[Brewmeister]

Hey there,

Thought I'd raise my hand as another NX CAM user, supporter.

Cammotion, the best option is a conscientious programmer. Setting your clearance plane at the max distance on the part from the rotation point + your normal clearance value. (I'm a daredevil, so I usually use an automatic clearance of about 5mm). I do have a customer asking me to build a safe move into the post for 4th axis moves that will return home (G28 Z0) any time the 4th axis moves at RAPID. I can post the modified proc if you like. I still think option 1 is the best.

Rob, I'm using plunge milling in 5.0.4, and it seems to be working pretty good. I'm even able to use it for vertical finishing. (like a zig path, but on a vertical wall.) Can you elaborate on the problems you're having? The logic is a bit odd to get used to. Essentially, imagine a zig-zag, follow part, or even a profile path on the top of the blank. Then, based on your parameters, every so often along that path the tool plunges toward the part, stopping at the stock value away from the part.

Carbon, all of the Fadal posts on the customer download site are created from the Fadal template in postbuilder. If you select, "New Post" Mill, 3 Axis, and "Library" for the controller, you can select the Fadal template. All you have to enter are the machine specific parameters (travel limits, max speed & feed, etc..)
As long as you have a current license for NX, you can get a WEbkey ID which gets you access to GTAC, Support, and the Post library. All you need is your Site ID, which can be found under Help -> About NX -> System Information. (also found in "Capture Incedent Report Data", and in the "NX Log File" options under "Help").

Be Well