Nothing would be a true project if it didn’t cause 4 or 5 other projects. CutCalculator spawned off of my CNC design project as I couldn’t find a great tool to help me figure out exactly how to optimize cuts for components on @openbuilds V-Slot rails. There were tons of tools out there, but nothing that would optimize stock selection from a pool of stock lengths, so I whipped up my own solution. Rather than keep this all to myself, I’ve decided to share it with all of you as a free tool for the maker community. This is an early build with just the bare features I needed, but feel free to check it out and send some feedback. If there’s a desire from the community I’ll add mobile support or other suggested features in future builds.
CutCalculator includes the ability to set both Metric and Imperial units, as well as a dynamically set blade kerf. Multiple stock profiles are supported, allowing the tool to generate a complete materials list across multiple profiles (ie: 2x4, 2x6, 2x8). Pictured here, the tool is being used to calculate different sized aluminum extrusions.
Once available stock has been identified, components of each profile type may be added by providing a component description, length and quantity.
As components are entered, the required stock and cut list are recalculated in real time, producing a live output of the required stock per profile, and a total cost based on the supplied material prices.
In addition to the required stock list, cut lists are also recalculated in real time, providing a breakdown of what components are to be cut from which stock piece, the calculated cost for that component, amount of waste lost to cutting, scrap leftover, and the utilization percentage of that piece of stock.
Try out the tool for yourself at https://CutCalculator.N131MG.com.