So is there any way to change the defaults? For instance T3 Dia offset 23 Len. Offset 4!!!! Arrg @*^#*!!!!! The worst part is if I change a tool in the op it resets to default. It's only a matter of time before I break somthing I have caught a bad length offset many times. I use V9.1 by the way. [ 04-18-2007, 05:24 AM: Message edited by: IAnderson ]

Thanks guys! Yeah the fishing reel was pretty impressive. It used alot of custom tooling and 4th/5th axis, so the difficulty level was beyond mine. Bill put alot of work into it and it is amazing!! The aluminum stop tailpiece is meant to mimic the vintage '50s to early '70s cast alloy tailpieces. Lighter weight means more resonance. What I had to watch out for was chipping the wood out. I designed the toolpaths to minimize that if possible, ans I didn't have any problems. Particularly nerve wracking was the binding channel, and the neck pocket. Oh yeah on the 1st one (of 2) I used the shank of the tool to do the finish pass in the neck pocket. On the 2nd one I had a longer tool. I kept it slow despite the fast speeds and feeds most people use on wood. I still pulled up alot of wood carving the top, which sanded out though but wsa more work. Next time I am going the full 10k rpm I really had no reference to go by so I played it safe. Another thing that wasn't really a problem, I had to DNC the toolpaths to carve the top as the file was so large. I broke the neck into different operations so I could fit it into the controller. The tailpiece was a piece of cake I drew it up th day before, and held it in the vice. It took 4 operations. I milled the top in 3d because It would have been more difficult and expensive to have a tool made with that radius, which I would do if I were to make more than a few. I had problems indexing the neck correctly. I used a piece of plexi with index pins then double stick taped the fingerboard and neck to it for their operations. he neck came out great when I got it dialed in. There was very little sanding required after the finish shaping. Overall it took 30 minutes. Again next time I'll bump the speeds and feeds up. I spent alot of time optimizing the programming to cut the time down. I havent spoken with Mcam but I think the guitar might be at the trade shows this year on display. They have it for a year. I'll be at Westec in the spring and am looking forward to being there. Also having the student copy for a year!! I'd also like to noiminate Jack Bolllinger for teacher of the year he tought me this stuff in 2 semesters. Starting in the fall 2001 semester I had never heard of a g or m code. Bill Swanson didn't do so bad either. Keep your eyes peeled for pics of his reel when MC gets them up on the website! -Ian-

..are in order for the Mastercam Wildest PArt Competition. Bill Swanson won 1st place with a fishing reel. I won 2nd place with a guitar I designed in Mcam and cut on the School's Fadals Both of us are from San Diego City College with Jack Bollinger as our instructor. Here is a link to some pictures of the guitar and machining process. The fixturing was crude, I was a poor student at the time but it worked flawlessly. http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/AlbumList?u=4035064

$44 at San Diego City College. 8 hours a week, 18 weeks!

I make bodies and necks. The shop I work in we ran a batch of necks, and the fret slots were done on a mandril (I think thats the word) with a sawblade attached to it. They used a Motion Master cnc router. All the factories nowdays use CNC. Both electric and acoustic. It has even filtered down to most of the smaller manufacturers, and parts makers.

Hello Everyone. I was just checking out Mastercams website. I am just learning CNC machining, and Mastercam at San Diego city college. I will be using my new skills in the woodworking industry primarily. I currently build guitars, and work for a small production shop with no cnc machine. We do all of our work on traditional woodworking machinery, and have farmed out some cnc maching in the past. I will be looking for work in that field, or somthing similar. I don't think I'll be purchasing a $75,000 system anytime soon