wall art · 3D · slice · press-fit · advanced

Sliced Wolf Head

A wolf head cut into vertical profile slices and locked together by horizontal ribs, the way a topographic model is built. Every slice and rib is sectioned from one 3D model, with the slots cut in, so it slides together without glue. Three sizes, from a desk piece to a trophy just under a foot tall, hung on a wall plate or standing on a press-fit desk stand.

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Version

Cut and assembled on an xTool M2 in 2.8 mm plywood at the default settings (medium size, recommended slice spacing and ribs, no slot clearance); the first cut is in the Made for real tab.

·First release.

Dimensions

Size

Heightmmin

Recommended · from the size

200 mm tall, about 160 mm wide

Chin to ear tips. Follows the size you picked; set your own number to override it.

Slice spacingmmin

Recommended · height ÷ 22, at least 3.5 × thickness (2.8 mm)

Up to 16 slices across a 160 mm wide head

Centre-to-centre distance between the profile slices. Closer is smoother and more parts.

Ribs

Horizontal sections that hold the slices in place. Three is plenty up to about 250 mm, four beyond.

Slot clearancemm

Extra slot width beyond the material thickness. Leave at 0 for a press-fit; add 0.1 if your sheets vary.

Wall hanger

Add a desk stand

Your material

Thicknessmmin

Measure it with calipers. Sheets sold as 3 mm are often 2.7 to 3.2.

Kerfmm

How much the beam burns away. Higher makes joints tighter. 0.10 to 0.20 suits most diode lasers.

Your machine

Keep clear of each edgemm · usable 290 × 290 mm (11.4 × 11.4 in)5 mm suits most machines. If the camera frames less than the whole sheet, or clamps hold its edges, keep more clear so nothing lands outside what the laser can reach.Use smaller sheets where they doOnly the pieces too big for a small sheet go on a full-size one; the rest fill the small sheets. For when the big sheets are the scarce ones.Dark pieces on their own sheetsThe pieces shown in darker wood (a backdrop, a map's backing) get sheets and files of their own, so they can be cut from a darker sheet.

Parts: 0
Sheets: 0
Assembly: Press-fit

Holding tabs· parts stay in the sheet, snap them outmm

How many to cut

Free with an account. Opens straight in xTool Studio with cut, score and engrave layers, positioned on your bed at real size.

Assembly

1Each slice is scored with its number (S1 is the leftmost, seen from the front); ribs are R1 at the bottom up to the top.
2Stand the middle slice up and slide the ribs into it from the back, lowest rib first, until each notch bottoms out.
3Add the slices outward from the middle, alternating sides, sliding each onto the ribs from the front.
4Every slice has two tabs on its back edge, one low and one high, and the wall plate has a matching pair of slots, so each slice sits square to the wall. Press the assembled head onto the plate so all the tabs seat at once; the fit is the same press-fit as the ribs.
5No glue is needed. A drop in each slot before pressing makes it permanent.
6Hidden hanger: two slices (marked on the plate) have longer tabs that come out through the back of the plate. Press the small keyhole plate onto their ends, keyhole slot pointing up. To hang, put a screw in the wall, pass its head through the round hole and let the head drop so the screw rides up the slot; the head sits hidden in the gap behind the plate.
7Desk stand: slide the back bar through the holes near the back of the two side pieces so they stand parallel. Then lower the front, with the two wolves, onto the side pieces from above: its notches drop into the notches at their front tips. Finally lower the head's plate into the two angled slots. It leans back a little and lifts straight out; the same head hangs on the wall any time.