Well, look at the screen shot of the first post in the thread. You will notice that "TOP OF BOTTOM BLOCK" is the current WCS. It is assumed that this WCS was created from the Gview and the others were automatically associated from it because that is the selection that he has from the relative to WCS. Just one, two, or all can be created depending upon the selection. Of course Mastercam can be misbehaving which is typically resolved by shutting it down and starting again. So go ahead and try the planes functions and you will see that you can create one plane or all associated planes depending on how your selection is regarding associated planes. Incidentally, I do like using groups for molds, but for most things I prefer viewsheets. I also use level sets a lot that group levels together if you have them all named the same simply by right clicking in level set and selecting all on or all off. It is handy, you may like that for mold work also to use inconjunction with your groups.

Well, sorry but I am travelling and do not have access to Mastercam right now. But the issue is in relative to WCS. This is a really neat function because you can select which workplanes you want relative to the gview that you have selected and you can add all of the relative planes that you wish very quickly. If you click around a little there you will find out how you can set it to only add the selected gview that you wish to create. You can also rotate the gview to orient it the way you wish to and get the arrows pointing in the right direction.

When cnc controls first came it seemed standard to plot the part and use a diameter or radius setting to offset the tool. You could use the same program for a reground tool or smaller endmill. No need to type a new program on the flexowriter. Life was simple with control cuz that is all we knew. Then we got brave and did complex 3d paths for molds programmed with formulas arranged in gwbasic. Wow these computers are ok. I never could have input all that data from my slide rule. Then mc made all toolmakers equal and gave us wear, computer, etc and everyone started using wear so I did too just to conform. Then blum laser came by and could dynamically input the tool length and diameter very accurately. But not all machine tools have tool preseters on them. In time more reliance will be placed on using tool measurement devices as we see more factory automation. I feel that this will drive the next generation of machinists to move back towards control programming for the 2d footpaths. Sister tooling will become more prevalent also.

You may associate planes to a solid face as follow: gview - by solid face - click on face, make sure to choose the appropriate orientation selection, and watch the view rotate from plane manager right click on the plane that you wish to be associated with the solid face - dynamic plane - move to wcs origin - rotation set to graphics view THEN LEFT CLICK the box that says align with - THEN green check click. Make sure that you do in the order stated. If your planes are listed in different toolpath operations and you have aligned them to the face properly as above, you may now regenerate the toolpaths and they will be correct. And if you have Varco reports for setup sheets you may quickly check all of your planes and toolplanes by operation off the list to see that they are set correctly on each toolpath. As previously mentioned, you may associate the planes to geometry. You may also right click in plane manager to use incremental rotation of the planes. I find it easy to use the gview selection by solid face so sometimes I will make a solid face from a plane surface. On a very rare occasion in using this method (maybe 2 times in 1000 instances) you may have a B rotation output incorrectly to B0, but if you pay attention to the posting message errors it will let you know. Review all toolpaths quickly by scrolling through quickly to show the blue line toolpaths one at a time as well as in verify if you do not have Vericut.

Check out Varco Reports for MasterCam. It really takes the work out of setup sheets and is well worth taking a look at. This will reduce your time in providing professional setup sheets and also allow you to quickly check your program for problems. “I remember how excited I was to see the initial unveiling of your Varco Reports template for MasterCam Setup Sheets on July 28, 2015. After proving it by using it successfully on the shop floor I am very pleased, especially since it is accessed from within MasterCam. The ability to have a myriad of choices as to what information and pictures are presented in the Setup Sheet in addition to having three main sub formats appeals to a variety of MasterCam users. Being able to quickly switch from one company logo to another is perfect for a corporate user or a contract programming house. Having an on/off switchable footer at the bottom of each page completely satisfies the need for form and revision control for the various certification requirements in the industry. The special instructions feature is especially attractive for shops that wish to include additional multiple pages of charts or information into their Setup Sheet. Being able to quickly check for properly numbered tool length offsets, work offsets, and cooling status within the program proofing sub format by reading the red warning notes is superb. I am really impressed with the professional presentation it offers and of the ease of use. This is a must have enhancement for every MasterCam user.” www.varcoreporting.com