How CNC Router Could Benefit Cricket Bat Processing Business?

Cricket is a sport played mostly in countries that have a colonial history. As the colonies broke up and the sun began to set on the British Empire the game of cricket continued to thrive in these areas. There was however a jewel in the crown of the breaking British Empire. India at the midpoint of 1950s had a population around 350 million people. In a span of five decades, the population soon touched a billion and along with China forms the two largest countries in the world population wise. The winner is cricket. India rules the cricket world in numbers. The demand for cricket equipment is witnessing boom time.

Bat Manufacturing

Cricket bats are at the center of the equipment business. The bat manufacturing centers in England pioneered the use of English willow. As demand, outstripped supply Kashmir willow became the wood of choice and bat manufacturing concentrated in Kashmir. Being a populous country, every aspect of the bat was handmade and no two bats could be termed the same. Professional cricketers would spend days with a reputed bat-maker to personalize weight and size (within the stipulated laws of cricket) of the bat. A top rated cricketer would have a dozen bats in his kitbag.

CNC Router Process for Bat Profiling

England started the manufacture of bats using machines and soon it became apparent that CNC Router machine was the perfect tool for creating bats. Two-piece bats dominate the manufacture. The body of the bat is married to a cane handle via a splice. CNC routers have simplified the operation by using a single piece of willow (130 mm x 130 mm x 850 mm) that clamped onto a 12 spindle OMNI CNC Turner/Lathe Router. A milling tool of 1/2 x 60 and 1/2 x 120 is mounted and the block of willow fixed to the rotary device after finding the center point of the willow block. The CNC Router has the profile of the bat input into the computer, which guides the milling tool and process the willow block into the desired shape in one single piece.

Bat Dynamics

Bats usually have a raised ridge at the back of the bat and a straight face on the front. The front face meets the incoming ball and imparts force that is termed as a stroke. The force of the stroke is either brute power or timed stroke without using brute force. Twenty-twenty Cricket has changed bat dynamics resulting in strokes played of the back of the bat. Profile of the bat includes scooped back that is almost similar to the front without sacrificing the sweet spot on the face. Sweet spot’s indication is the noise of a solid thump when ball meets bat. The scooped back enables a batter to hit off the rear of the bat or reverse the bat in his hands in a lightning fast movement (called as reverse sweep).

Allen Tells You How to Process The Cricket Bat by CNC Router China-

Bat manufacturing business using CNC Routers is a game changer. Small CNC Router with two spindles can personalize bat for a person taking into account height, weight and batting style of the sportsperson. Small profiling adjustments to the blade of the bat smooth edges resulting in faster carry of the ball. The game of cricket is witnessing rapid changes in attacking style; more strokes are played when compared to before and cricketers are making serious money both on and off the field. It is not only international stars but also the lower ranked cricketer making a comfortable living.

EPS Pattern making by CNC Router

The similarity between lost wax casting and lost foam casting (LFC) is almost the same. The main difference is the use of EPS (expanded polystyrene) instead of wax. EPS is the disposable element. The only difference is the pattern remains in the sand mold. The hot metal will decompose the mold. The origin of this process dates back to 1958. H. F. Shroyer the originator called it the full mold process. In the early days, the patterns were machined on expanded polystyrene blocks and molded in sand that had furan resin as a bonding agent. Luckily, the patent expired in 1980 and it became available in the public domain.

The process of casting using EPS patterns explained in the following steps

• Patterns machined with pre-expanded EPS 
• Pattern is coated with refractory
• Pattern is placed in a flask
• Sand is filled into the flask
• Liquid metal is poured into the flask
• EPS melts or vaporizes
• Pattern is shaken loose for the casting to emerge

The alternative for EPS is expanded polymethyl methacrylate (EPMMA). Sometimes the two are mixed together to obtain a blend. Polycarbonate is another material that used in the LFC process.

Forming the Pattern

These are the various steps in the pattern making

• Design the part
• Tooling design for the EPS foam
• Tooling design decides initial dimensions
• Different sections of foam design
• Ultimate foam pattern quality and fusion of foam to refractory coating

Tool design of foam patterns take into account holes in the foam and pullbacks for undercuts. The design also incorporates collapsible cores for making large internal hollow sections in the foam. The complexity of the design involves making several sections of foam that are joined together in a final assembly to arrive at the final pattern To carve each foam section a tool and suitable fixture is designed so that correct alignment of sections are glued.

Tool designs generally are a long process. With the advent of the CNC router tool design and foam section carving is automated. Prototyping involved gluing hand carved foam sections and the resulting cast was inferior in quality that needed careful machining. Today 3d printers have made complex designing of parts user friendly. The same design is transferred via CAD / Cam software to an EPS shaping CNC router machine. The router creates the foam patterns. When all the foam sections are assembled together the pattern is filled with unbonded sand. Hot metal is poured and allowed to cool. The foam vaporizes. The sand mold is shaken loose and reused for the next casting process. The resulting cast is almost perfect that requires very little machining.

Cylinder blocks for automobiles use this process widely. Formula one engine constructors like McLaren and Ferrari have their own pattern making workshops that are state-of-the-art.

OMNI CNC EPS shaping router machine is widely used in die and mold industries. The machine‘s versatility can be gauged because it is used on expanded polystyrene, wood, and other non-metallic molds.

They have found special use in

• automotive foam mold
• wooden ship modeling
• wooden aviation modeling
• model trains 

Multifaceted Use of Wooden Crown Moldings

Wooden crown moldings have been used as decorative motifs from time immemorial. The early wood workers used various profiles that gave different shadow effects. Wood moldings were made from solid wood until gypsum or plaster of paris made its entrance and provided an alternative. With engineered woods and plastics, profiling of trims has reached another level for interior decorative trim.

Moldings have beveled edgings on two faces that are at right angles to each other. This allows fixing them to the wall and the ceilings. There are plain moldings, sprung moldings, cyma moldings, and ogee moldings among others. Moldings were introduced to add the dimension of shadow play on a wall. Adding a small overhang to the surface of the wall created different patterns of light and shadow to give an architectural effect. By changing the shape of the overhang, graded shadow effects became possible.

Decorative moldings from stone, plaster and wood are normal. Cyclopedia printed in 1728 has a chapter devoted for various types of moldings under the heading Table of Architecture. Woodworking tools were commissioned that were termed as specialized planes. At one time, a woodworking shop had to have as many molding planes as were the designs. You can imagine the shop with hundreds of planes. In the 19th century, the English multi-plane became the wood workers choice for molding work. This tool allowed interchangeable blades. When the crown moldings became large (in the order of 6inches or more) then pushing the plane required great force Sometimes two people needed to push and pull a plane for oversized moldings.

Today this is not a problem. Any woodworking CNC router will do the job in a matter of minutes. Profiles of moldings are stored as readymade drawings. The design can also be tweaked and in no time, a new molding design can be carved. Interchangeable router bits can cut variety of profiles.

Other than using between ceiling and wall, crown moldings are used in imaginative ways to enhance modern architecture with an ornate look. Using below the countertop of a kitchen island is one of the best ways of enhancing kitchen architecture. Adding molding to a plain door will instantly transform the door into an architectural delight and make it the focal point.Moldings are increasingly used to frame mirrors that will make it look more like an art piece.

Creating Custom Designed LED Engraved Advertising Signboards

CNC Routers are versatile machines. One of the major strengths of CNC Routers is their capability to work with a variety of sign making materials. These include:

• Sign-foam

• Acrylic

• Aluminum

• Hardwood

• Plywood

• Wood Composites

• Polycarbonate Material

• Lexan

CNC routers are used to make 3D acrylic letters and parts for channel letter signs. In addition with a V-groove router bit, flowing cursive text of varying depth and width can be cut into wood or metal or acrylics and other translucent plastics.

Benefits CNC Routers

CNC Routers are exclusively used for their role in creating high end custom signs. 

• Precision fabrication allows the creation of quality signs

• Saved sign designs can be used repeatedly

• Can be used to create signs using a variety of materials

• Creative signage capability

• Reduces waste

• Allows faster fabrication and delivery 

Samples of business signs - a visual guide to the types of signs — many of them with the assistance of OMNI CNC Routers

Custom edge-lit signs draw attention. Storefronts are given a high tech look. Glamorize weddings and other special events with amazing signage.  

Professional sign fabricators depend on CNC Router. Without this versatile machine modern signage and advertising industry would have found themselves hampered by traditional techniques.

The CNC Router is a computer-controlled machine, and is mounted on a large router table. CNC stands for Computer Numerical Control. It can move in three dimensions and automatically cuts out the parts needed for a sign by following commands from a computer program. The CNC router follows a tool path that is accurate and allows sign manufacturers the capability to create extremely accurate designs and letters in a variety of materials.

Special software creates a new design that is sent to the computer workstation of the CNC router. The machine creates the different elements used in the sign's design. For example, the design may require 3D letters to be cut from a sheet of clear acrylic.

Omni CNC Router in action

In this video recorded at Omni CNC, you can see the versatility of OMNI CNC machine, cutting acrylic letters from half-inch material.

Creating Channel Letter signs

Individual 3D letters and shapes are formed from sheet metal. The CNC router cuts translucent acrylic front faces. With aluminum back covers, and internal LED lighting the photo shows a channel letter sign that was created for Amante Coffee. The LED illuminated channel letter sign gives excellent visibility at night. 

CNC Router Machines for Statues

The OMNI CNC router is a fine example of turning materials on a router. The process is very simple. A rotary device works as 4th axis on a conventional 3-axis router. The CNC router can carve exquisite newel posts, chair jambs, crown molding, statue profiling, modillion engraving, and wall moldings. The applications can only stretch the imagination

The rotary device works as a 4th axis indexer that allows machining of parts in the round profile. Free form ornamental turning is revolutionizing statue profiling. The Omni CNC router is making master craftsmen out of ordinary souls.

This also calls for introspection on a disappearing art of master carpenter. But technology is no more the servant of man rather it is breaking new grounds and with the advent of the Chinese company OMNI-CNC, new ground breaking technology is now available at an affordable price. The 4th axis with the rotary device makes the job of carving newel post and statues like 3d carving on Buddha.

The machine frame is of robust build quality. There are 12 spindles which can be employed on various materials like MDF (medium density fiberboard is an engineered wood product), solid woods, plastics and acrylics. The rotary device can process irregular objects as well as different columns. The digital servo brushless motor on all the axes is maintenance free and gives unmatched routing flexibility.  Sometimes this Omni CNC machine is dubbed as statues CNC router.

The design process for carving a statue profile will need the visualization of the concept. For this 3D modelling software or 3D CAD (Computer Aided Design) is required. Instead of drawing the object via lines (by a pencil) the 3d object is built up by inserting and changing fundamental 3D shapes. OMNI CNC router machines for profiling statues come with the right software tools to execute a tool path for the visualized 3D shape and allow the CNC router to trace the tool path. The technical word is called creating the Part file for the CNC router to cut the profile. The Omni CNC router for statue profiling is fast and to watch it in action is itself breathtaking.