From DXF to cut part: the practical guides.
Short, specific and sourced: file prep, part spacing, nesting, cutting speeds and quoting for fiber laser and plasma shops.
- DXF files · 5 min read
DXF units: mm or inch, and why parts come in 25.4× too big or too small
A DXF stores plain numbers; its unit lives in the $INSUNITS header, which is often 0 or missing. How to spot a unit error before it reaches the quote or the machine, and how to fix it.
- Getting started · 6 min read
Export DXF for CypCut and FSCUT: map the layers once
What a controller-ready DXF for CypCut, CypCutE and FSCUT looks like — R2000, mm, lines, arcs and circles on fixed layers — and how to map Zorocut's ZC_ layers to CypCut layers once.
- DXF files · 7 min read
Clean DXF from AutoCAD, Fusion, SolidWorks and Inkscape: what breaks and how to export it
Open contours, splines, bend lines, mirrored arcs and unitless files: the problems each CAD program leaves in a DXF for laser cutting, and the export settings that avoid them.
- Getting started · 6 min read
Plasma tables: from Zorocut's DXF to SheetCAM, FireControl, Mach3 or LinuxCNC
Langmuir FireControl and other hobby-class plasma controllers run G-code, not DXF. The route is Zorocut DXF → SheetCAM, one operation per layer → post-processor → controller, with Hypertherm chart values for speed and pierce delay.
- Nesting · 5 min read
Part spacing for laser cutting: how much gap to leave between parts
Start with a gap of 3 mm or the sheet thickness, whichever is larger, then adjust for kerf, heat and tip-up. What the spacing does, how the kerf eats into it, and how it changes the quote.
- Nesting · 5 min read
Common-line cutting: when sharing an edge pays, and why Zorocut leaves it to the controller
Cutting two parts along one shared line saves pierces and cut length on arrays of identical straight-edged parts. How CypNest, ProNest and PrimeCut do it, where it is risky, and why the DXF should still keep a gap.
- Nesting · 5 min read
Remnants: keep, label and reuse sheet-metal offcuts
How to leave a usable offcut instead of scrap, which strips are worth keeping, how to nest the next job on them first, and how to bill the material fairly.
- Quoting · 7 min read
How to price laser cutting: machine time, per metre and per pierce
A laser cutting price is material plus machine time plus a share of setup. The formula, the starting values and a worked example: 100 plates of 3 mm mild steel at €90 an hour come to about €1.02 each.
- Speeds and materials · 6 min read
Fiber laser cutting speed chart: mild steel, stainless and aluminium by power
Published fiber laser cutting speeds in m/min at 1 kW, 3 kW and 6 kW from the Raycus and IPG tables, plasma for comparison — and why the charts disagree by up to 2× and you should build your own.
- Speeds and materials · 5 min read
Pierce time by thickness, and why every pierce costs money
Fiber pierce times from 0.1 s on thin sheet to 9 s at 20 mm, plasma pierce delays from the Hypertherm chart, what each pierce adds to a quote, and practical ways to need fewer of them.