Guides: when a file will not cut

Every guide here answers one real failure the way we would answer a support mail: what happened, why, and how you fix it in the tool you already use. DXF Medic appears at the end of each page, because checking a file is faster than reading about it. The fixes work without it.

DXF imports at the wrong size

25.4x too big or too small: the units problem and its fixes.

Shape not closed (LightBurn)

Fills refuse? Find and close the gaps you cannot see.

Open paths in SheetCAM or VCarve

Why CAM cannot offset an open contour, and the fix.

Laser cuts every line twice

Stacked duplicates or outlined strokes: telling them apart.

DXF imports blank

Nothing shows up: four causes that look identical.

Splines vanish or turn jagged

SPLINE entities, and how to convert them the right way.

Text missing after import

TEXT and MTEXT are not geometry. Convert to outlines first.

Self-intersecting vectors

Figure-8 contours break fills and offsets. Find the crossing.

SVG imports at the wrong size

The 75 percent shrink: 72 vs 96 dpi and Responsive exports.

SVG imports blank

Glowforge sees no artwork: live text, images, clip paths.

Fusion 360 DXF exports

The export route that avoids cm scaling, splines and doubles.

DWG to DXF, free

Convert with the ODA File Converter, then check the result.