SolidCAM for SolidWorks

[mig]

Looks like people not complete satisfied by Mastercam X , so they start to look on side .

This how it works : Chip fish , bad sup.

Regards

[Keith @ Solid Code Solutions]

Crazy Russian

[mig]

Yes i am

[Keith @ Solid Code Solutions]

Who knew?

[Watcher]

quote:

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Speaking of CAD... Anyone here use Pro Engineer? It is definitely a better apple than Solidworks

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Hey Bob, working with WF3 here also, but sincerely I don't have this impression. Definitely I don't want to say what is better, what is not... I sincerely respect your opinion. Certainly your reality is different than mine. PRO/E is a good CAD, that's really true, but do you believe that it still better than SW? Honestly I think that in these days they are in the same level, don't you think? The SW interface is nicer, IMHO.

But this is a really interesting feedback. In your opinion, which are the advantages of PRO/E over SW? (Please leave the PDM/PLM solutions aside - I mean in CAD/DRAFT/ASSEMBLY/etc...)

Nowadays I don't work with SW anymore, but when I had my first contact with it, 5 years ago, in that time it was possible to use shaded views in the 2D drawings, and PTC only added this in WF3 2 years ago, if my memory serves me correctly. I know that is not a big differential, but it is just a reference.... Honestly I don't think that PRO/E worth the money, if you need only a CAD solution (CAD/Cabling/Piping/Welding/Assembly/Drafting/etc...) SW Welding for example smokes PRO/E welding. For the past 3/4 years PTC did not accomplished any reasonable change in this package, while SW improved a lot this portion of their software.

 

Just my 2C

[YoDoug®]

quote:

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Speaking of CAD... Anyone here use Pro Engineer? It is definitely a better apple than Solidworks

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We have had several instances when vendors that use Solidworks could not create the same fillets and loft/blends that Pro/E will. Pro/E also has better free form surface/solids capabilities.

 

I would guess that most users, dare I say 90%, don't design at this level, but if you do you will appreciate the power of Pro/E.

 

However, for the 90% stuff, Solidworks is faster and easier in my opinion.

[Keith @ Solid Code Solutions]

quote:

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This how it works : Chip fish , bad sup.

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Cheap Fish = Bad Supper

[mig]

Yes Keith ,

That what i mean . Thank you for correction.

Sometimes cheap (over sea) labor cost much more.

Regards

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

Surface Modeling is definitely NOT one of Solidworks strong points. My friends that use Solidworkd that need great surfacing capability usually use Rhino then import their surfaces from Rhino into Solidworks. This is an excellent alternative to the expense of Pro/E but... it's yet another product you'll have ot learn to use.

 

JM2C

[Keith @ Solid Code Solutions]

James,

 

That really depends on what version you are using I haven't used the newest surfacing tools myself but have seen them demostrated and they seem as if they would be pretty usefull. This is saying that surfacing in Solidworks at one time (2003) and the like was pretty poor, not any more. If you are comparing Rhino and Solidworks, again lets compare apples to apples because Rhino will do better with free form than Solidworks but it really depends on what you are modelling doesn't it.

[Watcher]

quote:

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We have had several instances when vendors that use Solidworks could not create the same fillets and loft/blends that Pro/E will.

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PRO/E uses the Granite kernel for modeling, interoperability and so on. I heard that Granite does not use boolean operations for modeling, but math algorithms for that, instead. (Honestly, boolean and algorithms are branches of math, aren't? - My limited brain cannot understand how these two techniques affects the final result - I invite anyone with a good explanation about the technical differences between Parasolid and Granite to came to the pulpit and give us a decent explanation... )

 

When I was working with Mastercam and Solidworks several times I had annoying problems with fillets and chamfers, and I bet that these problems were concerned to Parasolid kernel, not Mastercam. About surface modeling in PRO/E, I think that in WF3 is better than in the previous versions. The guys that taught me how to use the software, in a official PTC reseller (The biggest in Brazil) use to say that in the former versions PRO/E used to be a pain in a$$ for surface modeling....

[Guest]

quote:

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We have had several instances when vendors that use Solidworks could not create the same fillets and loft/blends that Pro/E will. Pro/E also has better free form surface/solids capabilities.

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SW2008 addresses this.

 

There is a new feature coming that on blends it will show several different instances of how the blend "could" look.

 

As anyone who does any "in-depth" modeling know, blending edges is somewhat of an "art" form. Whether in UG, SW or I suspect Pro-E, if the individual doesn't get the right order of edges it'll come out looking funny or fail all together.

[Watcher]

quote:

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Whether in UG, SW or I suspect Pro-E, if the individual doesn't get the right order of edges it'll come out looking funny or fail all together.

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Your suspicions are right John. It's the same in PRO-E and every software using ACIS, Parasolid or Granite Kernel. For the kernel, it's a matter of math. And the input order that the individual select the geometries affects the manner how the algorithms accomplish the task....

[Bob W.]

I have used both ProE and Solidworks extensively and they both have their strong points. The ultimate would be taking the best from both, like ProEworks :-)

 

My impression is that Solidworks is much easier to use and faster to learn and it will do 95% of what is out there. Proe will do virtually everything short of tying your shoes, though is isn't always the easiest to accomplish. A quick example is modeling a tapered, closed end compression spring with a variable pitch. Also is shines in layouts, assembly programming, and top down design (skeleton modeling etc...).

 

My work is primarily engineering so I frequently work with large assemblies and they are a little more bulletproof in ProE. 5 years ago I would have said Solidworks was better than ProE bacuase of ease of use issues but Wildfire was a quantum leap for ProE in that area.

 

ProE has that last 5% that Solidworks is missing. The thing I like about SW though is that they are working their tails off to improvre their product, and their customer service HAS to be better than ProE, which is virtually nonexistent.

 

When the decision came for me to buy my own license (starting up shop 2 years ago) I bought ProE.

 

Bob

[Guest CNC Apps Guy 1]

quote:

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...If you are comparing Rhino and Solidworks, again lets compare apples to apples because Rhino will do better with free form than Solidworks but it really depends on what you are modelling doesn't it...

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That came out wrong. Solidworks and Rhino are two completely different modelers. I was merely comparing Solidworks' Surface Modeling capability to Rhino's. If you need to model organic surfaces Rhino will do it better.

[Jim at Gentex]

OK...I didn't mean to start a whole flame war, just a lively discussion!

 

We went to the SolidCam demo, and yes, I was impressed. The associativity feature is huge, and the newest toolpaths like restmill, pencil, and High Speed do rival those of Mastercam.

 

Look, I started using Mastercam around Version 3 back in the early 90's, so I will always be a Mastercam kid at heart.

 

However, my employer is looking 'big picture' and the SolidWorks / SolidCam combo is starting to look pretty good for our overall needs. We've struggled for years to find a workable solution and ended up with several different CAD packages with Mastercam as our main CAM solution. But now that SolidCam is catching up, the suits upstairs are taking notice. Based upon what I heard today, we will be exploring the SolidCam avenue. Not that we're unhappy with Mastercam, it's just that SolidWorks and SolidCam may be a better fit for what we do. Like James said, it all depends upon the application and how you intend to use it.

 

I've made it clear that I would like to keep my seat of Mastercam active because I'm sure there will be times when I'll need it. But otherwise it looks like I'll probably be transitioning over to SolidCam for much of my future work.

 

One thing IS certain.

I'll bet SolidCam doesn't have a kickazz forum like this one!

 

Jim teh please don't hate me!!

 

[Guest]

Jim,

 

You're running a 5 axis router now correct?

 

When I checked out SolidCam some time back the premise of the software sounds and looks great it was at that time anyway lacking in the multi axis stuff.

 

Have they gotten better on that stuff?

[gcode]

Jim,

before you spend the $$$ download the demo and try

programming some of YOUR parts. I did that

2 releases ago and found SolidCam lacking.

I'm sure its improved since then.

I too would love having SolidWorks and Cam

all in one application.

I'll be checking out HSMWorks as time allows and may give SolidCam another run

[Jim at Gentex]

I run a 5 axis Deckel Maho.

 

Yes, their 5 axis capability has come a long way which is one of the prime factors in our decision to even look at it.

 

The demo did briefly show some simultaneous 5 axis milling and some 4th and 5th axis drilling ops. This demo we attended was only a 'first look' kind of thing where they tried to cover all of the pertinent features without spending alot of time in any one area. We've scheduled a followup visit here so the reseller can get a better idea of what our specific needs are. They've told us they will give us a more comprehensive demo at that time and they will bring posts for our specific machines to actually generate usable code which we can evaluate and test.

 

Like I said, I'm not ready to leave Mastercam by any means, but this does look promising to fill my employer's big picture needs. We'll see...

[Guest SAIPEM]

I've been using the SolidCAM Lathe module.

 

It is so bad it's a cruel joke.

It doesn't come close to Mastercam Lathe.

 

SolidCAM may have put a lot of work into Mill but the Lathe package is practically worthless.