Did you try doing a regen of your ops with the Haas post?

I'll be transitioning to a job where my job estimation skills will determine how much MORE I can get. What factors do you use in estimating your jobs (e.g. programming time, set-up, cycle time, scale for quantities.) I've set-up a spreadsheet to do much of this for me but I don't want to bid myself out of work or lowball my margins either.

lurking...and NO this is not better than sex!

Pro hockey is in trouble the same way pro soccer is in trouble -- mainstream Americans don't appreciate the game unless you can score in bunches. Youth hockey -- at least out here in my neck of the woods -- suffers from being too expensive for many folks to want to bring their kids out to play. There aren't too many companies willing to put out some money to subsidize the outrageous cost of ice time. Over the last couple of years I've spent over $10k (USD) for my Atom/Squirt aged son to play. This year already promises to be another mile$tone year. But I love the sport and my son loves to play. We're in Edmonton later this month for the Canadian AAA Challenge at the mall.

Thad, Our Fadals are the reason this is an issue for me. I've been working almost exclusively with them for over 10 years. Anyway, we have an older Haas VF-3 at Tyco and I am also using two newer Haas VMC's (VF-9 and VF-2) at a shop that I am currently contracting at. The newer machines are set to use the Fanuc coordinate system and display the fixture offsets as negative distances relative to the machine home position. Now the tool length offsets are all showing negative values because our set gage is quite a ways down from the z home position. The older machine at Tyco is set for the Yasnac coordinate system and shows the fixture offsets as positive relative to the machine home -- like invoking a G92 at that point. I tried changing the coordinate system setting but still received overtravel alarms on my x and y axis. I'll try again on Monday and read through the manual -- a first -- to see if there is anything else that affects this...or if someone else knows the answer he/she can chime in at any time Norbert

yes...by default it's normally set at .01"

I'm green around Haas controls and need to know what Coordinate System to use so that setting the fixture offsets looks and feels like the settings in the Fadal. What I mean is -- machine home on a Haas is top, right corner. If I set my X axis for G54 at -10.00 (from machine home) and Y-axis at -6.00, why is it entered as PLUS values in the offset register? The same holds true for the Z-offsets. Our part Z-origin is lower than the tool setting gage point, yet we need to set the value as a plus value. Currently the machine is set to use the Yasnac coordinate system. Should it be different? Thanks!

Roger, the peck clearance can be set at SETTING #22.

I just started using the between views option it's another alternative that is just as easy once you get used to it.

All, Thanks for the feedback I did consider roll taps but thought the spiral fluted taps would be fine. I started the cycle at .250 above the part @ 800 RPM's. Years ago I would use an 8-32 sp-flute tap on 416 stainless and the sucker would last the entire run of 200+ parts. Needless to say, I will order roll taps for the next job. [ 06-01-2004, 03:54 PM: Message edited by: n_tydingco ]

Thanks guys. I'm using a brand new HAAS VF-9 and was using EXO spiral-fluted 2-56 (GH-3) and 4-40 (GH-5) taps in MIC-6. The HAAS has a programmable coolant nozzle that I have aimed right at the taps and the coolant concentration is at about 8-10% (pretty thick IMO). It's been pretty frustating (to say the least) that 2 hrs.+ of work goes down the tubes because of a "simple" operation. "This has never happened to me before...honest" Nevertheless, I'm doing everything else on this job except tapping the holes which I'll have to probably consider rolling if that'll get me the results I need...and quick.

Rigid tapping allows us to use ...well...rigid holders to tap holes, however, I'm still finding some smaller taps (2-56, 4-40) break even in (mic-6) aluminum after less than 100 holes. This blows when I'm running large parts Does anyone still use compression holders with rigid tapping? I can probably experiment to see if it helps, but I'm under the gun to get some plates done and ready for plating. Also, I saw the thread regarding removing broken taps, but being a holiday weekend, I'm almost a$$ out for finding something to remove a small, 2-56 tap. Thanks.

Whoops! Forgot to update and close out -- I ended up translating the geometry between views (per Todd's suggestion) and it worked to keep my Cplane/Tplane at (-DZ.) Other methods of translating changed it to (XY) and I couldn't get back to (-DZ). What I had originally hoped was that a new Tplane (-DZ) could be defined without having to translate any of the geometry. ~Norbert

Bucket, Got your e-mail. Thanks for taking a look at the file.

Thanks Todd (and Bob,) I rotated the geometry on Saturday but that opened up a different can of worms for me. I'll give your suggestion a try and let you know how it works for me. ~Norbert

hmmm...if you have trouble with the links, use the one at the top of the page to get to the FTP site and look for the socket8-m4.mc9 file in the Lathe folder. Thanks.

I've got a part to do that was imported from Solidworks and was modeled in such a way that a change in the WCS or tool plane is necessary. Looking at it in an isometric view, I want to change it so my top view (-DZ) will be what is now the side view. My origin will be the center of the ID at the large diameter end of the part. I placed the file in the lathe folder of Jay's FTP site: Socket8-m4.mc9 or here: ftp://www.ppcadcam.com/Mastercam_forum/Lathe/ I'll continue to see if I can find the answer myself but will appreciate any tips given in the meantime.

If you have V9 Lathe and have the tutorial book with it, go to Chapter 13 and it will help you set up the Stock Flip option with no problems.

What is "teh"? As in Rek'd teh ... Rek'd?

He should have been suspended for at least a year right out the gate. Though Moore had retribution coming to him for his hit on Naslund (in an earlier game,) the Canucks didn't do anything to him in Denver AND Moore already got into a 1st period fight prior to getting cold-cocked by Bertuzzi. My $.02 (USD)

Okay, I see it. Isn't that the way it was done back in V7 as well? Anyway, thanks for the enlightenment! ~Norbert

Glenn, I'll give that a look. Thanks.

^^bump^^

I have run into an issue with the Pocket/Facing operations when I bring in an MC8 file and update it to MC9. (the MC8 file is on the FTP site: pocketfacing.mc8 ) ftp://www.ppcadcam.com/Mastercam_forum/MC...ocketfacing.mc8 This is just part of the program file -- if you open it up in MC8 and run a backplot, you'll see that it faces the are between the two outer chains. This is what I want. However, open it up in MC9 and regen the toolpath and it will face all three chains. Note that if you open it up in MC9 without saving it as an .mc9 file it will backplot fine. I am finding that once I regenerate it, the desired toolpath gets hosed << Your help is greatly appreciated as always!

Iskander, doubling seems to work well right now. I still like to have some memory leftover for other apps. Thanks for the feedback guys