OHHHHH...I see... I never encountered that issue. I have all my programs listed alphabetically in the main folder and I just select what I need from there. I see what you mean...you don't want to have to step through all the subfolders each time you want to send a new program from a subfolder. Other than changing the default path to the desired subfolder, I don't know any other way to do it. Maybe you could use the main folder as a temporary directory for only the active programs you'll be using, and store everything else in its proper subfolder until needed. Either way, it sounds like a pain. Sorry I can't be of any more help.

Jeff, If you right click on the port you want and use the "Send File Advanced" option you get a dropdown menu of recently sent files, then you can just pick the one you want from there. There's also a "Send Recent Files" option on the right click menu that does the same thing.

I cut quite a bit of Delrin too and have never found the need to thermally stress relieve it either. The advice here is all good...especially about balancing the material removal as best as you can. This seems to keep your dimensions stable better than anything else I know of. From my experience, the 550 and 507 (black) grade of Delrin is probably the best choice for close tolerance work and overall machinability. The 100 (black) and 150 grades are mechanically tougher and hold up well where impact toughness is needed. BTW the 100 and 507 black Delrin both become UV stable when the coloring is added, but other than that the mechanical properties between the 100 and 150, and between the 507 and 550 are essentially the same. Lastly, if you need maximum toughness, the 570 grade is 15-20% glass filled and holds up well under harsher wear and tear conditions where other grades may fail. Consequently though, it is also tougher to machine, so the decision to use it should be made with this in mind. HTH!

quote: I just want to know what you guys are hearing and why training is required Sorry THREEPT82...I didn't mean to suggest training would be required for the new version. I simply wanted to know if re-sellers would be offering sessions to familiarize users with all of the new version's bells and whistles instead of having us try to find and figure them out by ourselves. I don't know for sure, but I believe from what I've heard the new version may have a somewhat different look and feel that may be hard for some users to get used to at first. Sorry if I was misunderstood.

LOL cmr!! Good one!! Yes, CAMmando. I expect they were probably yours too when you were back east. Maybe some of us could get together for such training sessions? I'd like to meet some of y'all face to face!

Just wondering... Are any of the resellers here on the forum planning any formalized training sessions specifically targeted to familiarize people with Version X after it is released? I don't want to have to find all the bells and whistles on my own...I might miss some!! Jim teh sign me up!!

I don't have a rule of thumb but I generally tend to back off speed and feed as drills get under .06 diameter. Especially with harder materials, pushing small drills too hard or cranking them too fast is trouble. I work in a prototype shop, so I have the luxury of time. I always run small diameter drills 30-40% slower RPM and feed than normal in harder materials and I do seem to break fewer drills. Also, a DEAD NUTS TRUE drill chuck or collet is a MUST for small hole drilling!! Any whip is magnified significantly with even the smallest amount of runout. HTH

...or just perform an exorcism on your 'puter to rid it of the evil IE and switch to the good Mozilla and Filezilla... Jim teh MS 'shot of teh day'...

Is it realy a line, or is it a spline? MC won't let you pick a different type of entity if you've specified something else. Try this: Screen>ChangeLevels>Only>Color>Select>(now choose the entity you want to change by color instead of by entity type.) HTH!

John, As a relative newcomer to the forum, I don't believe I've ever had the pleasure. I must say that reading your post today was a real blessing. Thank you for putting your life on hold to go over there to do a thankless, dirty job that unfortunately needed doing. It's been said that we'd rather fight the terrorists in Baghdad than in Boston, and I wholeheartedly agree. But talk like that is only effective when it's backed up by decisive action. You and your fellow soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines are definately the pride of our nation and the best in the world at what you do. Thanks for also mentioning (mostly for the benefit of some of the more liberal forum members)how things are REALLY going over there from a first-person perspective. I have a bro-in-law who is a 1SG in an Army unit up north who has been telling us the same things you are saying. I believe you are confirming once again that the media's liberal agenda is clouding their objectivity to the point where all we seem to hear is the BAD news. Some of the more liberal folks here don't like to hear that, but it happens to be the truth. I hope you can continue to use this forum to keep sending us updates. Personally, I thank God every day for people like you who are willing to fight for the cause of freedom. Hang in there and keep the faith. I believe that what you and your fellow servicemen and women are doing there today will change the course of the whole world for the better. God bless you and yours.

I don't run any now...just vertical CNC mills. I had some experience w/ mostly Brown & Sharp screw machines, but it was a long time ago. I haven't seen one in probably 20 years, but I'm sure the basics don't change much. (But back then our 'software' consisted of paper and pencil!) I'll bet the newer machines are nice though. Like I said, be patient as with learning anything new and you'll be fine. Learn to crawl before you try to walk, then learn to walk before you try to run.

Good question. I guess the main difference is that screw machines control things by direct mechanical means with gears and cams, whereas the CNC's are relying on electronics and servos. As a result, screw machines often require much more 'tweaking' during setup, but once you nail the setup you will normally get good consistent parts all day long. My best advice is that the operator must learn patience during this tweaking process because it can be tedious, especially if you are running close tolerance work. After a time, you will find that tweaking a finished dimension on a screw machine part is in many ways simpler than on a CNC. The other intimidating thing about screw machines is that when everything starts moving all at once you SWEAR it's going to crash and burn! It just takes some getting used to. It's just like seeing the head on your vertical CNC mill make a rapid Z move toward the workpiece and then stop exactly where you told it to. As long as you are confident with your setup, you'll get used to the movements and realize it really won't crash unless you messed up. I would recommend starting with simple parts to allow the operator to build some confidence before moving on to more complex work. How long this takes I guess depends upon the operator. Some people pick it up quickly and some don't...just like learning CNC milling or anything else around the shop. I think you need the ability to visualize the sequence of steps needed to make the part in your mind, then be able to set the machine up to execute that plan in a logical order. I would say that if you train 4 or 5 people on a screw machine and ONE of them picks it up quickly, you'll probably be OK. That one person will probably become your screw machine guru and will usually be able to handle any job after a while. Treat it as a positive learning experience, and BE SAFE!!!

Thanks guys. I have a long cycle time today so I thought it would be a good day to learn this. Thanks Steve...I think you nailed it.

I know this is relatively simple, but I would like if someone could explain how to do it. I'm kinda new at post editing, so I thought I'd start out slowly. When I run the MPFAN post, I would like to add the file name to the beginning of the nc program in parentheses to look like this: (filename) % G00 G40 G54 G17 G80 G90 T1 M06 G0 G90 X.2875 Y-.498 S1200 M3 ... Would some kind soul enlighten me? Thanks! Jim teh wants to edit the post w/o screwing it all up!

I don't have alot of time, but if I did I would love to design a custom avatar. Until then, I'll probably just submit a plain one and maybe work on a custom one for the future. Thanks for asking!

If you use IE to connect to the FTP site, http://www.emastercam.com/ubb/ultimatebb.p...2130;p=1#000010 (courtesy of Bullines) Jim teh 200th post!! WOOHOO!!

Like everyone else here, I can't wait for version X either. I've heard some good things about it, but I must say these beta testers keep a fairly tight lid on the details! We'll just have to be patient... Jim teh hopes my employer will spring for the X upgrade when it finally gets released.

Is the line a duplicate maybe? I've found this always causes odd toolpath behavior. Otherwise... Jim teh always Delete>Duplicate>Entities

Jeff +100 If I'm sending a file and try to edit it, Cimco gives that same message when I try to save it. If I click Manual> select the correct machine (port) > Stop, then Cimco will let me save the changes. If you're not using any of the transmit features, I don't know why you still get the error message. It could be as Rob suggests with the file being open somewhere else on the network. Or if you are sending it with a different comm program I think you still get the error when you try to save. I'd be interested to know if you find out the cause. Jim teh always sends teh machine #1 program to machine #2...

If it were done w/ a 5 axis multisurf prog you can use lead/lag angle to keep the tip from dwelling and leaving surface drag marks. Otherwise, as previously stated, you will need to manipulate the flowline gap settings and try the Project blend as Michael suggests.

OK...thanks cadist and winnie! I never noticed that option before. I think it will be quite useful instead of regenerating many paths. ************************************************* Jim teh learning more about MC every day!

quote: ...lock your toolpath from regeneratingHow to do this, Winnie? Thanks.

I come across something similar alot b/c I have a 4 1/2 axis trunion type table (90 degrees B+ travel but only -5 degrees B- travel)so I sometimes need to split my part into halves to machine them with 2 separate programs. I usually put half the part on one level and the other half on another, then write the toolpaths as you describe. I found that if I regen the left half toolpath with that level turned off, it will regen and backplot OK but the finished nc file goes haywire with the tool going in a series of small arcs when trying to follow a spline. Apparently you need the correct level turned on...but I'm not really sure why. Anybody care to enlighten us? Thanks.

quote: Or you can import ops from another MC9 file through Job Setup.Thanks a million, Thad! I was trying to do just that a while ago but couldn't remember how, so I just rewrote them. Now I remember!! ********************************************** Jim teh lazy CNC programmer.

I see, Randle. Thanks. I didn't understand what you meant at first. I drip feed large surface files to my 2 Fadals too, but if I need to abort a program in the middle, I usually just start over from the beginning if it's not too far along, or I will rotate the program 180 degrees to start from the opposite end and overlap where the aborted program left off. I noticed that if I run the nc file without the line numbers, it runs smoother because the controller has less incoming information to process. My controllers are more than 10 years old and have a max baud rate of 9600, so they can only process the data at that speed. Knowing this, I try to make my nc files as lean as possible so I don't get any choppiness in the program caused by the buffer trying to keep up.