Originally Posted by jmcglynn  You don't even have to "edit cam part", just click on a face and the SolidWorks pop-up will let you create a sketch right there. Like Bob, I seem to do this a lot. |
Thats right, SolidWorks puts the sketches in the Assembly. However, if you have big complex parts with lots of sketches for profiles, work areas etc. then putting sketches in the Assembly really slows things down as the Assembly keeps rebuilding. If you put the sketches in the CAM part, things are much faster to load, save and edit (but only for complex parts).
Another trick I have is to create a profile using edges and point-to-point in SolidCAM, saving the job, then little expand box next to the job in the Job Tree. This shows the geometries used - right click the geometry and select "Generate Sketch" which creates a sketch in the CAM part perpendicular to the Z axis for that job (I do a lot of 5 axis stuff and it is not unusual for me to have 20+ work co-ordinate systems). Then you can edit the sketch to give exactly the profile you need. Finally, right click the geometry again in the Job Tree and select "Edit" and choose your sketch. I fin thie really useful for those awkward little corners where you have defined the Co-ordinate System using the "Normal to Current View" option to get tool clearance.