[SwampDonkey]

Hi all!

I have to make parts with multiple tools used (endmills of various sizes, drills, etc), and the only way Ive been able to do this is by going over to Cambam and making the code for each operation. Even this doesnt work sometimes. I have no probe, and zero out everything with edge finders and touching off on Z axis. I just had to countersink a dozen holes and really wish I could have just raised the Z axis and thrown a drill bit in the spindle to drill through the countersunk holes.

The tool/work offsets seem to either not do anything or cause runaway endmills and tool crashes.Today I wrote a program in cambam and specified a .5" endmill (tool 5). As an experiment I entered the same diameter in the tool library for tool 5. It was off by 1". Should I ignore tool offsets if tool diameters are specified in Cam?

I just want to be able to change tooling without having to write new cam programs for each operation.

Help please

[cbyrd]

Tormach has a good video for setting tool offsets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoIB_Fatt44

Daniel goes over the tool offsets in several different ways.

Good Luck !

[SwampDonkey]

Tormach has a good video for setting tool offsets.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoIB_Fatt44

Daniel goes over the tool offsets in several different ways.

Good Luck !

Yes, I saw that. It didnt help. I dont have any tool holders, but I tried to recreate what he did anyway. The exact scenario I described happened.
I have to put my tool diameters in CAMBAM to begin with. It seems to add the tool diameter offsets when I select an identical tool from the tool offset library
in PP.

[123CNC]

I do not have firsthand experience with CAMBAM, but logically within any CAM program there are 2 ways to approach cutter compensation, or tool radius offsets. One approach would be based on user selection of tools with specified diameters and then specifying an operation and sometimes direction, such as climb mill an outer profile or contour path. The CAM could then calculate the path with offset correction, or more commonly post the associated G-code for the tool, e.g. G41 left, G42 right, or G40 turn cutter compensation off.

One would need to look at your CAMBAM posted G-code to see if the G40, G41, G42's are present. If not, then the path values are calculated with correction within CAM. However, on the other hand the G41 and G42 would do nothing if the called tool had a diameter of zero. Also if there are no G4x's in your CAM posted file, then the tool data would not be used either. In other words, it is an either or situation, corrected path or G4x compensation.

It is unclear to me what you mean by "It seems to add the tool diameter offsets..,' as in you see cut path error of 1 diameter, or an error of 1 radius because it used diameter rather than radius. The simplest possible cause for this might be specifying in CAM a cut direction opposite to what you intended or expected in the final part. In other words, switching G41 and G42's when the intent was opposite of that

So 2 questions, have you ran the file with a zero value for diameter .and does your file use G41 and G42?

[SwampDonkey]

Hi all!

I have to make parts with multiple tools used (endmills of various sizes, drills, etc), and the only way Ive been able to do this is by going over to Cambam and making the code for each operation. Even this doesnt work sometimes. I have no probe, and zero out everything with edge finders and touching off on Z axis. I just had to countersink a dozen holes and really wish I could have just raised the Z axis and thrown a drill bit in the spindle to drill through the countersunk holes.

The tool/work offsets seem to either not do anything or cause runaway endmills and tool crashes.Today I wrote a program in cambam and specified a .5" endmill (tool 5). As an experiment I entered the same diameter in the tool library for tool 5. It was off by 1". Should I ignore tool offsets if tool diameters are specified in Cam?

I just want to be able to change tooling without having to write new cam programs for each operation.

Help please

Unfortunately I dont have a sample of the code since it was at work and I dont have PP at home. But there were several issues, including the facing canned conversational cycle not working. No matter what I did, it again doubled the cutter diameter from the tool library, and overran the limits when there was plenty of room. The program would just fault out even thugh there was plenty of room to complete the cycle. Thats probably for another thread though.