just wondering

[Mct010]

I was just wondering, if you have a simple or difficult drawing, but only had to do a bolt pattern and some other top faceing and boring, do you all just do some points and forget all the other construction lines and do the toolpaths to that only? seems to me it would save time.

 

good example would be like a complex casting. say with just a little side milling and taped holes.

 

thoughts, comments?

 

Mike

[connormac]

I agree with you. I just do the bolt pattern or the single feature. I've seen people spend a lot of time modeling a part in solids, when it wasn't really necessary. I say bring out the big guns when they are warranted. Remember the rule KISS.

[Joels]

i use points and get it done ASAP

[kinglouie V]

connarmac-

 

you have solids?

[Guest]

I draw out the entire view in 2D.

 

The reason I do this, is all the set up info I generate within the mc file gives the operators a view of what the part is going to look like and where the zeros are as well as clamp location and any other pertinent information for the set-up.

[Brendan P]

I too would just do a quick 2D view of the side to be machined including clamp or anything needed to set up the job.

Quick and easy works for me.

[medaq]

Have to agree with at least the 2d view, And really only in case the work will repeat in the future. Will be hard for you and your operators to figure out what was going on a year ago with no references to its location...

 

Jim

[connormac]

I'm just talking about the premise Mike gave. A complex casting, you could just draw a square for the outside and the bolt pattern.Your X0 Y0 is shown. You could put your clamps on and everything. Without drawing everything.

[Thad]

I only draw what I NEED.

 

How's that surfacing coming, Mike?

 

Thad

[Mct010]

How's that surfacing coming, Mike?

 

I figured that the lines from the solids aren't going to work out right they pick up other places they sgouldn't

[Thad]

They *should* work OK. They're just edge curves from the solid.

 

Thad

[Dave_noob_user]

I thought I would toss my 2 cents in. For depth of threads, usually 2 and a half times the dia of tap is your max strength of the thread. Anything more is useless unless its a through tapped hole.

[kinglouie V]

sometimes, when importing a customer file that

is a solid and I only need this or that off of it

I'll sometimes copy edge curves to another level pertinent to the toolpath at hand. I Absolutely love Solid drill but even that has bugs. (one I know of) But I'll always try to stay effecient at what ever it is I'm doing. Other times, when I need help seeing an obscure print I'll piece it together as a model for my own sake of clarity. then machine off edge curves as stated above.

[Thad]

quote:

---

For depth of threads, usually 2 and a half times the dia of tap is your max strength of the thread.

---

I thought it was 1.5 times.

 

Thad

[Guest]

quote:

---

I thought it was 1.5 times.

---

Last time I checked it still was.

[Nathan G. Baldwin]

I usually draw out 2-D so that I can have some visual reference to the part. It also helps in cases where I might have to do different tool paths onthe part later. It's hard for me to go back to a file later and know what I'm looking at when it's onmly a few drill points and a toolpath.

 

Thanks

[kinglouie V]

I also like to save customer model files

as stl files so I can run the true solid

verification. I like to see the tool "skim"

the part and check for gouges. very handy.

 

We also have customers that prefer machining

to model than the print. If there's a discrepancy

then the print is marked up.

 

[ 06-27-2005, 11:23 AM: Message edited by: kinglouie ]

[connormac]

Luo,

1st of all if you have a model, it kind of throws you out of the question which was the topic of this thread. Mike was asking about how much needed to be drawn. Everybody who replied to the thread made the assumption that a customer model file was not available.

 

Next, the person I was talking about was another programmer that I knew. I personally saw this programmer spend 5+ hours making a solid model of a piece of 1/4 x 1 x 14" long flat bar with some holes and programming it. I see that as a waste of time. You know, $300 program for a $10 part. Quit taking every thing I say on this board as a jab directed towards you. I don't have the time to keep up with, nor do I care how little or how much you model stuff!!!

If you have something to say, say it here. Not some other obscure post.

 

quote:

---

Nah, I'll be to busy building useless models to build toolpath from

---

I never said that solids was a waste.

I make it a point not to post on a thread you have replied to first. But it seems that lately you have made it a point to chime in after me once I post a reply. I have never said anything negative about you or to you on this forum. I was already a member here when you joined. Anybody who reads my posts knows what my main areas of interest are.

 

I made one point about solid drill and you would have thought I said MasterCAM was a piece of crap. And I never said that solid drill wasn't a useful feature. Then, when you couldn't think of a valid argument, you had to try to put me down like I didn't know how to draw.

 

quote:

---

if solid drill isn't your forte then you could use

auto arc drill but if you can't draw I guess it still won't help you.

---

We are all here to learn and help people. So quit the petty BS.

 

Sorry that the rest of you had to hear this. I have finally had enough of the snide remarks.

[Slixmix]

quote:

---

ConnorMac

Proto-type CNC Machinist & Programmer MasterCAM 9.1 sp2,level 2

---

From your siggy, I take it you don't have solids?

[kinglouie V]

REKD,

 

are you out of popcorn??

 

 

 

[ 06-28-2005, 08:48 AM: Message edited by: kinglouie ]

[Mct010]

hmmm, well thanks to those the replyed to my question.

 

This is what I thought would be the way to go, but wasn't sure what the pros do, I was right in my thinking when it comes to saving time instead of drawing the whole part.

 

Thanks again guys and gals Ü

Mike

[Storkman]

Mike, I like to model the whole part if time is not a holdup. It really helps if you ever need to come back to it. I have had customers ask for my model to verify we ran it to their specs. If you don't have one this could be a problem.

[kinglouie V]

This is one example of how

I like to use customer solid

files.

 

[kinglouie V]