Is 2017 faster for you?

[Matthew Hajicek - Singularity]

Now that 2017 has been around for a bit and people have had a chance to get used to it, I'd like to know how it's treating you.

[jlw™]

2017 seems faster in generating a path.  However, when arrow keying thru the ops tree it is significantly slower.

 

It also does NOT like regenerating a 5ax path that came from an X9 file.  Nope.  None at all.

 

Having said all that, if I had to go back to X9 I'd be pissed.  If I had to go back to X8 I'd find another job.

[JAMMAN]

I've only been using it for a couple weeks and so far I'm really liking it. I like being able to change attribs and levels in right click. I even set my 3 most popular colors for wireframe, solids and surfaces. You can select any entity and change its color regardless if it is a line, solid, surface, drafting, whatever it just changes.

 

Have a big 5 axis project next week that will tell the tale for sure.

[Machineguy]

I like it. It does take getting used to, but is been stable so far.

The best part for me is the enhancements to the lathe tool paths. It took 20 min out of a production pgm alone.

[Tim Johnson]

I like the graphics and very clear printing. I'm fairly dialed in on where the icons that I need are and they a large enough that I don't have to aim but there's a whole lot of mouse movement and a whole lot of clicks. I do prefer my 100+ icons in X9. I am now saving my files before I go into the tool path manager due to the constant crashes. For some reason after a crash I'm losing my setup sheet path and have to restore it. All in all right now I consider X9 as the faster version to get jobs out the door. I'm sure the next update will be better though.

[BrianP.]

Still slogging along with it. Still find it very cumbersome and frustrating. So many things that I used to be able to do faster now take longer. Opening recent files is a pain. click on the down arrow hover pointer over folder icon and wait for drop down. Changing colors and levels right click no longer works. Escape key on some functions does not work any more. Planes manager starting in X9 to me is horrible. Used to be able to orient part in top view then use bottom, left, right, front and back for next ops being able to choose where origin is. Now have to create a copy before being able to select an origin other that system origin. The last 2 shops I have come into starting the milling departments and recommending Mastercam. Always have thought it was great and easy to use regardless of small bugs. In a program this huge you got to expect somethings to be missed. That being said I think I would have a hard time being adamant about Mastercam again. Would be much more willing to try a different Cam package than I was in the past. 

 

JM2C

[Motorsports-X]

like the tooling strategies...still hate the layout. 

 

i mean.. the simplest explanation of "bad"  UI, is the chaining window that pops up... if you say you werent confused the first time you saw it, you're lying.  Everything needs to have better labeling, functions that are not used need to be gone, and not even visible.  if you select and option that enables other options THEN those should pop up. (greyed out is ok,but get rid of the clutter entirely)

 

and the icons are so tiny they are practically useless.  I have a 4k monitor and I have to move over to the 1080 one sometimes just because im tired of straining my eyes. 

 

that said.. wire frame is gorgeous in 4k. 

 

 

i still prefer mastercam for solidworks.  

[M. Anderson]

.... and recommending Mastercam. Always have thought it was great and easy to use regardless of small bugs.... .... That being said I think I would have a hard time being adamant about Mastercam again. Would be much more willing to try a different Cam package than I was in the past. 

 

JM2C

 

 

THIS x 1000

 

.002

[Mick]

Went back to X9 for lathe. Until the +D+Z issue is fixed, I'm not using it for turning. For milling it is ok, no faster than X9 though, imho.

 

The ribbon bar, well, meh..

[Thad]

 

Having said all that, if I had to go back to X9 I'd be pissed.  If I had to go back to X8 I'd find another job.

 

Maybe it's the different type of work we do or how we use the software differently, but I don't think there's much of a difference between X8 and X9.

[JeremyV]

Been using the ribbon bar and right mouse menu items that is customized to my needs.

 

 

2017 is so much more slower than X9.

 

Saves slower, loads slower, loads parts slower.

 

I did find the rotate planes icon and made it a ribbon button for ease of use.

 

Printer defaults keep resetting every time I load mastercam 2017.

 

When loading solid models, 2017 doesn't load the default machine.

[JeremyV]

Went back to X9 for lathe. Until the +D+Z issue is fixed, I'm not using it for turning. For milling it is ok, no faster than X9 though, imho.

 

The ribbon bar, well, meh..

 

I don't have this issue and I have the machine to load default at D+, Z+ with turret set to upper left when machine is selected.  Even if the DZ plane goes away, I have a button to reselect this.

 

  Not sure what the issue is.... but I bet there are ways to fix this.

[infinit119]

I don't like 2017.

[JeremyV]

I don't have this issue and I have the machine to load default at D+, Z+ with turret set to upper left when machine is selected.  Even if the DZ plane goes away, I have a button to reselect this.

 

  Not sure what the issue is.... but I bet there are ways to fix this.

 

I'll quote myself:

 

I'm having the same issue already >.<

 

On top of that... I try and backplot c-axis tools; mastercam acts wonky in away it does not want to back plot in the viewing screen, but half of it is cut off because the rest of it is up somewhere at the top..........

[Mick]

I don't have this issue and I have the machine to load default at D+, Z+ with turret set to upper left when machine is selected.  Even if the DZ plane goes away, I have a button to reselect this.

 

  Not sure what the issue is.... but I bet there are ways to fix this.

 

Apparently they're working on it, so it is definitely an issue.

[gcode]

I've had VTL files where the +D+Z toolplane breaks.

You can select it, but it does not work.

The file is OK and posts good code, but working on a lathe file without +D+Z is a pain.

I have managed to send QC some files that can reproduce the error, so hopefully it will get fixed

[JeremyV]

Does anyone else have an issue with chamfer cutters showing up as an invalid tool?

 

2017 needs a "flat" called out for any chamfer mill, otherwise it shows up as an invalid tool.

[Guest]

Does anyone else have an issue with chamfer cutters showing up as an invalid tool?

 

2017 needs a "flat" called out for any chamfer mill, otherwise it shows up as an invalid tool.

 

Yup give it a .0001

[JeremyV]

Yup give it a .0001

 

Thats what i did.... I was actually waiting for them to fix that.... if they're not..... ugh.

 

 

I also forgot this one:

 

When changing tool numbers on metric taps only, mastercam 2017 automatically changes the tap name to Right Hand tap.  This happens when you edit the tool itself...............

[Guest]

Thats what i did.... I was actually waiting for them to fix that.... if they're not..... ugh.

 

 

I also forgot this one:

 

When changing tool numbers on metric taps only, mastercam 2017 automatically changes the tap name to Right Hand tap.  This happens when you edit the tool itself...............

 

Another bug..

 

If you head over to the official Mastercam Forum you can see all this stuff is being brought up and duscussed

[Sticky]

 

 

 

i still prefer mastercam for solidworks.  

 

Are there any actual changes to mcfsw2017 compared to mcfswX9? I've been using the X9 version which I am fairly happy with, and haven't seen any reason to switch to mcfsw2017 yet.

[crazy^millman]

Thats what i did.... I was actually waiting for them to fix that.... if they're not..... ugh.

 

 

I also forgot this one:

 

When changing tool numbers on metric taps only, mastercam 2017 automatically changes the tap name to Right Hand tap.  This happens when you edit the tool itself...............

 

Does it for drills and reamers also. Real pain getting everything named and then go post code to find out everything got changed because the tool manager decided it knows best not the programmer who took the time to name it what they wanted it named.

[JeremyV]

Does it for drills and reamers also. Real pain getting everything named and then go post code to find out everything got changed because the tool manager decided it knows best not the programmer who took the time to name it what they wanted it named.

Good to know...

 

 

...And I was told by a co-worker who told me 2017 was bug free.

[Guest]

Good to know...

 

 

...And I was told by a co-worker who told me 2017 was bug free.

 

Perhaps for the way he works, it is......but.....

 

If someone EVER tells you a piece of software is bug free, they are lying....

 

Every piece of software ever written and that will be written will have bugs

 

If you wait for a piece of bug free software, you are going to be waiting a LONG, LONG time

[crazy^millman]

Don't get me started on Windows 10.