Alibre Design & Alibre CAM

[Mad Professor]

Good Day All.

It's been quite some time since I last posted on here.

All my 2D and 3D designs have been done in a programm called Alibre Design (https://www.alibre.com/products/ad.asp), as I am using the free version (Alibre Design Xpress).

I now have a working small area cnc mill, and what to start making some simple parts.

Alibre Design (https://www.alibre.com/products/ad.asp) has an add-on program called Alibre CAM (https://www.alibre.com/products/ac.asp) to output g-code for mach3.

But I have no idea how to use this Alibre CAM (https://www.alibre.com/products/ac.asp) to output g-code.

Has anyone here used Alibre Design (https://www.alibre.com/products/ad.asp) or Alibre CAM (https://www.alibre.com/products/ac.asp) before?

You can get copy of the Alibre Design Trial (https://www.alibre.com/Register/RequestInfo.aspx) <click link.

Thanks for your time.

[Robin Hewitt]

The free Alibre gcode software allows you to define cutters and cut depths then does it as a series of parallel lines in the XY plane. No water lining, bit crummy, but free :naughty:

Play with it and you will see the cuts building up in a stack on the left hand margin as you change depth and tools.

Lets you fiddle with the cut entry angles, stuff like that.

Robin

[Mad Professor]

Your right the free version only seems to be able to do Parallel Finishing.

The test item is a 435x153x160mm block, and I am wanting to mill four 83mm dia by 7.5mm deep holes into the top.

The g-code output from Alibre CAM as it's Parallel Finishing go's over the hole block, and the 83mm dia holes are not that tidy.

I guess the best thing to do now is to look at other programs.

Is there any other free cad or cheep cad programs out there that are as easy to use as Alibre Design?

Thanks for your time.