Free, easy software for your Genmitsu 3018
Your 3018 runs GRBL and is ready to cut. What it needs is a design and a G-code file. Surfacecraft makes both in your browser: draw or import an SVG, pick a bit, and download G-code sized for the 3018's bed. Nothing to install, nothing to expire.
For the 3018-PRO, 3018-PROVer and PROVer V2. Nothing to install. Mac, Windows, Linux and Chromebook. Updated .- Work area
- 260 × 155 mm (PRO and PROVer), 290 × 180 mm (PROVer V2)
- Firmware
- GRBL 1.1f (3018-PRO); GRBL on the PROVer
- Spindle
- A 775 DC spindle (9,000 rpm on the PRO, 10,000 on the PROVer) that GRBL controls with M3 S…, so speeds go in the G-code.
- Preset
- Genmitsu 3018-PROVer
- Output
- G21 G90 G94 · M3 S… · one .nc per bit
What to know about the Genmitsu 3018
Small bed, small spindle
The 3018 is happiest engraving, V-carving signs and cutting thin wood, acrylic and PCBs. Surfacecraft keeps every job inside the bed (260 × 155 mm on the PRO and PROVer) and picks gentle feeds for a light machine.
Those 20° V-bits in the box
The PROVer comes with 20° engraving bits (0.1 mm tip, ⅛″ shank). Choose a V-bit in Surfacecraft and it works out the depth from the line width, so text comes out crisp instead of chewed.
Limit switches and an offline controller
The PROVer comes with limit switches, an emergency stop and an offline controller. Home it, then zero on your stock where the G-code header says.
Genmitsu 3018 feeds and speeds to start with
Starting points for solid carbide 2-flute end mills, worked out for the Genmitsu 3018-PROVer preset and kept under its 1,000 mm/min top speed. They're the numbers Cut Studio suggests when you pick the bit and material.
| Material | ⅛″ 2-flute end mill |
|---|---|
| Softwoodpine, spruce, fir | 1,000 mm/min* 4,629 rpm · 1.51 mm per pass |
| Hardwoodsoft maple, cherry, walnut | 1,000 mm/min* 6,097 rpm · 1.51 mm per pass |
| Plywoodbaltic birch, birch plywood, cabinet plywood | 1,000 mm/min* 5,000 rpm · 1.51 mm per pass |
| MDF / particle boardmdf, hdf, particle board | 1,000 mm/min* 4,166 rpm · 1.51 mm per pass |
| Acrylicacrylic, cast acrylic, plexiglass | 875 mm/min 6,250 rpm · 1.27 mm per pass |
Chiploads come from bit makers' published ranges (Onsrud, Amana Tool, Whiteside), kept at the gentle end for hobby machines. * The machine's top speed holds the feed here, so the spindle is slowed to keep the chips thick. Every machine and bit is a little different: listen for chatter on a test cut and adjust.
From box to first cut
Surfacecraft makes the G-code. A sender runs it: the one that came with your kit, gSender or Universal Gcode Sender (all free), or Surfacecraft itself over USB with Pro.
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01
Create a free account Open Cut Studio in your browser. Nothing to download.
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02
Add your machine Pick the Genmitsu 3018-PROVer preset. Check the top speed against your manual.
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03
Make a design Draw text and shapes or import an SVG. Give each shape a depth, a cut and a bit.
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04
Check the 3D preview It's built from the real G-code, so what you see is what the bit will do.
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05
Download and run Load the bit the file's header names, zero where it says, and run it in your sender.
Genmitsu 3018 test G-code
A first cut to check your machine before you design anything: a 40 × 30 mm pocket and a 40 × 30 mm outline, both 3 mm deep, with a ⅛″ 2-flute end mill in pine. Made by Cut Studio with the Genmitsu 3018-PROVer preset, at the softwood numbers in the table above, and it runs in about 3 minutes.
Clamp a piece of pine at least 100 × 60 × 6 mm. Zero X and Y on its front-left corner and Z on its top, then run the file in your sender.
A V-carved name sign
Type a name, pick the 20° V-bit from the kit, set a 3 mm depth on a scrap of pine. It's the classic first 3018 job, and it takes about ten minutes to set up.
Genmitsu 3018 software questions
SainSmart ships the 3018-PROVer with Candle, a free program that sends G-code to the machine, and a 3-month Carveco Maker subscription for design. Candle runs the machine but doesn't design anything, and the subscription ends. Surfacecraft is free design and G-code software you can keep using.
Design in Surfacecraft instead. It runs in the browser, so it works on a Mac too (SainSmart notes Carveco Maker is Windows-only). Draw or import SVGs, set each shape's depth and bit, and export G-code for the 3018. The Free plan has no time limit.
The Candle 1.17 that SainSmart links to doesn't support macOS Catalina or later, and SainSmart recommends Universal Gcode Sender there. Newer Candle releases (10.11.1 and later, on Candle's GitHub page) include a macOS download. gSender and Universal Gcode Sender are free and run on Mac too. With Pro, Surfacecraft sends the job over USB itself from Chrome or Edge.
Yes. Designing, toolpaths, the 3D preview and G-code export are on the Free plan with no time limit. Pro adds sending jobs straight to the machine, more machines, AI tools and commercial use.
Yes. The 3018 runs GRBL 1.1 and Surfacecraft writes GRBL G-code. Start from the Genmitsu 3018 preset and check the spindle range ($30) against your machine.
Free software for other machines
Your Genmitsu 3018 is ready. Now it has software.
Design and G-code are free, with no time limit. Send to your machine over USB with Pro.