Sounds like data starvation. Chances are your hand written programs from the past didn't have 2 million blocks of code either. At 40ipm the machine gets into position before the buffer is replenished. Either get a controller that can look ahead enough to handle what you're doing or change your linerization tolerance so you get less lines of code.

quote: If the automobile had followed the same development cycle as the computer, a Rolls-Royce today would cost $100, get a million miles to the gallon, and explode once a year, killing everyone inside. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You forgot the part about it spontaneously crashing a few times a week, and it's acceptance as normal operation.

quote: We use Jobboss Software for Raw material, Finished Goods, and most recently for Inspection Gages. We use Jobboss too, but not for tooling or gages. How are you putting them into jobboss? quote: We are adding tooling to the bill of materials now How do you know what tooling you need now to be able to add it in? quote: On the floor, we keep NC files in a cabinet by partnumber with hardcopy of programs and setup sheets. Do you keep the nc files themselves or are you reposting every time? If you're reposting how are you making sure the adjustments that need to be made at the machine are being fed back into your nci files? If you're just saving the nc files then disregard the last question. quote: The boxes are stored same as the fixtures and are labled by part number and more recently a small picture of the part is taped to the end of the box for easy ID. I like the picture idea. Do you make them freehand? quote: My plan is to eventually get the tools inventoried properly and use transactions to track stock and usage, but I am not going to do that until we install the barcode readers. Seems to me that jobboss would be ugly for tracking tooling. Are you sure you really want to use it for that? quote: Like 'rekd, I am an Acess hacker, so Im tempted to try all kind of stuff. Me too. You know jobboss is just a runtime version of access. I wish it was a wide open system so I could change every aspect of it. Most generic stuff like jobboss is kinda ugly, especially when you know what it could potentially look like if it was customized for your particular needs. quote: There are some turnkey systems out there for traking stuff, but in the end, the thing that is most important is discipline and having a single "way" of handeling the stuff that every agrees to follow. Yup you could write everything on napkins if you got everyone to understand the system and follow it 100% of the time. We're a small aerospace job shop thats growing. It's getting to the point where our systems or the lack thereof are going to stunt our growth if we don't do something about them soon. Currently we have lta's on about 400 part numbers, with a couple hundred more that we make from time to time for several different places. We just added lta's for about 200 more part numbers in transition from a country that I wont name. But anyone from Connecticut will probably appreciate how significant it is to have any jet engine component manufacturing being brought into this state. Especially since those jobs have been leaving here faster than you can say NAFTA.

Did you say you're getting a 1 finish with an endmill?

Rekd I think your case might be a little different, since its my understanding that you are doing everything yourself. What I'm looking for is what places do when there are several people tearing down and setting up, and tools need to be returned and dealt with ie..resharpening and putting away for next time. How do they control thier tooling so they have it for the next job etc. Handing it out or reaching in a drawer yourself is one thing, getting it back is another.

How are you guys in the smaller shops handling the control of your inventory of fixtures,gages and perishable tooling ( special and standard )?

Just write your programs completely in machine coordinates. The only downside is that the setup person will have to locate thier fixtures/vises/whatever in the exact same position every time. At least you won't have to worry about them making more than one setup on a machine at a time.

A bit to add to the thread on dirty ops. V9.1 If I have any number of operations in Mill but have forgotten to put in the program number, I can open the first op and change it without any ops becomming dirty. In lathe if I change something like the program number in an op that has UPDATE STOCK selected, then all the ops that are updating stock will become dirty. If I switch off update stock for a single op, then I can change the program number in that op, and none of the ops will need regeneration, not even the one I changed the program number in.

quote: Southern California would net in the tens of millions as a whole. quote: If ths shops in my local area that were running pirated software came clean, you're talking multi-millions of dollars, JUST IN MY AREA!!! Thats alot. If thats the case they must be making hundreds of millions of dollars from legitimate users. Pretty good for 8 guys in the back room doing all the work. But I guess its not alot when there's like 500 salespeople.

I wouldn't want my ability to conduct business tied to the reliablity of anyones internet connection.

Just for laughs do a search in your post for G0. I wonder if there isn't some code in there that doesn't use sgcode and forces "G0". That would cause the post not to output another G1 where you think it should have.

How do you spell psychosis?

Using the graphical tool list from ncutils/setup sheet, we can alter the title text ie. part/project number then print out the tool list. But it will always be set to the last part/project number you type in. It doesn't stay with the .mc9 file. It's really annoying when you're in a hurry and all you want to do is open the mc9 file and print out the tool list. Actually it would be great if the tool list became a seperate file that you could print out external to mastercam, or if it was optional like the nci file to be either embedded in the mc9 file or external. But either way it should retain all the information and not keep switching to the last thing you typed in.

roflmao...high hemp... Anyways, The part I'm making is only about 1" dia but winds up with a .040 wall thickness for about 1.8" long. Then I get to mill it I've milled much less flimsy (sp) pieces of this crap before and it was hard on tooling. It's about 52% cobalt 20% chrome and 10% nickle. Just to make things a little more challenging we've got enough material to make 44 pieces if we play around with the bar. We need 42 good pieces. Thanks for the input.

Anybody have any tips for turning AMS 5759 ( L-605 )?

Make a quick-save function. I'd like to be able to hit one button to save the current file with its current file name, without being prompted every time for the file name and location. Many programs do this ie. cadkey..word etc. Please don't offer autosave as a suggestion.

I just did this last week. Although my part was smaller in dia, it was checked over a ball bearing which hit a target point +-.003. It was a conical surface in the face of the part with a spherical surface at the vertex of the cone. I used a full radius face groove. Just had to hand grind clearance on the insert.

quote: and so the corresponding I,J,K will drop out, not the X,Y,or Z. Believe it or not some controls use the third vector component as the pitch of one complete rev of the arc in a helical interpolation. Not that this has anything to do with this guys problem. Just thought I'd mention it for accuracy.

litnin, Sounds like APT to me. The code written in the 50's upon which all cam systems were created. APT was and still is purley text based cam programming. You define geometry without seeing a graphical representation of it ( pretty tough for most humans ), then you create tool paths by telling it exactly how you want it to go. For example TLLEFT GOFWD/L1,TO,C1 GOLEFT/L2,PAST,L3 etc.. In APT if another APT programmer was to look at the code he/she would know what it was doing ( after some headaches usually ). Using a graphical cam system do we really want tool motion without any associated geometry? You may know what you did 6 months from now, but I'd pity the next person that has to work on your stuff after you've been hit by a bus. I want to see everything I did at a glance without having to decipher anything. You may find it easier in the long run to create geometry that speaks to the next guy. So if you need a check surface to be a certain distance from something else, create it there. Thats my .02 for today. Sorry you were getting mugged, people are sensitive about their software. Good luck.

Probably make it out of canada, that happens all day long. Making it in would be another story. That would be like smuggling cameras into Japan. p.s. Rekd - I'm glad to see somebody's paying attention. I was beginning to think I was the only one with a sense of humor around here.

"it" = sack of weed?

Entry level burger flipper in CA. Starting pay $9.00 per hour. Responsibilities - making sure the ketchup is in the bag. Fringe benifits - free burgers. Entry level Mastercam programmer in CA. Starting pay $8.50 per hour. Responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of parts and equipment. Fringe benifits - getting the blame for anything that goes wrong.

check each of the ops to see what .nci file they are using.

Is entry level like no practical machining experience, just graduated high school, ripped off a copy of mc and thinking anybody could do this? Just curious.

Dodging bullets like I was in the matrix reloaded.