Using Elite Foreman with upgraded steps/rev.
and 1/8" tapered end bit (engraving bit) 20 deg angle, single flute.
I am amazed of the accuracy and consistency of the carving.
SW: Vectric Vcarve pro v12. The size of the stamp 30x30 mm. Height of the tallest spruce tree is 11.3 mm. Depth of the cut is 2 mm, which is more than necessary . I guess 1 - 1.25mm is sufficient.
The stamp I’m using is a 10mm brass rod /rectangle. Anyone have any tip on how to make threads deep enough? Maybe I need to sacrifice a thread tap and grind off the first 8mm in order to get the threads deep enough to fix the screw (not much play room)…
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Nice stamp!
I gather that your material is 10 mm thick, and so you have to keep the depth of a threaded hole for a screw-in shaft to maybe 8 mm or less?
I’ve never used Vectric software myself, but I’ve had great success thread-milling 1/4"-20, 5/16"-18, and M6 x 1 mm female threads, using Fusion to generate the toolpaths. And a friend of mine has had good success using Vectric Aspire for thread milling. Either way, thread milling enables full thread to within about 1/2 thread pitch of the hole bottom.
I personally have a couple of expensive Harvey thread mills, but that’s only because I needed extra-deep threaded holes. Something like the one below should be fine for threads up to 1/2" deep, in either 1/4"-20 or M6 x 1 mm.
There’s a bit of a learning curve to getting threadmill toolpath parameters just right. If you want to go that route, NYC CNC has a good tutorial video on YouTube, and a spreadsheet for calculating Fusion toolpath parameters.
Another option might be to machine a slightly undersized smooth-bore hole in the stamp head, and simply press in the shaft.
Edit: after overcomplicating this, it dawned on me that a simple bottom tap might also solve your problem. They can thread to within a pitch or two of the hole bottom, which should leave you with maybe four full threads.
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Could you bore a (very slightly) oversize hole in the end of a short dowel, and press into it the entire stamp, with maybe a dab of hi-temp epoxy?
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I drilled and tapped my brass stamps on a drill press and tapped by hand. I ground off a tap to shorten it as I couldn’t find a bottom tap in that size.
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Love the stamp!
You could machine out a recess in the back and epoxy a nut into it?
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More common to drill and tap
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