mike...did the file i sent you help?

i have a few dental customers. they machine their own crowns, bridges, etc.... one customer actually machine entire jaw bone segments for implants. many more applications also. i have a demo set up for next week with a dentist that has a 6 axis desktop machine in his office. his xray machine will scan a tooth, create and STL file and then machine it in about 10 minutes. this is a neat little machine. i have been in to see the machine before, but since all the gcode is run in the back ground, it has been a struggle to actually figure out the exact NC logic. i think we have it done, we will see. to answer your question, there are many applications for cnc machining in the dental industry.

a two flute going that shallow of depth is only going to "push" the material. too big of a web right at center of cutter. you would get away with it if the material was wood, but not plastic. if you have to use your current set up, i would switch tooling to a single flute engraving type cutter with at least a .005 tip land.

contact the manufacture of the machine. CNC APPS Guy has a good one.

if i was a moderator, i would have already pinned it.

for everyone's info: * part of the problem was - the new X3 arc filter. turned it off. * switched from computer to wear comp and using leadins/outs. even if using computer-comp with the surface-rough pocket routine, use the leadin/outs. * i forced the post to output X & Y coordinates on all arc moves. (this was the biggest change. we actually got the code to run.) * the machine does read G17-18-19 plane changes. all of the above mentioned had a part to play. very "picky" control, to say the least.

not yet...i have not loaded the new stuff yet. if you can, can you send me an email letting me know what came about from the conversation with my customer. this guy is getting ready to do some extraordinary stuff in the medical field with bone structures.

ernie...did one of my customers contact you directly recently? the dental customer making jaw bones and teeth?

matt...contact Chris Taylor @ 5th axis CNC. they specialize in parts like this. They are also only about 15 minutes from you. Phone: 858-505-0432

since you have solidworks, why did you not use that? SW has the add-on for mold making also, so as you see, mastercam is not the only one that offers add-ons. you will need the L3 capability in mastercam. you may want to get your designer up to speed with SW and then import the "complete" file into mastercam. just a thought for you.

how detailed is your file? can you pot a pick. you can use the add-on to create a patch or multi-surface. you will need project curves to do this. post a pic of the part itself and we can help a little more.

i have a smx post that i just installed at general atomics. i will send that one to you. send me an email please, with the output you need to see and the version of MC that you are working in.

josh...you have mail. it is a large file. let me know if you dont get it and i will give you access to my FTP.

also, what toolpath are you using? send me an email and i will send you my direct line. i had a similar issue with a customer yesterday that runs a DMS router. we were able to get the part done by using a different toolpath, locking one axis using the new 5ax toolpaths.

i have a large emailed file to send you. can you accept files in the 5+ meg range? if so, this file will show you how to swap vertor for 5ax.

since it is an inhouse post, the machine def should handle this.

do you have teh verisurf reverse product installed? if so, it is over riding that capability.

use window selection-mask using the level you want to machine. this is for the geometry that you have laid out. next method is toolpath nesting. since you have the geometry laid out, you will have your visible reference. toolpath one. using nesting to layout the other 130 that you need. make sure you check "use rectangular bounding box". then adjust your part-to-part distance.

for this part, you will need to switch to the right plane. create a full circle. then in the top plane, create points....probably use the "dynamic" method. once you have the points and circle, break the circle to establish the upper endpoint. draw a line between the point and the geometry at the break point. use that method to establish control lines. if you try to project points, you will get all kinds of different results of line angles.

if you want to change the UV of a surface, use the MAP.DLL. not the greatest tool, but it is a good starting point.

chris....i used the "morph between two curves" - new toolpaths and got better results. i also had to use LINES to control the motion in that one particular area that you posted a pic of.

would love to see your work. photobucket is a pretty easy site to use for pics.

you have mail chris. is this a proprietary file? can i cut it out of wood for myself? it would make a cool looking candle holder.

send me your file chris. recently, i helped a medical company of mine do a screw-type job like this. the new 5ax toolpaths worked very well.

email me your company info with phone number. i will walk you thru how to use ATP.