, I’ve moved over to using vCarve. Granted, it’s an expensive route, but the tooling is 1000% more advanced if you intend to do any serious CNC work. You’ll need to dig up the preprocessor to customize the code output for the Snapmaker (search around here and it should show up)

[Rwide]

I believe converting from a mesh based format to a vector based format is hard to program/automate because it can involve guesswork and approximations. If the geometry is somewhat simple you can do it pretty easily in Fusion 360.

(296) Convert STL Mesh to a Solid Body in Autodesk Fusion (2024) - YouTube

[xchrisd]

For me fusion360 and snapmaker postprocessor does the trick, I can select the toolpaths I want.

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[rgmcleod52]

After many months of on and off looking for a solution, I did find a really great article - Fusion 360 Guide For Multi-Pass 3D Engrave - that gave me exactly what I was looking for.

While the guide was written primarily for a multi-pass project, the project I was working on only needed a single pass. The article provided detailed steps using Prusa Slicer and Fusion 360 software to take an STL file, import it, configure Fusion 360 to create the desired results and then carve it using Snapmaker 2.0.

The Fusion 360 CAD & CAM Tutorial for CNC Beginners https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3vMEiMTlio was really all about creating models in Fusion 360 and then carving them using Snapmaker. It didn’t address starting with an STL file which was what I was working with.

Thanks to all who chimed in with their suggestions.