Oh I guess I should have metioned that the setting he wants is the one that doesn't show the tool diameter going around the profile.

The other programmer in our shop is finally starting to make use of our other mastercam seat, but when he initially set it up, he must have changed some settings. When I run a toolpath with my configuration it just quickly draws the toolpath in. On his configuration file, it slowly goes around the whole profile showing the diameter of the tool. This has to be a setting somewhere that we are just overlooking, but I can't seem to find out how to change it. Any help would be appreciated

I kind of thought that Clear Cut was turned into mastercam. It has pretty much the same menu layout and process to go through

How could I use contour to rough out the pocket? Basically, we parrallel spiral rough the pocket, then run a one way finish to leave the part looking clean. Customer does not like the spiral finish marks. This is engraving on a tire mold. We want the toolpath finishing to go from inside to outside. If a contour reverses from try to connect to those little lines, then it may run from outside to in leaving a visual tool mark difference.

I need to pocket a profile using one way roughing and select and angle to rough at. I don't have a problem with that, but what I do have a problem with is getting it to only machine in that direction. It seems to add a feww little lines in at certain parts of these letters I am machining. Is there any way to force it to only machine at that angle and not try to clean out certain parts? Also when it does the roughing it is leaving half the tool diameter distance between the toolpath and the profile. This isn't a major problem and I can deal with this, but the other thing is. I causes our software to tool our machine with to reverse a few contour because of those little lines. Our machine doesnt use G-code, we just tool in mastercam and save the toolpath as geometry. This reversing is leaving visual marks in the mold, which aren't acceptable. I know I should have titled this message "One way pocketing, The Novel" since its so long, but I just got carried away. I hope you have made it through the whole message. Thanks in advance for any suggestions

Well, we didn't get the engraving package. Does it have alot of useful feature? Thats basically what we do at this company, but we were around 25,000 dollars with the seats we got and didn't really want to go much more. Is the engraving package worth the money?

We are doing some lettering for a tire mold. I'm having trouble chaining the entities in one direction. What I'm saying is that it is picking up and skipping a few letters and then going back to get them in unwanted sequences. How do I get them to chain in a one way order where it doesnt skip entities. We just started using MCam in September, and we have mill level 3. We have been tooling in Smartcam, and it wil sort them right, but we are trying to go to mastercam totally. I know theres a way, but I'm not all that familiar yet.

Well i actually need the lines to come from the origin. Basically like taking a linear cut every .5 degree around a circular part, from insdie to out

try changing your contruction plane to 3D, either on the left side toolbar or with the icons along the top

If anyone reads this, make sure you add in a radial toolpath pocketing option. I know radial surface cutting is allowed, but we do lots of large round parts and it would be nice if the milling toolpath could originate from the center of the part, to give it a clean cut, right now we have to use the angle at the center of a profile and do a linear path, it would be nice not to pick that angle for the toolpath and just use an auto calculated path. I hope I have explained it clear enough what I am trying to do. Maybe they can get it in 9.1 real quick so I can use it when its released. Just a hope and dream.

ps- I am aware of making surfaces and running radial paths that way, but its just not very efficient and usually doesnt tool inside the boundaries.

Well, not all Lexus's are modified toyotas, in fact there are quite a few lexus only production models. Plus with alot of the lexus's you can get a v8. There quite a few non-imported Toyotas that are really cool, including the Toyota Supra, however, I don't know why I am continuing with the car part, since this post was about a Haas...

I trace over them too but when you are working with an iges font, and have about 4 or 500 arcs to create, then its very tedious.

Thanks alot. It works now, I didn't even think about doing that but now its making more sense. I'm very new to editing posts, but the language is starting to be more clear. Thanks for your reply

I think the post about the mori seiki being the "cadillac" of cnc machines is a mis-statement. Wouldn't it be the Lexus or Acura of cnc machining centers, since it is Japanese? p.s. I sure hope its still a Japanese company or I'm going to look like a real idiot, that is of course if I don't already.

If geometry was a bunch of smal lines, whats the easiest was to change it into arcs? Actually #106 copius data from an iges is what they are, and convert to arcs doesn't work.

I'm not sure if this is a post problem or mastercam, but if i set 2 spindle speeds to the same amount, it only outputs one S code at the tool change. Our machine Boston Digital Machine uses percent of 100 spindle speeds, so making them different from each other would result in a signifigant jump on a 40,000 rpm spindle. Any ideas on how to make it post an S on every tool change no matter what the speed?

Well, we decided to use the wear comp and it seems to work good. I have however been informed that in release 9.1 you will be able to apply cutter comp and take it off above the part. That will be nice. Thanks for your suggestions

i would use centerline programming, but these are long run parts and we may have tool wear eventually

There has to be a way to have it apply before its at depth. I'm just trying to figure out how.

I am machining an aluminum plate with many small parts arranged in rows and columns. I am having a problem with profile violation because it is applying the cutter comp, (G41, G42) at depth. In other words it is plunging in with centerline of the tool on the profile and then moving over for the compensation. How can i make it apply cutter comp above the part. I can't put much of a lead in/out in to compensate, because of the small distance between parts.

[ 01-14-2003, 12:06 PM: Message edited by: JeremyG ]