Jeff_Birt
03-13-2008, 10:58 AM
I just got done milling out two small parts here at work. They were just 2" dia. circles with a 3/4" counter bore and 3/8" through hole both centered at the circles center point.
So to get this done I had to fire up AutoCAD and draw the path outlines. Then it was on to SurfCAM to create the tool paths. Then use SurfCAM to verify the Gcode and finally try the part on the mill.
So out the little bench top mill, fire it up, fire up the control computer, zero the mill, and mount the stock and spoil plate. Then comes zeroing the machine to the stock and finally I can start to cut out parts.
Well, SurfCAM threw in toolchanges between operations even though only one tool is used. So, I have to babysit and keep hitting cycle start to keep cutting. Surfcam also does not automatically leave tabs when you cut a part out, so I had to watch and stop the machine on its last pass just before the part became loose.
So, I could have edited the g-code by hand to take out the tool changes and stop the last arc just before the piece was cut out. Or, gone back into SurfCAM and split the circles into arcs to make it leave tabs (would have been a separate operation, cut the circle down to 0.05" or so from bottom and then cut two arcs that don't quite meet to make tabs.) I know how to do all these things but what a waste of time for simple little jobs.
In the defense of my little mill it can do things that the CW can't, like machine metal. But, I just wanted to cut two simple parts out of acrylic and could have set up and run the job on the CW in about 1/4 the time.
So here I sit, wishing that my $10,000 bench top mill $3,000 CAD program and $17,000 CAM program was as quick and easy to use as my $1,700 CW/Designer. Ain't life cruel... (Note: when I say my mill, cad, cam, I really mean my employers, and since we are a university we don't pay anything close to the normal going rates I tried to list for comparison. When I say my CW, I mean it! It's mine, mine mine and they can't have it :) )
So to get this done I had to fire up AutoCAD and draw the path outlines. Then it was on to SurfCAM to create the tool paths. Then use SurfCAM to verify the Gcode and finally try the part on the mill.
So out the little bench top mill, fire it up, fire up the control computer, zero the mill, and mount the stock and spoil plate. Then comes zeroing the machine to the stock and finally I can start to cut out parts.
Well, SurfCAM threw in toolchanges between operations even though only one tool is used. So, I have to babysit and keep hitting cycle start to keep cutting. Surfcam also does not automatically leave tabs when you cut a part out, so I had to watch and stop the machine on its last pass just before the part became loose.
So, I could have edited the g-code by hand to take out the tool changes and stop the last arc just before the piece was cut out. Or, gone back into SurfCAM and split the circles into arcs to make it leave tabs (would have been a separate operation, cut the circle down to 0.05" or so from bottom and then cut two arcs that don't quite meet to make tabs.) I know how to do all these things but what a waste of time for simple little jobs.
In the defense of my little mill it can do things that the CW can't, like machine metal. But, I just wanted to cut two simple parts out of acrylic and could have set up and run the job on the CW in about 1/4 the time.
So here I sit, wishing that my $10,000 bench top mill $3,000 CAD program and $17,000 CAM program was as quick and easy to use as my $1,700 CW/Designer. Ain't life cruel... (Note: when I say my mill, cad, cam, I really mean my employers, and since we are a university we don't pay anything close to the normal going rates I tried to list for comparison. When I say my CW, I mean it! It's mine, mine mine and they can't have it :) )