Check the design before buying material
First follow the airspace design guide. Read the piece, level, height and rod counts in the Aviation panel, and inspect every airspace level in Cut layers. Plates and tiers leave open space between shelves; solid volumes use many more sheets and can be much heavier.
Review warnings about merged levels, omitted pieces, tall stacks, support reach and acrylic stock. The software checks geometry; it does not establish glue strength or a safe mechanical load. Test a representative piece and joint before cutting the full project.
Set acrylic and rod dimensions
Measure your acrylic and enter Acrylic thickness. Calibrate Acrylic kerf separately from the wood's laser kerf. Choose Rod shape, then enter Rod diameter or Rod width for the stock you intend to use. Socket clearance adds room for the fit, and Socket depth sets how far a rod seats into the terrain.
Cut a socket and hole coupon in your actual material, check the fit with your rods, and adjust the settings before regenerating. Keep kerf compensation in one place: if TopoStack compensates the files, disable a second compensation in your laser software. Use processing settings suitable for the exact material and your machine.
Choose how the rods meet the pieces
| Rods meet pieces | How to assemble | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Glued segments | Short rods join adjacent levels or rise from the terrain. Their engraved outlines locate the seats on the acrylic, and where a rod continues to the next level it stands on the same mark, so the column reads as one straight line. | Match each rod's exported length and keep the piece level while the adhesive cures. |
| Through holes | Rods rise through holes in the pieces they carry. The guide identifies the column, rod and each supported piece's height. | Slide pieces on before fixing the top. Follow any additional segmented supports shown in the guide. |
A through-rod design may still need short segments where a single rod cannot reach safely. Follow the generated map for your project rather than assuming that every support runs through the whole stack.
Download and separate the jobs
Choose Complete project in Export to keep the wood, airspace, instructions and settings together. Airspace downloads the airspace bundle alone. File names identify the material, color and level; levels count from the bottom upward.
| File | Use it for |
|---|---|
my-map-airspace-blue-02.svg | The blue acrylic pieces on level 02. Other jobs use clear or magenta. |
…-airspace-blue-master.svg | The combined layout for that acrylic color. Check the layout against your stock and laser bed. |
…-engrave.svg | The matching engraving companion. Use either the panel's engraving or this companion, once. |
my-map-airspace-backing.svg | A backing sheet when rods seat through the bottom terrain layer. Cut it from the terrain's material. |
my-map-assembly-guide.html | Open in a browser for the rod cut list, piece maps and the assembly order. It also prints. |
README.txt and my-map-project.json | The fabrication settings, scale, source cycle and a record of the generated design. |
Follow the LightBurn workflow or the equivalent checks in your laser software. SVG processing colors identify cut, score and engraving operations; they do not identify which color of acrylic to buy.
Build from the terrain upward
- Cut and label the terrain and acrylic pieces, keeping each level's parts together. Process engraving once and check the sockets before removing the pieces from the job.
- Assemble the wooden terrain using its exported layer instructions. Add the backing sheet when the guide calls for one.
- Cut the rods to the lengths in the guide, allowing extra stock for saw cuts. Keep their rod IDs with them.
- Dry-fit the lowest acrylic level and its supports using the piece and rod maps. Match piece IDs such as
A1-1and the column/rod references in the guide. - For through rods, use the guide's heights measured from the terrain face at each rod. For glued segments, locate each end using the engraved seat outline. Keep every shelf level.
- Work upward in the guide's order. Some solid-volume sheets rest directly on the acrylic below; retain every extra support that the guide specifies.
- Confirm the complete dry fit, then bond with an adhesive appropriate for your acrylic and rods. Keep the assembly supported for the adhesive's specified curing time.
Use the engraved sector names, altitude references and piece maps to identify shelves. Some narrow regions cannot fit a full label; the guide and saved project retain the design's references.
Keep the source and scale with the finished piece
Keep the exported FAA cycle, ceiling cap and vertical exaggeration with the model. A ceiling cap truncates the representation; merged levels and terrain steps simplify it. The model does not show current airspace activity, NOTAMs or temporary flight restrictions. It is decorative and not for navigation.
For settings and file details, see the airspace settings reference and airspace export files.