How to Add Contours to a Shape on 2D Design

here is a quick instructables on how to add a contour to any shape in 2D design

contours are particularly useful in laser cutting if a tight fit is needed

draw a shape however technical you need it to be. mine is a simple shape made out of two circles and lines joining them, but yours could be more technical.

click the contour button on the left hand tool menu and a box will pop up.

contour spacing specifies how far away you want the contour to be. i have set mine to 1.5 mm so that you can instantly see the difference but for laser cutting you can use measurement under 1mm

max number of contours is fairly self explanatory and just specifies the max number of contours

the option below that selects either 'tool path' or 'graphical path' this selects what path you want to follow. seeing as i have drawn the shape myself i leave at the default setting 'tool path'. if you were contouring a picture for any reason you can select 'graphical path

the next step is a s easy as selecting the side you want to contour and clicking. if your contour is less that 1mm then you might have to zoom in to see your results

have fun contouring!

PS this is my first instructable so if you have any improvements i could make then please comment below

Thanks