Why does stock need to be enabled for Lathe Plunge Turn?

[SlaveCam]

I rarely define the stock because it takes quite a while to update the graphics, as the stock is updated on every tool step. Why is it required in plunge turn?

[crazy^millman]

The logic is written from my understanding to use the stock for help the algorithms. If nothing is there then the logic would have had to be made to take infinite possibility of shapes into account verses one that is by the stock. You say well the stock can be infinite yes it can, but how do you define a process that has no definition using your current method? You don't. With stock not matter the shape it is defined for the operation and then the operation can use it. You way is asking a lot of the software than IMHO was make it harder to support.

 

I 98% of the time define stock for lathe. You don't know what you are missing out out by not defining it.

[BenK]

I rarely define the stock because it takes quite a while to update the graphics, as the stock is updated on every tool step. Why is it required in plunge turn?

 

How long is "quite a while"? Even on my less powerful laptop it only takes seconds to generate lathe toolpaths using stock. If you're not using stock you are missing out on a big part of the functionality.

[JoshC]

I agree with the above statement. Mastercam Lathe and MT products were intended for stock to be setup and without doing so I would guess it would be much more difficult to have successful results.

If you really dislike seeing the animation as toolpaths process, simply go to the Toolpath parameters tab under lathe toolpaths and uncheck a box called "Tool Display". This allows the toolpath to generate without the animation process.

 

Not something I personally use often other than Dynamic Lathe paths.

[SlaveCam]

Thanks for the replies. I don't use stock because the post-processor is lacking and it's just faster (for me) to copy-paste, using a default text file as a template, and the workpieces are simple enough. Maybe if we get a multitasking lathe one day...

 

However, I could not turn off the animation. I unchecked the "Tool display" checkbox under the operation's parameters (first tab), but it had no any effect. I also tried to find a setting in the general settings, but couldn't find any. X7 here.