![[Laser cut and engrave] Wooden rulers with measurements in various lengths](https://image-res.xtool.com/resource/xtool/community/attachment/xtool-community/827a364d-d75f-4a02-9c98-2061e038f1b7?x-oss-process=image/resize,w_1200,h_900,limit_0/interlace,1/format,webp/auto-orient,1)
assorted rulers (metric, imperial, decimal)
Instruction
Information
This is a project that I did to test the cut/score detail of my new D1 Pro.
I also find it annoying that almost all rulers only have markings on one side so you can only measure accurately from one side/direction so I have created length marks mirrored onto both edges of the rulers.
I use Inch for almost all work that I do however I understand some of the benefits of the MM and know that many people prefer these measurements so I have created rulers in both measurements. I also I decided to try decimal inch format because working with calipers the standard is thousandths of an inch which results in some of the benefits of the metric system that people argue for, so I thought it might be interesting to try making a ruler that way (if for no other reason then to mess with peoples heads =P )
included in this project are:
CM rulers with 1 mm hash marks, with 10 CM increments from 10-50CM long
Inch rulers with 16th inch hash marks (number fractions denoting 1/8 increments, because the one that I tested at 16ths looked too busy for my taste, (although that one is included..) in 6 inch increments 6-18 inchs long
"Decimal Inch" rulers with .100 inch hash marks in 5 inch increments from 5-20 inches long. if you are familiar with using a caliper this should be fairly intuitive to use but may really mess with some peoples heads ;)
when I cut my first ruler I made a box the same size as the ruler in XCS and placed it right over the ruler to use as a cut path, but you can "ungroup" the ruler and select the rectangle for the cut path if you prefer. on my first one I did an offset of the laser because on a previous cut I seemed to be about .040 (~1mm) undersize so I set an offset in the cut, however I also changed my cut settings and ended up oversize by that same offset that I had used, so if you are concerned about the accuracy of the absolute length you may want to make a test cut with your settings, checking with a 6 inch caliper on one of my 6" rulers I am within .002" (~.05mm) after my cut!
Instruction
Step1
as I said I wanted to test the accuracy of my D1pro and I wanted a ruler with hashmarks on both sides (so ANNOYING that nobody does that…)
pretty straight forward on the make of these rulers, more repetitive then anything.. biggest trick was making sure that the font wasn't changed by XCS because it didn't have the appropriate font so it wanted to replace the font with defaults and messed up my spacing. that is until I found out how to turn the text into vector by using the option under the "path" dropdown menu that is "object to path" this converts the font from a font and allows XCS to maintain the font as it was when it was converted even if it's on a different computer and doesn't have the font in it's library.
I made these files in inkscape by setting the units to the corresponding rulers that I was making (inch for inch rulers and mm for mm rulers) then I drew a rectangle and scaled it to the longest size I wanted to make and a set width (1 inch for inch and 2 CM for MM) then I drew my first line making it an appropriate length for the fraction I was marking starting with half then quarter eighth and finally sixteenth placing them with absolute coordinates, I then copy pasted and re-aligned at the coordinates for the next position. after I had the first inch laid out (with fractions or notation numbers in place) I selected the whole group copy pasted (with a full length line at the start "0" coordinate) and copy pasted and put the whole thing at the next inch "x1.000" "y0.000" reselecting both sets to speed the process and repeating until I had the full length, then I marked the larger increments (CM or Inch) once the longest ruler was made I saved as .SVG and then deleted hashmarks and numbers back to my next smaller size and adjusted the rectangle to fit the new length.
after making the Decimal Inch ruler I was able to scale it down to make the MM/CM ruler fairly easily just needed to make a few small adjustments and add length/numbers.
do note that before getting a useable file in XCS I did need to select all and "object to path" (as stated earlier) before saving and importing to XCS
I hope these files are useful to you and 'measure' up to your expectations ;)
I used these cuts to tune in my cut settings a bit (I was getting a lot of scorch/smoke marks on the back side with cut 75% 7mms 2 passes), ended up adding an air assist and went from
the settings of:
score 40% power 20 mms 1 pass
Cut 40% power 20 mms 10 passes (took more like 12, but make sure your focus is set right!)
changed to:
score 40% power 20mms 1 pass
cut 50% power 20mms 8 passes
I was cutting 1/8" or ~3mm birch plywood
these final settings are giving me very clean, full depth cuts with none of the smoke staining that I was getting on the back side, the numbers are perhaps a little overburnt but still quite legible on the 1/8 inch marks (the smallest numbers cut with the air assist and these settings.)
