sheet cutting software

[dirtydeeds]

ive been looking on and off for a few months on the internet

one option pay £6000 and a £600 yearly fee

or a freebie that is no more help than my calculator



can anybody suggest a reaonsable piece of software for a carpenter

id like it to deal with kerfs and orientated boards when necessary

 

[TonyW]

You may have already found these on the net but just in case:
Cutlist Plus
http://cutlistplus.com/default.aspx
Cost from $30 -$500 depending on type. You can download evaluation copy

Lots of software on Woodweb
http://www.woodweb.com/Resources/RSSoftwareConnection.html
You might be lucky and find something here

Hope this of some use

Cheers
Tony

 

[CNC Paul]

Hi Dirty

The best value for money is Cutlist Plus, I have used this for about six years and has saved me 100's of pounds in materials.

If you need DXF output you will need the Platinum version which I have, without the output it will cost $30-$249

Try the Demo version as tony said


Paul

 

[tim]

Another thumbs up for Cutlist Plus - a real money saver. I'm sure that someone will be along in a moment to wonder whats wrong with graph paper.....

Cheers

Tim

 

[Chris Knight]

Another vote for Cutlistplus

 

[wizer]

What version of CLP does everyone use?

 

[Nick W]

I have the Silver version. It does what I need.

 

[CNC Paul]

I have the Platinum version

 

[George_N]

I also use Cutlist Plus, silver version I think (cheapest paid for version anyway). I cut up 5 sheets of MFC for kitchen cabinets over the weekend and it is a real time and material saver. I'm sure it has paid for itself on this one project alone, certainly for an amateur it is good for determining quantities of material. It cost about the same as one sheet of MFC. You can set grain direction, saw kerf and trim margin for rough cuts before final sizing. It also lets you set your preference for rip cuts or cross cuts etc (handy when breaking down 8' x 4' sheets). It will even do sheets of sticky labels to mark the parts as you cut them, very useful if you have 100 parts to cut and keep track of. The cheapest version will handle 20 or 25 different parts (enough for my kitchen full of cabinets at any rate, although I needed to start a separate file for the door parts).

 

[wizer]

Can I just ask in what circum stance you would prefer rip cuts to cross cuts (or visa versa)

 

[George_N]

Can I just ask in what circum stance you would prefer rip cuts to cross cuts (or visa versa)

If I'm breaking down 8' x 4' sheet material with my hand-held circular saw and saw board I often find it easier to make 4' cross-cuts rather than 8' rip cuts (the 4' sawboard is easier to handle for a start).

 

[tim]

I have the gold version - I don't need Dxf output but do often handle many more parts than the 'silver' version can handle.

Cheers

Tim

 

[ivan]

I have SmartCut Pro You can try out a 1000 parts version free for a month. You don't need the latest version of Windows to run, either. This aligns parts with grain as required, or aternates for least use of plain board, and allows rip or X cut preference, prints parts lists, labels, and will keep track of stock and offcuts.

The support is both active and quick - helpful with pre purchase answers, and under a week to improve label printing on our particular printer.