Left & Right Lathe Form Tools (8.1.1)

[Ron_Roy]

Hello All,

I am cutting an O-Ring on the ID of a part and it will resemble a glorified dove tail when finished. It requires that I undercut a groove on the left and the right with form tools.

I have two form tools which are mirrored - a left hand tool which undercuts the left side of the groove and a right cutting tool which obviously will cut the other side of the groove.

Now the question. Is it possible to have the tool compensation mirrored, (lathe tools - parameters - compensation) so that when I cut the compensation will come from the "front" of each tool instead of the front of one tool and the rear of another?

Thanks,

Ron

[Andy]

If I understand you correctly,

1. you have 2 separate tools.

2. one is left one is right.

3. one tool cuts to the left of groove and the other to the right.

So the "front" of each tool is the business end of each tool?

If thats the case each tool in the tool definition would be checked the same and the "front" of each tool would cut respective sides of the groove.

Andy

[Andy]

Ron,

Did you find a solution yet?

Andy

[Ron_Roy]

Hi Andy,

Sorry about the delay in responding, I was at a Solid Edge seminar last week.

If you are looking at the groove face on (so to speak) the undercut on the left uses the normal "front" cutting in the plunge parameters. Whenever I program the undercut on the right I have to program it to "start cut on tool back corner" in the plunge parameters - even though it is cutting in the front of the custom tool.

This is kind of hard to explain in a written format. If you look in the parameters section of the lathe tool set up you will see 4 choices in the "compensation" area. This as the area I was speaking of earlier, I don't think there is a way to tell Mcam which edge of the tool I want to be the business end.

I hope I havn't muddied the waters by trying to clarify it a little more.

Thanks for the help though,

Ron

[Andy]

Are you using one tool to do both right and left?

[gcode]

Ron,

Check out the create custom tool procedure

You can draw your tool(s) in 2d geometry

and save as an mc8 (mill) file

Make sure you use 2 colors. 1 for cutting edges

and one for non cutting.

Use your MC8 file as the tool geomtry file

on the Geometry page of custom tools

On the geometry page you'd want

choice #6 in both fields and the normal compensation type on the parameters page for your left hand tool.

The Tool Clearance/Scan geometry feature can solve some geometry problems.

I learned to use the Custom tool feature by playing aroung with regular tool geomtry from the tool libraries and working my way up to custom stuff.

Go to the MC8 directory of the ftp site and download "micro bb 230500.mc8" . It is a file of

a MICRO100 solid carbide boring bar.

You can use this file to create a custom boring bar. The procedure will be the same for your

left and rignt hand grooving tools just a lillte harder

[Ron_Roy]

Good Morning Gentlemen,

Yes Andy I am using two tools - a left hand & a right hand tool. They cut each side of the internal dove tail - it's for a special ORing.

Thanks Gcode I'll give it a try - if I can get it to work I can keep a library of tooling that I can use and modify.

Just to satisfy my curiosity what's the weather like over in your neck of the woods. Up here its a balmy 5 degrees celcius (about 40 far.). I'm saying balmy because last year at this time it was -24 degrees!

Take care,

Ron

P.S. How do you get onto the FTP Site?

[ 12-11-2001: Message edited by: Ron_Roy ]

[gcode]

Hi Ron,

At the moment we are in the low 40's and it will be a sunny day when the sun comes up. This is about as cold a sit gets around here.

I'm originally from Colorado and if I never see snow again it won't bother me a bit

Here's the ftp site http://www.emastercam.com/ftp.html

[ 12-11-2001: Message edited by: gcode ]

[Ron_Roy]

Thanks for the site.

I'm afraid I need the white stuff for a "proper" Christmas

Have a Good One,

Ron