There are many ways to do this so it really depends on preference. I just do as Superman has mentioned. I always keep the "master" in SW with a coordinate system set up so it lands in Mastercam perfectly. I never reference the solid in Mastercam in any way. I just use the wire or surfaces (created from solid). This way you can pop a new "Master" solid in at anytime quickly and easily. Just notate your levels appropriately and away you go. Change Recognition does work pretty well, but I prefer the foregoing method better. Mike

Hello gcode, I appreciate the response. Mastercam actually works very good for me and I like it but I have been hoping for Toolholders since I starting with it in V8. I wear myself out creating custom tools which is why I want the new interface in all the paths. I think that they will change/improve a few things in the interface along the way and people will get used to it. I am sure it will end up being a good thing in the end. I have contacted QC and I believe that they are working on it and planning for it. It does look like we must wait a little longer so I hope we get it in X5. Mike

Analyze

The part I don't understand is that we have to use both interfaces. It sure seems like it would have been best to change all the toolpaths at once or just don't change them until it's figured out.

Hello Tony, I do my fixture designs in SolidWorks. I build my fixture referencing my design model as I always start with a model. I then import the "as machined" STL as a "Graphics body" so that I can visually check the assembly. This is cheating but will save a bunch of time and usually gets the job done fine for most things. My guess is that Inventor will do the same thing. In your case, you can model the fixture from the drawing and import the STL for a visual. Mike

HSK is great as it also makes a big difference in accuracy. Tool Holder "suck in" is eliminated. Mike

Wieslaw, Illustrator should be able to Vectorize it. I did a test in Corel with a solid model in a pictorial view and it worked fine. I think it really depends on the quality you are looking for.

I am really not a Illustrator guy but if I was doing it in CorelDraw, I would just do a screen shot and bring it in using a raster format. From there, you should be able to do just about anything with it in Illustrator. Thanks,

I agree with all comments above but would like to add something along the lines of what Colin was mentioning. I believe most of what you are seeing is residual stress in the material. If you can't get different material and nothing else works, you may have to do a good stress relieve / cold stabilize. You can go a little hotter on temps to reduce tensile strength slightly if job allows. Going from T6 to say T4 or T5 will make a big difference. Your heat treat person will know what to do. Thanks

I would add an aftermarket CPU cooler so that you can OC later on. If you never do it, it still cools better.

I would consider throughing a mild OC on the E6700 for now. I have an E6700(2.66GHz) running at 3.71GHz(39%oc). It has been running like that for about 1-1/2 years and is perfectly stable. Mike

If you are going to ream it, the first thing I would do is call Hannibal Carbide. I have had great support with them in the past and their reamers are very good. link Mike

Your welcome. By the way, welcome to the Forum! Mike

I believe that the easiest thing for you to do is rename the original files correctly using these instructions: link

Hello Mark, I very glad that you are going to address the Tool Holder issue. This is the single most important thing that the software needs IMO. Many of us program Mulit-axis machines such as HMC's with large magazines and complex parts. Tool/Holder clearance is everything! quote: The bad news is that I think its going to get pushed back.Please! leave this at the top of the list! Mike

I understand. Well, at least it warns you..

OK.. You can use the tool manager and arrows to copy tools back and forth from part/library. You won't get dups that way. Thanks

We may have a misunderstanding. Sorry if it's me. Go to the top menu and select Toolpaths > tool manager. Mike

Dave, The Tool Manager would really help you out. Thanks

Hello Bruce, I agree. The tool holder is part of the tool definition.

Please request it. I have already done it a few times. Tool Holder support is extremely important. As Lars says, the more the better. Thanks

TheePres, I just read some info regarding this in the manual. I have uploaded the drilling section. This is the only part of the manual I have though. It's in the "Text_&_post_files_&_misc" directory Cincinnati Maxim 630 with Acramatic 950 control 1992 model Drilling cycle info from manual.PDF Mike [ 06-11-2009, 11:36 PM: Message edited by: Mike Whitten CAD/CAM Contractors ]

buck30, google "right hand rule CNC". There is also a note in all modern Mastercam posts: ----- Rotation direction around the part is positive in the CCW direction when viewed from the plus direction of the rotating axis. -----

Avix, Your speeds and feeds do appear in the sample code as indicated below. The issue is that they are not appropriate for what you're trying to do. You must input the proper parameters inside the MCX file. The first step is to set the feed calculation method as shown below. I would recommend From Tool for now: The next step is to open the tool and input the required values as shown below: There is a huge amount of data in Help on this. By the way, you can do a one day free trial on eapprentice if you want. Look to the right on the home page and read the section near the coffee cup. link

Hello Avix, Welcome to the forum. I am guessing that the milling machine you're trying to run with Mastercam requires fairly generic gcode so I am not sure what you are experiencing. Can you post up a small example of the code. Are the speeds and feed at zero or are they non-existent? What MD do you have loaded? You can find lots of good video training here at a very reasonable price. I recommend it highly. eapprentice.net Mike