How to Make (Almost) Anything / Week 02

From CAD to acrylic.

This week I set up my project website, practiced parametric CAD, tested the laser cutter, and turned a digital puzzle into a clear acrylic object.

Project managementComputer-controlled cutting

← Back to Home

An assembled clear acrylic puzzle standing in sunlight and casting long shadows — The finished puzzle, assembled from laser-cut acrylic pieces.

Week 2 / Project Management, CAD & Laser CuttingScroll to explore ↓

01 / Project management

Document the work.

Before making anything, I needed a reliable way to save and share what I was doing.

Git and Forgejo

I configured Git and SSH access for the CBA Forgejo server. The SSH connection took some troubleshooting, but I eventually cloned my repository to my computer and could work locally.

Building the site

I started with plain HTML so I could understand the structure of the site before trying a generator such as Hugo. I built a home page and linked it to a folder for each week's documentation.

Screenshot of my CBA Forgejo repository with an index page and publishing workflow — FIG 01My repository on the CBA Forgejo server.

02 / Parametric CAD

Designing a 3D puzzle.

I had used CAD briefly to design microfluidic channels, but I wanted to learn it more systematically.

Following the tutorial and recitation, I designed a 3D puzzle in Fusion using parameters rather than fixed dimensions. The short recording shows how the model came together; the interactive view lets you explore its shape.

The modeling process

VIDEO 01Modeling the puzzle in CAD. Open video ↗

Explore the model

MODEL 01Interactive Fusion view. Open in a new tab ↗

Fusion parameters panel showing the puzzle's Height set to 50 mm and Thickness set to 4.2 mm — FIG 02Key dimensions in the Fusion parameters panel.

One model / adjustable dimensions

Change a value.
Update the design.

I defined the overall height and material thickness as parameters. That made it easier to adjust the puzzle for the acrylic sheet without rebuilding every part of the model.

Height 50 mmThickness 4.2 mm

03 / Laser cutter tests

Learning what the settings do.

After the lab's safety training, we tested focus, kerf, power, and speed. We also looked at how different laser systems and materials call for different settings. Cardboard cut easily; thicker acrylic needed more power and a slower pass.

Cardboard focus test with eight numbered circles — Test 01 / FocusFinding a sharp line

Cardboard kerf test with circles labeled from 0.0 to 0.7 — Test 02 / KerfAccounting for material loss

Red acrylic scoring matrix labeled with power percentages and movement speeds — Test 03 / ScoreComparing marks on acrylic

Cardboard cut matrix with increasing charring toward the high-power side — Test 04 / CutSeeing the cost of excess energy

What I learned

Focus and kerf affect precision, while power and speed affect the result. A test cut is worth doing before a new setting of cutter and materials.

04 / Individual project

Making the puzzle real.

I wanted to hold the CAD puzzle in my hands, so I cut its panels from transparent acrylic.

I engraved the words first, then cut the outlines on a CO₂ laser. These were the settings I used for this sheet and machine:

Engrave10% power
500 mm/s

Cut90% power
19 mm/s

Transparent acrylic sheet inside the laser cutter during fabrication — FIG 03Cutting the puzzle panels from transparent acrylic.

Clear acrylic puzzle panels laid out flat, including one engraved with Xiangtao Shi and HTMAA 2026 — FIG 04The cut and engraved faces before assembly.

Assembled transparent acrylic puzzle photographed in sunlight — FIG 05The finished puzzle in sunlight.

The symmetry made assembly harder than I expected since several orientations seemed possible. But once the pieces fit together, it looks beautiful under the sunlight

05 / More experiments

A few more things to try.

After the puzzle, I kept experimenting with cutting and engraving. I made a small leaf cutout, an MIT-themed engraving, and a red acrylic name tag for my desk.

A maple-leaf cutout beside an MIT engraving on the laser cutter bed — FIG 06A leaf cutout and an MIT-themed engraving.

Red acrylic desk name tag engraved with Xiangtao Shi — FIG 07A name tag for my desk.

Still to do

I did not get to the vinyl cutter this week. I plan to return to that part of the assignment later.

For the website, I also want to try Hugo and set up automatic publishing when I push updates.