I would try and go for multiple in a sheet and hold with vacuum.

Tool changes will be amortised this way.

Vac pumps are cheap off ebay. We have a couple of airconditioning pumps we use at work. Cheap and reliable.

Don't they still offer their 'uptime' guarantee?

If so, it just adds more weight to getting it swapped out.

Something is fundamentaly wrong. Afterall, they really wouldn't be in business if all their machines were that bad???

Just dug out a design guide from a hard anodising company.

Their quote:-

The major and minor dia will increase 2 times the amount of growth. The pitch dia for threads having an included angle of 60 degrees will increase 4 times the amount of growth.

For threads having an included angle other than 60 degrees, the pitch dia will increase by 2 times the amount of growth divided by the sine of 1/2 the included angle.

Cheers

Definately 4 x for threads with 60 degree inclusive angle (ie unified and metric)

Forgot to say,

I believe our machine controls are 'Fanuc option B', where the HSM option is 'Fanuc option A'.

Anyone know the differences, and if ours is upgradeable?

Thanks again,

Terry

James,

I feel embarassed now at having asked if you had done some testing!

WOW. I read the link, very interesting. It is amazing the time differences between G08 & G05.1.

The machine being made by fanuc, I would (obviously) assume has been tuned to be the best that it can be.

What happened if you ran it in normal (non G08/G05) mode?

Without meaning to hijak the thread, I have uploaded a picture (G05.1 Test.jpg) into the FTP site's 'Unspecified uploads' directory.

This shows the ploughed field finish that we get while running G05.1 (and also G08).

The machine runs very accurate (200ipm feeds)with good finishes in standard (non G08/G05.1 mode).

Has anyone ever seen anything like it before?

I assume (from reading James and Roberts posts) that it would be servo tuning required?

Thanks,

Terry

thanks for the replies

James,

Have you ever run a test piece to see any difference between the different options?

I'm thinking flat plate aerospace type ribs and 'simple' scan work (like the shape of a pc mouse).

The sort of work we do is the above with a +/- .005" tolerance, so for the scanning we use the mcam filter to output G2/3 moves, rather than 1/4million lines of G1's.

With our OiMC controls, we can accurately feed very quick, but we are going to run a test piece with some unfiltered (G1) code, and see just how bad the control chockes up.

Cheers

Robert,

If you don't use G49 and your code works ok, then you may have a G49 in the toolchange macro?

As CNC Apps guy says, it's waaayyy safest to put one in, as this will (should?) then work on any other machine.

Slick

G05.1 cannot run in canned cycles (tapping/ drilling etc) so must not be called for these ops.

However, an alternative maybe G08? This is lookahead only, but does give 'deceleration before interpolation'. So, to me it is a form of contour control, although Fanook UK will only say it's look ahead?

Anyway, this can be called at the start of a prog by G08P1, and then cancelled at the end of the prog by G08P0.

This may be a simpler option for you, as it can be active for canned cycles.

Personally, we haven't had any luck with either, as we get a very rough finish on the bottom of pockets where the machine interpolates (looks almost like the head bounces in the z). It is good on a straight move though.

It is obviously a parameter thing, but we haven't got to the bottom of it yet...

Hi all,

Is there a way to modify the drop down menu in lathe mode?

Specifically, the Toolpath menu.

The top path is lathe rough, then lathe finish, I want to re-arrange to have Quick rough and Quick finish as we use these way more than the others.

Cheers

Thanks to you guys answering a previous post, I have discovered the right click cutomising menu.

I've just put the ops manager on there at the top, nice and easy so when i don't want it, i can have big screen. (I know it is alt o, but I prefer it on the right click).

Another question....

Is there a way of customising the mouse buttons, so pan (for example) can be activated by holding down say left and right mouse buttons (on a 3 button mouse)?

Cheers

The oi is only 4 axis. The 18 can handle more (6?). It is also a faster control at processing.

We have 3 chevalier vmc's (QP models) with oic.

The machines are setup very well. We're roughing at upto 275inch/min feed rates, and if you look at the control it is accelerating/decelerating very smoothly.

We are finishing accurately (std g2/3 ie no G08 or G05.1) at 160inch/min.

Whether that is chevalier setting up the parameters well, or whether that is fanuc 'standard' settings I don't know.

However, we had 3 x hitachi vmc's with 16 controls and 4 hori's with 15mb controls at a previous company. The best they could accurately contour at was 70inch/min!!!! We roughed much quicker, but the controls weren't configured for accurate cutting. The machines were junk, they just cut corners.

Back to the oi, CNC Apps Guy is correct about the limitations of high speed (G08/G05.1).

We're currently experimenting, and as configured, both options give the same ploughed field finish on the bottom of a pocket, where the tool profiles (ie g2/3 moves). Straight line it's ok. It looks like the head bounces 1/2 a thou when interpolating, it is that bad.

But we're working on it....

We've never used the graphics (been told they're very basic).

Thanks all,

I just customised my right click menu, and got rid of 2 lines of menubars from the top of the screen!

Hi all,

We're looking into purchasing a verify program, that will verify posted g code.

We currently run ncplot, which is excellent but can only verify toolpath (ie no tool setting up required). It can also verify sub progs as well.

The software must be able to handle sub progs.

Has anyone ever used cimco edit and predator?

I believe these two can do what we want, but is one better than the other for any reason?

We have discounted the obvious vericut, purely because of price.

Many thanks,

Terry

Hi,

Thanks for the reply.

I currently have the Trim/Break toolbar active, but I wanted to turn this off and add a Trim Divide icon to another toolbar.

I'm trying to cut down on the amount of toolbars, to make the graphics area bigger.

Thanks

Hi all,

I really like the Trim Divide command, and would like it on my toolbar as a shortcut.

I looked but can't see this as an option.

Does anyone know if there is a way please.

Thanks

Thanks for the reply.

I have corrected all as you showed (commas etc) and it just posts brackets.

I have looked at the pcomment block, as you said.

I then read chapter 19 of the v9 post guide twice, and my head now hurts.....

I will read again later, and try to understand more.

What I can't comprehend is that the toolchange block (ptlchg$) calls 'ptoolcomment', followed by 'comment$'.

This posts as tool description followed by the elusive manual entry comment, and works fine for the toolchange.

To get the required info to post in the sub program, my logic was to copy the info from ptlchg$ and add it to the sub.

The 'ptoolcomment' worked straight away, so why didn't the 'comment$'???

Am I missing something?

Hi All,

Original post mpfan.

I'm trying to output the 'comment box' for sub programs.

Iv'e got it to automatically output the main prog no, and the tool name, but the comment box is beating me.

All I get is brackets, and nothing else, as below.

O0020 ( SUB FOR PROG NO O0999 )

( 8MM DIA CARBIDE SLOTDRILL )

( )

G1 G91

G41 D2 X5. F1400.

The part of the post I'm working on is here, any help greatfully appreciated.

psub_st_s$ #Header in sub leveln

result = nwadrs(stro, sub_prg_no$)

" ", e$

*sub_prg_no$, "( SUB FOR PROG NO"*progno$,")"e$

ptoolcomment

*pcomment2 (THIS SHOULD ADD INFO FROM COMMENTS BOX BUT DOESNT FOR SOME REASON)

" ",e$

pbld,"G1"sgabsinc, e$

Many thanks,

Terry

We didn't have much luck running comp on a prototrak (2 axis SMX mill).

From memory, the machine applies a radius on and off the job automatically itself.

So, for instance, if you apply lead in/out and contour onto the job, the machine also applies a rad of its own, the size is a ratio of the cutter diameter. Bigger tool = bigger rad.

For tight places, it was a problem.

We only use size tools. It worked safer and easier, because what verify shows, the machine does.

For the 3 axis version, I heard thread milling is a little bit awkward for the same reason. I was told that you 'have to fiddle with the z position to make it work right'?

Hi all,

Colin: Yes, they want T2 OD ROUGH CNMG 120408, as an example, at the top of the program (under customer name, part no, drawing iss no, etc).

I have uploaded a copy to the FTP site, its in the MCX Post Stuff folder called NewbeeGenericfanuc2Xlathe.pst.

Bryan: I have run the error file and it spat out lots of errors (although MCAM said successfull post?) - Labels not defined, formula error etc.

The gcode printed looks good though! I don't know where to start on this......

Randy: There is a switch and it is set as per the mplmaster post. I did think about altering this one in stead, but I don't like being defeated.

This post stuff is fascinating, in a masochistic sort of way!

Thanks for everyones help.

Hi all,

This is my first time post, so please treat me gently….

I’m a mcam amateur and have been trying to help out the guys at work on the lathes with their post.

What they want is the tools used to be called automatically at the beginning of the program.

The post they are using is a modified generic fanuc 2x post (mcamx), and I have been comparing it with the mplmaster x2 post which does call the tools.

I have read the other forum posts, and as far as I understand, copied over the necessary differences to do with ‘pwrtt’ & ‘tooltable’.

I’m at a loss now, the post runs fine except it does not call the tools as wanted.

They don’t want to change to the mplmaster post because they are happy with the existing one except for this one problem.

Any pointers are greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance