Add Dogbones in LightBurn

How to Add Dogbones in LightBurn

LightBurn is laser design and control software. It does not create CNC router pocket toolpaths or compensate for an end mill. MillMage is the separate CNC router product from LightBurn Software.

Use this page to inspect a relieved outline in a laser workflow or transfer vector geometry between applications. For a milled joint, use CNC CAM and the same cutter diameter as the generator. A laser kerf is not an end-mill diameter.

LightBurn is laser software. Generate this outline only if you intentionally need router-style relief geometry in a laser drawing.
Download SVG without the reference layer and import it into LightBurn for inspection.
Measure the imported outer extent against the output size shown here before any operation.
For CNC milling, use separate CNC CAM such as MillMage. Laser kerf is not cutter compensation.

Pocket preview

True circular arcs

Corner 1 detail

6.35 mm bit

Original outlineRelieved contourGrid: 10 mm

Toggle corners

Geometry ready101.86 mm × 51.86 mmOuter extent · reliefs included

Finished contour.
Create the toolpath in CAM.
DXF: choose mm.

1 Shape

Units

Width (mm)Height (mm)

2 CutterBit diameter (mm)

3 Relief style

Advanced options

Add a reference layer to SVGOriginal outline and cutter circles. Delete the guides layer before CAM. DXF is unaffected.

Import the finished contour and create a normal inside/pocket toolpath with the same bit. Do not manually offset the contour by the cutter radius again. Verify dimensions and dry-run before cutting.

When a dogbone belongs in a laser drawing

A router leaves an internal radius because its round cutter cannot reach a square corner. Laser cutting has a different beam and kerf, so a router-sized dogbone is usually unnecessary in a laser-only joint.

Keep reliefs if you intentionally want to inspect or cut that existing outline. Do not enter a laser kerf as the bit diameter and expect the generator to design a laser fit.

Import and check the physical size

Download SVG with the reference layer off, then use LightBurn File → Import. Check the selected outline width and height against the output size shown by the generator, including the relief bulges.

For a 100 × 50 mm rectangle and a 6.35 mm cutter, minimal relief produces an outer extent of about 101.860 × 51.860 mm. The nominal pocket width is still 100 mm; the outer extent includes the corner relief.

SVG downloads carry physical width and height in millimetres and a matching viewBox. DXF R12 coordinates are millimetres but the format is unitless: select millimetres in the importer and measure again.

Laser operations and CNC operations are different

In LightBurn, choose an appropriate laser layer operation for your material and verify the laser preview. Do not look for an end-mill pocket operation or treat laser kerf adjustment as CNC cutter compensation.

For milling, take the finished contour to CNC CAM. MillMage offers CNC Pockets and Profiles according to its official product announcement. Set the matching cutter in your CAM, generate the toolpath there, and inspect it before cutting.

This site has not tested these files in a particular LightBurn or MillMage version or on a machine. Supported file formats and correct toolpaths must be verified in your own software; there is no version or machining compatibility guarantee.

If the imported size or outline is wrong

Stop before cutting. Re-download the original file and compare the outer dimensions. A factor near 3.7795 can suggest confusion between CSS pixels and millimetres, but it does not prove a particular software version is at fault.

If a second outline or cutter circles appear, the optional SVG reference layer was enabled. Delete that guides layer before any machine operation, or download again with it off.

If your input is rejected here, save one closed straight-line path in your drawing app. Curves, multiple contours and open paths are outside this generator’s current input scope.