I'm not sure a Tree can handle a network communication. When we had 2 of them, we had to communicate via RS232 cable. Post the file to the computer connected to the tree, and then do the handshake transfer. Carmen

Threadmills are no different than end mills. They have ground teeth with clearance behind the cutting edge and only cut in one direction. Just as you cannot spin an end mill in the opposite direction to change a convention cut into a climb milling cut. Carmen

I have found that when using this tool path, I get the best results when I use " roughing tool " as my source for calculating the rest passes. This way is doesn't calculate cuts on the small cusps left in previous toolpaths. It is a bit of a "it and miss" process to find something that works efficiently. I have also used the suggestions listed above by others with limited success too. Carmen

The Seco catalog will show you the "programmable radius". I have used Seco high-feed tools for many years with great success. Drawing the tool in Mastercam will do nothing for you other than for graphic purposes. The software will not "check" against a profiled shape, but rather, just a bullnose tool. As with any high-feed tool, you will end up with larger amounts of stock leftover in the shallow areas of your part. The catalog will tell you what the "uncut thickness" is based on the size of the insert. Carmen

Vardex threadmills work great in 17-4 PH. I always cut bottom to top ( climb milling ) with multiple light cuts on small thread sizes. Flood coolant will help. Carmen

I am looking to purchase a few new computers for our shop. We need some pretty decent horsepower to process some of our typical jobs. Without reading through 1500 posts, could someone with good computer knowledge guide me as to what works best with Mastercam ? Obviously I don't have an unlimited budget, but I reall y need to know what to shop for. Is a Zeon quad core processor the best candidate or do dual cores work better? I know to look for a Nvidia video card, but what model / price range is recommended? Obviously a 64 bit operating system is a must, and I assume 16 gig of ram would be ideal? Please help me out. I am a great programmer, however, I am not so savvy about computers. Carmen

If you translated by tool plane, you would set the origin of each fixture in the control. G54, G55, G56 or G54.1 P1, G54.1 P2 ,etc on a Fanuc control. Carmen

This would be a great test. I would love to see your results using your suggested parameters. Roughing to even closer than .005" is easily attainable on a Makino. This has nothing to do with Mastercam. It has everything to do with Makino's algorithms for accel/decel control, 1000 block look-ahead, Super Geometric Intelligence. If the part is programmed properly, all tool deflection will be away from the part anyways. I have been running Makino's for 9 years and I cannot think of a single instance of a gouge, clipped corner or where something didn't clean up from roughing. As for the HAAS, what I find laughable, is that the setting 85 you mentioned earlier, is set at .050 from the factory. I took HAAS service/applications to task about this and we ran a sample part, basically a pyramid where each z-level represented a different value for setting 85. The performance and feedrate difference between the levels was ridiculous. Sure, if you allow the machine to clip corners, it will maintain feedrate, however, when you set setting 85 to a value that is more realistic for real-world machining, the machine just dies on complicated geometry. The Makino doesn't really care. It just holds tolerance, Period.

In a nutshell, this new method sucks. I wish we could return to the previous generation of tool path translations as the dialog boxes were SOOOOOOOO much easier to comprehend. Carmen

A die spring placed between the parallels works great too. Try 30K ............. it takes out the spindle.

Excellent point Marshal. I wish other manufacturers did this too for comparison purposes. I think Okuma posts some basic prices, however, Makino keeps all their prices and specs very close to the vest.

In reality, there is only a $24K difference in cost between these two machines. That is peanuts compared to the performance advantage of the Makino. I wouldn't necessarily call this particular Makino as a "high end" machine. It comes from a "high end" manufacturer, however, this particular model is at the bottom of the Makino scale. It is an awesome machine for the money. Accurate, strong, flexible, etc, etc. There is NO comparison between these two machines. This Makino is vastly superior in every way. Accuracy is a very misunderstood parameter. A Haas may have "local accuracy" but fails miserably in terms of "volumetric accuracy". As mentioned in one of Bob's posts, temperature change in the spindle or ball screws can play havoc, especially on large parts, or parts ( molds ) with long run times. A very simple way to check this is to indicate a fixed ring mounted to the table and set it to X0Y0 in one of the fixture offsets. At any given point during the day, call up that offset and move back to this position and "re-indicate" the ring and see how much movement you have on the indicator. It is appalling. Sure, if you cut a rectangular slot in a piece of material and the run-time of the part is very short, yes, you can hold .0005" Unfortunately, this never happens in mold and die work. I can easily demonstrate "drift" on a Haas VM3 of upwards of .003" On the Makino, it will hold "true position" all day long no matter what you throw at it with +/- .0002 Precisely.

One thing to keep in mind is that the Makino PS95 is at the bottom of the Makino food chain. It is actually built in Taiwan under supervision from the Japanese factory. It is an extremely well built machine for the money. As for a cost comparison, I just used the online Haas machine quote and spec'd out a VM3 with the same equipment that comes standard on the Makino and the difference in price came to only $24K. In my opinion, the Makino is way more machine for just a small premium.

I can attest that HAAS's claims of accuracy, are highly inaccurate.

I run both of these machines every day. There is no comparison, at any level, between the two machines. The Makino is an absolute workhorse and tens times ( exaggeration ) more accurate than the HAAS. The extra money spent on the Makino is worth every penny. Keep in mind, that you would also have a higher resale value on the Makino. Ever looked at the price of a used HAAS? If you make aluminum or plastic parts that require no precision, then HAAS is the answer. For everything else, the Makino reigns supreme. Bob, you may be able to decrease the cycle time on the PS95 by changing the tolerance mode. M251 is the high performance mode that should decrease cycle time depending on the g-code point output and complexity of the movements. Carmen

Use a shallower depth of cut with a higher feedrate. I would not go any deeper than .002" per depth cut. I would also use coolant or some type of oil to prevent clogging the end mill. Unfortunately you are limited on rpm. Carmen

The OP's question was "And how is the best way to draw these points on MasterCam?" My suggestion eliminates the need to draw all the points. Just one point would be needed if it is a grid. Carmen

Just program one hole, then translate the toolpath. Takes seconds. Carmen

Yeah, that's my car ................ all 575 Hp. '07 Roush 427R

Here's one I can't believe hasn't been added over the years. When you want to transform/translate a chain ( or group of chains ), have the chaining manager launch so you have some control in picking the chain. Currently you have to select each entity separately. What I would like to see is: X-form / translate / select chain function from the current drop down box / Once you click "chain", the chaining manager would launch which would give you control to choose 2D / 3D chain, partial, etc. Seems like it would be easy to implement. Carmen

The Canadian dollar is higher, not lower, than the US dollar. At any rate, most machines are quoted in US dollars which works out to a few percent less in Canadian dollars.

We paid $135K for our PS95 last year. Outstanding machine.

You would love the PS95. It is a fantastic machine that comes well equipped, in fact, there really are no options. The control is a little simpler than the pro5, but the only drawback I found was that is has no data server, meaning that you have to put the NC machine file on a flash card, and the control reads directly off the flash card. It works great and is awesome for high-speed toolpaths. Scary-fast machine. Standard thru-tool coolant and chip conveyors make it really nice. The machine design and layout was obviously done with the operator in mind. The HAAS ............. what a piece of garbage in comparison. The cost of the Makino is very attractive. Carmen

I increase my speed and feed proportionally, so if I increase the rpm by 30%, I also increase the feed by 30% and this gives you the same chip load that you used on the steeper areas. This approach gives a uniform surface finish, and also reduces the cycle time. Carmen

Rotate all your geometry by 45 degrees which will make all the toolpaths dirty, then regenerate.