Assembly and Review of the New X-Carve cnc machine

The company Inventables sent to me their X-Carve cnc machine back in 2015 to test and review. Recently they sent me the 2017 model of the X-carve. They have also sent me their new dust collection system.

I asked for the 500mm x-carve because that fit’s my needs best.

I begun the assembly with the working area. Moved to the side plates, then the x-carriage and the z-axis. I then assembled the gantry and the rails. I moved to belting the machine.

I added the new Spindle which a more powerful router by Dewalt. This makes the machine much stronger and faster than the previews model.

I then added the wiring. The wiring is much easier this time because the wires are nicely labeled and easy to fit were they supposed to go. I also really liked the new drag chains which are able to open from above. This way it is really easy to place all the wires inside them.

A really cool new feature is the x-controller. This is actually a box that contains all the electronics of the machine. You can also pause and resume the carving process from this piece of hardware. The whole thing is mounted on a side board. 

Those new features make the machine much more ergonomic and compact compared to the previews X-Carve.

I then calibrated the machine and I was ready to carve. 

Finally I added the dust collection system. This is a really cool new accessory. It reduces the dust and also cleans the carving area, which let’s the carving bit do a better job.

Overall the 2017 X-Carve is much easier to assemble and also is a faster and stronger machine. It’s hardware is much better quality and the whole thing is more compact and ergonomic.

Also Easel ( Inventables online carving software ) has become much better with many new interesting apps. I would still like it to be able to carve more complex 3D designs though. I hope in future it will.

Overall I loved the new X-Carve. There’s always room for more and better development of the tool. I am sure Inventables will keep on evolving their awesome machine.

Many thanks Inventables, I hope I will put the X-carve in good use!