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Intermediate Finger Jointed Box

Rating:
4.5/5,
  • Software:
    makercase.com, CamBam CNC, bCNC
    Machine Time:
    4 hours
    Bit or Laser Size:
    3.175mm
    Materials:
    1/8in birch plywood
    Since I finally got the LEAD CNC machine up and running AND I had a box of 1/8 plywood in the garage, I decided to give a try of a jointed box and here's the result. I created the box file at:

    MakerCase - Easy Laser Cut Case Design

    I've tried a dozen online parametric box maker programs but this one is my absolute favorite. Give it a try and make your own box. After I created the DXF file at makercase.com, I imported the DXF files into CamBam and made the cutouts for the handle. Pretty simple, nothing fancy.

    After cutting the 5 parts on the LEAD CNC, I put each of the 4 sides on my laser and burnt my DJ logo into each panel. Yes I like putting my DJ logo on everything.

    I finished the box by heading over to Home Depot and grabbing some wood glue. I already had some blue painters tape at home so I used the wood glue and painters tape to put the box together and let it dry overnight. I must say, I wasn't expecting much actual utility from this box since 1/8in plywood is really not very strong.

    I was surprised that the box is much stronger than expected. However, I'll say that if you want to make jointed boxes on your CNC, you probably should be using thicker wood. My next box will be made with 1/2in wood. I'm expecting it to be VERY strong.

    DSC_1637.JPG

    What you see in the picture is exactly what the box looked like after taking the painters tape off of the joints. There was absolutely no sanding or cleanup.
    DSC_1637.JPG

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User Comments

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  1. mike_pat7
    Looks good! Did you use a laser to cut the joints as well?
  2. MaryD
    Really nice!
      Aaron Newsome likes this.
  3. Aaron Newsome
    Oh I also wanted to mention that I used the default kerf settings in the MakerCase app. I didn't really know what exactly "kerf" was so I had to look it up. The parts do fit snug together but if I were to make it again, I'd adjust the kerf so the parts had just a bit more of a tight press fit. Not complaining about the default kerf, visually the joints look very tight.

    Lastly, the MakerCase site allows downloads of laser cutting or CNC DXF files. For CNC you can specify the bit diameter and it will automatically dogbone the inside corners. As you can see, with an 1/8 in bit, the dogbones are as snug as can be,
      stevecnc likes this.
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