File prep

Getting artwork out of your design tool and into the machine.

• Preparing an SVG that actually cuts

  Why an SVG that looks right on screen cuts wrong: strokes versus fills, units and viewBox, text that is not outlined, and duplicate lines that cut twice.

• Kerf and tolerance: making parts fit

  How to measure your kerf, when to compensate for it and when not to bother, and how to size finger joints and slots so they fit without sanding.

• Vector and raster: why a JPEG cannot be cut

  The difference that decides whether a file can be cut at all, why tracing a photo gives wobbly lines, and which format to ask for when someone sends you a logo.