3 axis part operation setups in madcam...ideas?

[trelos_zoi]

I'm curious how some of you are setting up different machining ops in madcam?
I had been rotating the part and saving as a different file but I've quickly determined this isn't the best method when doing part changes later on. Are most of you doing it with different layers... or?
Just trying to see how everyone else is doing it and potentially learn something..

Thanks!

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[Gregore]

You mention rotating the part , so are you referring to cutting both sides of a part ,
and how we manage the organization of the different steps ?

Or something else?

[trelos_zoi]

You mention rotating the part , so are you referring to cutting both sides of a part ,
and how we manage the organization of the different steps ?

Or something else?

Yes That's what I'm talking about. In one part I have 3 operations where I rotate part 90 degrees is X/Y axis and then I rotate it in Z/Y axis vertically to put in some holes etc.. my main concern is how to migrate a feature change through multiple operations easily without forgetting to modify something in another setup or file..

[Gregore]

You do not mention what version of madcam you have and the capabilities of your machine .

So I will give you a very broad over view of how I keep track of features that need to be milled , others will certainly have things to offer.

I do not have a tool changer so it effects how I approach a part, I tend to run a path then save it in a folder and the name of the file is usually the feature that it is and the tool size and shape for example , ( facing of top left side with 1.55 mm flat ) I delete each path before running the new paths , so each one has its own Gcode file . On straight simple flip cuts that use the same tool I will sometimes run both in the same file by using a drive surface on the 180 side of the model.

If you do not have a rotary and need to machine multiple sides of a part you can cut a holder for the part to index it back in to a known position . When I have multiple parts I usually do this as it is quicker than manually tool changing . Mill multiple parts of a feature then change tools and repeat for each feature , this is much faster than the alternative .

If you have a very complicated part that has more steps than you can keep track of you can always make a check list of the steps and their order so you do not forget one and have to scrap a part.

If the material is super expensive and or your not sure if a part can work or some other such reason for the need of a test you can always mill tooling board or machinable wax , you have to do something really stupid to break a cutter or damage a machine while milling as they are so soft .

If you have more specific questions just ask .