Fill in my knowledge gap :)

[m_c]

It should be just as good as edge finder, but it'll depend on how good your eyesight is ;-)

[Davek0974]

Ok, the tool length offset table ;)

I'm going to try R8 ER collet chucks as a repeatable method of tool holding, have asked many people and resounding reply was yes it should be plenty accurate enough for this style of machine.

1 - With the tool offsets, can I measure them using the Z axis probing and touch-plate setup?

2 - I guess i need a "default tool zero" or some such to enable a reference length to be kept and then measure all tool against that one?

3 - If i was using the tapping head, i would need to lower the knee about 5", ref the surface again, tap the threads then return the knee to the higher position. Fit the next tool, set the tool number in Mach3, ref the surface and good to go again??

Am i on the right tracks here?

[Davek0974]

Well, i now have a Haimer 3d-Taster for edge referencing, nice little tool, if i ever get the mill project finished it will come in handy ;)

I also have a bundle of ER32/R8 collet chucks for tool-holding.

And I have just about sussed out tool length offsets, I have a neat little macro that will take the reading from the Z axis after setting with the Haimer, then asks for each tool to be inserted, does a Z probe to the plate and then saves the offset into the tool table :) In use, i just pick up the Z ref with the Haimer then choose whatever tool i want from the table.

Ok, software.....

I am getting pretty good at 2d on Sheetcam and Vectric Aspire but is there a need for Fusion360 and when would I need it??

I have it installed and have played with it but i do not find it intuitive, its very complex and there seem to be no tool-tips or pop-up help. Lots of stuff on the 'tube but all seem to move very fast and make it look easy.

The only benefit i can see yet is that it does adaptive clearing which Sheet-Cam and Aspire do not.

What sort of job would need cam generating in Fusion that I could not do in my other two apps????

If its not needed, i won't learn it as I am not 20 any more and already have enough to learn ;)

[Neale]

I would describe F360 as a good 3D CAD package with a pretty good integrated CAM package. I use F360 for design, and then it is pretty natural to just carry on with the CAM module. On the other hand, if I want to do something fairly straightforward I might well do it in VCarve (just cut-down Aspire...) because it quick and easy. No need to use F360 just for CAM, I would have thought.

[Davek0974]

Ok, so what sort of part would make you say "well thats a F360 job" over "i'll just do that in Vcarve" ??

I can see that working with the 360 view model is good, complex but good, but it seems most stuff can be done with just 2d views?

[Boyan Silyavski]

Ok, so what sort of part would make you say "well thats a F360 job" over "i'll just do that in Vcarve" ??

I can see that working with the 360 view model is good, complex but good, but it seems most stuff can be done with just 2d views?

I was thinking exactly the same question yesterday night.

The short answer is:
if you are doing X pieces, do it simply and using simple software. If you are to be doing more than XXX pieces, then use more powerful CAM where accordingly spend more time for tuning and perfecting toolpaths.

But when to jump from one method to the other is a question of how much time designing is worth the effort. Another story is that you will have always to invest time in learning better software so one day you could do your job better.

[John S]

Aspire can do some 3D work.
This was done in Aspire

but for parts with curves, think a mobile phone mold etc you need 3D / fusion 360

For most part they are just built up from 2 1/2D parts that Sheetcam can handle fine.

Carry on as you are and jump later if needed. the time for the learning curve is far better spend doing what you can do.

[Neale]

Ok, so what sort of part would make you say "well thats a F360 job" over "i'll just do that in Vcarve" ??

I can see that working with the 360 view model is good, complex but good, but it seems most stuff can be done with just 2d views?

Real example. I'm a bit embarrassed to talk about it because it seems so trivial compared with the usual projects described, but never mind. My wife wanted some simple dividers to go in some plastic crates to separate whatever it was she was storing. I had some 3mm ply sitting around, so planned to use that. Could have cut flat panels with sloping edges to fit the crates, but wanted something a bit clever. So I added flanges to the divider plates, with tabs on the dividers fitting into tight-fitting slots in the flange pieces. Because of the tapered sides, I could have calculated dimensions but that would have been time-consuming so I drew the dividers with tabs on, then drew the flanges and could "cut out" the slots where the tabs went, and because this was all done in F360, I knew that all the bits would fit - which they did, and they fitted the boxes nicely. I could then take the individual components and lay them out for CAM and 2D cutting. I could have done it in VCarve but, as I say, that would have needed me to do some sums to work out tab and hole positions. As it was, I've no idea of the actual dimensions of the tabs but I could use F360 features to get them equi-spaced, match tab/gap spacing, etc, with very little thought or work on my part. I would use VCarve, for instance, for making an engraved sign where all the work is 2D and the CAM really good for that kind of v-engraving. Horses for courses.

For this kind of work, though, there is one small point where VCarve beats F360 hands down, and that is generating corner fillets for the holes to take rectangular tabs. You can do it in F360 with an add-on, but it's so trivially easy in VCarve. In fact, for my dividers, I ended up exporting DXFs of the panels and flanges and doing the CAM in VCarve. I'm not proud...

[Davek0974]

Yes, i love the T-Bone and Dog-Bone fillets in Aspire, use them a lot.

Your example was good - I had only been looking at a single part - maybe THAT is where things change to to F360 - when you want to make assemblies?? As you said, I would have measured the inside of the crates, calculated angles, positioned my tabs, then positioned the slots and then made each part with no knowledge that they will actually fit together properly.

The reason i had not seen this is that my stuff has all been single parts so far or just two parts that fit together easily. One other aspect is that with F360 the customer can see the part before you CAM it, in Aspire you have to CAM it and run the simulator to reveal the parts. In SheetCam you can do neither as there is no 3d viewer, but it is hands-down my favourite program for the plasma cutter and also for very simple mill stuff.

I guess i will plod on with F360 in my spare time, my main issue is that it is cloud based and i have a dislike for cloud apps. But as its free for home use, i will live with that i think :)

[needleworks]

Well, i now have a Haimer 3d-Taster for edge referencing, nice little tool, if i ever get the mill project finished it will come in handy ;)

Nice one mate, can I just ask, where did you get the Haimer from as I was also considering getting one?

Also, John Saunders has a good channel which shows a lot of tutorials for F360, Fusion Friday I think they`re called
https://www.youtube.com/user/saunixcomp/videos