Doug, my intention was not to be hostile, sorry if it came off that way. I was just wondering if Okuma considered a machine like an LT or MacTurn to be multi-tasking, or the Multus. The Okuma website says Multus / MacTurn (though they're very different, in my opinion) both, so who knows? I have a friend who is deeply involved in the machine sales business and he has said that it is becoming more and more difficult to differentiate one machine from another because so many "crossovers" now exist.

C

A multi-tasking machine to me is a machine that can multi-task, do multiple things at the same time like a twin turret machine

Doug, is that your employer's position, or just yours? Sandvik, I know, considers a swivel-head machine like an Integrex or a Multus to be a "multi-function" or "multi-tasking" machine; this is the opposite of your statement. That being said, Okuma describes both a MacTurn and a Multus as "multi-function" machines.

To me, a mill / turn machine is a slant-bed lathe with live tools and C-X contouring; multi-function machines are everything else

Milling:

[2] Okuma ES-V3016, OSP-U10M

[1] Mori-Seiki SV-403, Fanuc 18

[1] Okuma-Howa Millac 438V, Fanuc 18

[1] Matsuura RA-II, Yasnac MX3

[1] Matsuura V.Plus-550, Fanuc 30

Turning:

[4] Okuma LB3000EX, OSP-P200L

[2] Okuma LB3000EX-MY, OSP-P200LA

[6] Okuma Captain L370, OSP-E100L

[3.5] Okuma Cadet LNC8, OSP-5020L

[1] Okuma LT-15M, OSP-U100L

[1] Hardinge T51SP, Fanuc 18

[1] Hardinge T42SP, Fanuc 18

[1] Mori-Seiki SL4, Yasnac 2000-G2

[1] Mori-Seiki SL204SMC, Mitsubishi Meldas

[1] Okuma-Howa ACT-4, Fanuc 10T

Gear making is top secret, sorry

[2] Okuma LB3000EX-MY came in last week; install and runoff to begin next week. I'll publish an updated list some day.

C

That's one I don't know; we don't do heavy enough machining on our 5020 lathes to care.

Another plus for turrets is the ability to form material, which a laser cannot do; cardguides, louvers, "half-shears" (a hole that's punched halfway through which can be used for self-fixturing of weldments) and extruded holes for tapping are examples of this.

At my past employers we used software from these guys: http://www.merrymech.com/

Never used it myself, but we made a lot of money with it.

C

Ron, I don't think you're a traitor, but you are talking out of both sides of your mouth a little. I don't think that CNC Software are bad people (or I wouldn't do business with them) and I don't think that they're bad programmers, but I couldn't care less how hard they're working if it doesn't pay dividends for ME. It feels like the multi-axis milling guys have gotten all of the enhancements and the turning / mill-turn guys have gotten zilch. This is not a new complaint by me, and is not unwarranted; the world is going multi-function and mill/turn, time for CNC Software to take it up a notch.

C

SLOW!?!?!? Come ON, Ron; do you want me to dig out your posts from the past on mill / turn? I've been hearing the "it'll be worth the wait" story on this since 2002, man.

I am not trying to say "CNC Software sucks" or "Mastercam sucks" but I am trying to stem the knee-jerk "you're just a troll because sunshine shoots out of CNC's a$$" attitude that is typical here.

Don't call it a comeback, I been here for years

C

OK, enough bullsh!t; how about decent multi-spindle, multi-turret mill / turn functionality? We've only been waiting for that for about [10] years. Get off CNC Software's jock for a minute and think about the fact that they actually are more in love with putting out new releases than fixing the things that are broken or developing powerful new functionality. I know that you straight milling guys have gotten quite a bit out of the last few years, but the rest of the world has not. Kiss Mastercam's a$$ at home and keep it real here, please.

C

Dan, I have never used the Shift column (we write to the WOFS Z in every program (VZOFZ=V182+V183+POFP+V1) and use Common Variable #1 as a shift value, but that is more complicated than what you asked for) but on the Zero Offset line, go to the Z column and Add, -.125, Write

Joe,

In Auto: Extend, Restart, N1234, Write

At this point the machine will begin to "run" the program in its mind, as you'll see by the cursor moving. When the cursor stops (make sure you are in single block with the feedrate override turned all the way down) push the Sequence Restart button (should have a little ridge around the edges). The turret may index and the machine will want to move to where it "should" be, so be alert at this point. Once you get where you're going, push Cycle Start and you're good to go.

I think there's also a Number Search button that may work like a Fanuc, but we NEVER use it

C

If you want to shift them for the job, go to zero set in Z and Add, -.125, Write

I have experienced some issues with Fanuc 18s (most, if not all, newer Mori mills are Fanuc) where the machine will not correctly position if G90 is not the same line as the WOFS call. I understand that G90 is modal, but I have seen this with my own eyes. Force a G90 in the same line as the WOFS call and see if the problem is eliminated:

G90 G54.1 P3 X-2.3906 Y1.2203 S1485 M03 T03

How do you get the tip of the insert on center without grinding half of the bar off?

I'm not following you; but we have 100% Capto so we'd just run a LH boring bar adapter on a RH machine and it'd be on center. I have done this in the past with reasonable success but I am not familiar with what the stick tool offerings are that would be appropriate for this.

C

How about a ID grooving tool (Circle or Horn or Micro100 or somebody) held in an OD station? You'd end up with something looking like a golf club sticking our of the turret and it should be small enough to fit in your .660-something clearance.

C

This was Lenny's machine; now Daren's machine. So yes, on both counts.

C

If you don't have a G80, and just a G0 with a move to a retraction plane, will this cancel the cycle?

Yes, here's a snippet of code that has run thousands of pieces (note this is a hand-write, the NCYL and BHC calls aren't output in a posted program):

G15 H20 X0. Y1.1515 S4244 M3

G56 H2 Z.25 M8

G71 Z.1

NCYL G81 Z-.055 R.100 F.003 M53

BHC X0. Y0. I1.1515 J90. K12.

G00 Z.100

X0. Y.4725 S2604 M3

G71 Z.100

NCYL G81 Z-.254 R-.057 F.003 M53

BHC X0. Y0. I.4725 J90. K8.

G00 Z.100

M9

G53 M5

G30 P1

M01

Here's what my Okuma post looks like after I changed G80 to G00:

# Changed pg80_out to output G00 instead of G80 (G80 stops spindle) (cdm)

pg80_out #Cancel canned drill cycle

result = newfs (three, zinc)

result = newfs (15, feed)

z = initht

if cuttype = one, prv_zia = initht + (rotdia/two)

else, prv_zia = initht

if initht > refht, ret_ht = initht

else, ret_ht = refht

pxyzcout

!zabs, !zinc

prv_gcode = zero

pbld, n, "G00", *ret_ht, e

g80_out = zero

Makes no sense, how could you have seen a DMG lathe's controller then?

You may not be aware that your company has a website, on which there are digital images of your machine tools, including the machine about which the original poster inquired. As I was unaware that DMG offered a lathe, I was interested to see what the machine was, so I used this "world wide web" contraption to check it out.

We hold .0003 total tolerance all day, every day, in 4340 at 38Rc in Okuma lathes; you are damned right that I am biased, and with good reason.

C

Tastes great...

Machine is sold; thanks for asking

Reference Points are the only way to go; don't rely solely on stock definition for this. Many before you have paid a loud price for this decision

Honestly, just looking at that control scares the cr@p out of me; if you have some experience with Siemens controls then you have a leg up. I have no experience with DMG machines, and didn't even know that they offered a lathe. Personally I feel that Okuma makes the finest turning machines in the world and that Nakamura-Tome is the only other company that I would even ask to quote a lathe project. That being said, I have experience with DMG and both Okuma and Nakamura are very well supported in my geographic area.

C

U10M and newer I do not use G80, ever

G00, G01, G02, G03 all cancel the cycle "correctly" in the newer OSP according to the guys who build them

Replace the "G80" with a "G0"

Bingo! G80 stops the spindle in our Okuma VMCs so we have "G00 ZXXX" (where XXX is the clearance height) at the end of every canned cycle.