Kneeboard Surfing USA Community Forum

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I've moved to Shape3D for software. This has 3D rendering that lets me find bunny ears and other bumps in my designs. It's also accepted by more machines.

But APS3000 and S3D are working together since last week, so the two will probably converge in the future. APS machines will be able to accept S3D and vice versa.

I've cut a few on a APS3000 machine. It's pretty good. Accuracy depends on the amount of time spent by the operator in setup and the quality of the blanks.

I'm looking at a couple of machines now, but focusing on working with a KKL setup because they have very sophisticated software for extending designs to other lengths and in-house glassing.

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like all machines they are only as good as the designer and the operator running the machine,just like planer!!they teac h you to think about what you are shaping and the finished shape, not like a lot of shapers today who just follow the blank that they buy down at the store,all though saying that with the modern close tolerance blanks thats all you can do any way.

Beeline2.0 wrote:Shape3d,
About how much is it?

It was free last week.
There is a thread on Swaylocks that will link you to where you can get a free version.
There is also software called DAT98, but it's outdated and I haven't seen the new version yet.

Hey guys aps 3000 is brilliant but remember guys you can spend a year cutting small slices and trying to get everything perfect but once its emailed of what you get back is not what you`ve designed as the intricate
nature of the machine means the technician will alter every design that goes through as there is certain plane lines that cannot be achieved no matter how good they look on screen.I have made well over fifty boards on machines both kneeboards and stand ups and my advice is develope a relationship with the operator like you would with a shaper and give them the bare essentials as far as measurements go then sitdown and describe the finer details in person and let them adjust it before you. before the blank is loaded.I can`t stress how important it is as i know a few technician`s that can`t use aps 3000 to create a new stick from scratch.In Australia there is only 4 or 5 technician`s of repute that cater to every major standup shapers so specailised is there field,but there is 30 various machines pumping out b grade garbage.
Aps 3000 rocks keep kneelin

crippler
You're riight. Machine cutting does not imply anyone can assemble a board in CAD and have it come out right, especially since the CAD design software and the cutting path CAM software may use different algorithms for interpolating the points. Lots of poor machine cut boards in the marketplace (but they come from a "genuine" Merrick design, eh?)

Operators who know their machines and who will spend the time with you to get the design right are like gold. Unfortunately the economics of machines means that cutting centres have to push as many boards as they can as fast as they can through the system in order to cover costs.

I no longer cut on surfboard CNC machines or directly from surfboard design software.

I design in S3d and Rhino and cut 99% complete blanks on a 5 axis machine where I don't have to worry about the technician reinterpreting my designs or compromising to fit in with the capabilities of the machine. Of course, the glassing and sanding can make or break any design so the story doesn't end there.

Really Rhino? Good Industrial Design program especially for the price. Sort of a poor mans Alias (some think it is better). Capable of creating Class “A” surfaces. But it is a bit off the mark for engineering work.

I`m afraid all machine cuts no matter what software used is still goin to be altered by the technician to suit machine capability.cnc machines are not shaping machines but outdated profilers more like a milling style of cut that limits nearly every shape kt540 machines are the latest in the long line of shaping machine and make the rest look very amateur imformation about these machine is not available due to the fact its inventor has been ripped by after market reproductions of his previous inventions.I can tell you there is two in Australia One at base surfboards with no public access in a secure room with only two technicians and one soon to be working in Victoria so close to you i assume but again no public access is to be granted.these machines have much more refined skills capable of concaves clean finished nose and tails and even the rail tuck.exciting hey.Iam lucky enough to do a little work with one of the technicians and am hoping to have two pu boards from this machine for new zealand worlds so we`ll see how they go.also the machine cuts eps foam so off the same aps 300 profile i`m trying a expoxy carbon rail version of my standard board.what will be riding next i love this s*&^

crippler wrote:I can tell you there is two in Australia One at base surfboards with no public access in a secure room with only two technicians and one soon to be working in Victoria so close to you i assume but again no public access is to be granted.these machines have much more refined skills capable of concaves clean finished nose and tails and even the rail tuck.exciting hey.

Bear in mind Bud's October 2004 post on the Computer shapes thread. (Which seems to have vaporised ... Joe? Joe ...?)

Bud wrote:A talented surfer / shaper with several decades of experience and well developed visuaization powers, will benfit most from this system.
Cutting edge designs for our sport will be created by this, and the feed back from talented riders and with solid, experience surfing a vast, varierty of wave types.

Crap in = crap out.

Have a look at what a good shaper can do working with these machines. These are footboards, but still ...
http://www.basesurfboards.com/bourton-trippun-fish.htm

ahh yes, what I touch turns to dust

Link for the lost thread

viewtopic.php?t=924&start=15

Nice trippy boards McKnee