CNC Inlay

Tommy-D said:
I'm guessing that a standard router isn't getting the job done with these .015 endmills...Tommy D.
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I use a bosch 1618 with Precise bit collets. I have used .012 for logos. I made this gear looking thing with a .015 just sort of doodling one day. The diameter is .119 and the radius of teeth are .0085. That is two separate pockets. There was a chip out in the top pocket. Keep in mind this is white into a light colored wood.


burst2.JPG



burstpenny.JPG
 
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That is quite nice AND quite a bit cheaper than what I would have expected.

I thought it would take at least one of the Wolfgang spindles or something closer to Perske or NSK quality to use cutters that small. Tommy D.
 
Tommy-D said:
That is quite nice AND quite a bit cheaper than what I would have expected.

I thought it would take at least one of the Wolfgang spindles or something closer to Perske or NSK quality to use cutters that small. Tommy D.
Click to expand...

All of the bosch 1618's aren't created equal. I had one that was .001 or less with precise bit collets. Next one I recently went to was more like .0025, if I recall. I had to mount a boring bar on my machine and write a program to take a cut on the router's spindle taper to correct the taper angle to get it < .001. (Thanks again to Neil for posting his thread when he did this.)
 
OK, let's try this! Going to the original question of level surface or level axis, one thing that I have done is to use Formulas in Mach 3. You can leave the forearm (for example) so that its axis is horizontal, and have Mach3 adjust depth of cut to accommodate the sloped surface by entering a formula such as f(z) = z - .007*x in the formula window. As the cutter moves up the X axis, it adjusts the depth of cut at the rate of .007" per inch of X in this example.

Formulas are found in the third tab on the top, Function Configs, in the dropdown under Formulas. After you enter your formula, you have to also 'Enable formulas' by checking the box. There is a 'test' setup that you can enter X, Y, Z... values and see what the result will be to check your work. I mess up +/- on depth. Practice.

A couple words of caution: Formulas are NOT a 'robust' development in Mach 3. They seem to be OK for linear type functions but beyond that, I recommend you use caution. Trig stuff like Sin/Cos seem to be Radian, not Degree based, I think. Also, they get screwed up if/when you manually jog. All moves need to be under M3 control (G0/G1) for things to play nice.

A last word of caution - don't forget to TURN THEM OFF when you are done. I put a slip of paper on my screen as a reminder. (Doesn't work, but I do it anyway.) :wink:
 
Scratchy said:
OK, let's try this! Going to the original question of level surface or level axis, one thing that I have done is to use Formulas in Mach 3. You can leave the forearm (for example) so that its axis is horizontal, and have Mach3 adjust depth of cut to accommodate the sloped surface by entering a formula such as f(z) = z - .007*x in the formula window. As the cutter moves up the X axis, it adjusts the depth of cut at the rate of .007" per inch of X in this example.

Formulas are found in the third tab on the top, Function Configs, in the dropdown under Formulas. After you enter your formula, you have to also 'Enable formulas' by checking the box. There is a 'test' setup that you can enter X, Y, Z... values and see what the result will be to check your work. I mess up +/- on depth. Practice.

A couple words of caution: Formulas are NOT a 'robust' development in Mach 3. They seem to be OK for linear type functions but beyond that, I recommend you use caution. Trig stuff like Sin/Cos seem to be Radian, not Degree based, I think. Also, they get screwed up if/when you manually jog. All moves need to be under M3 control (G0/G1) for things to play nice.

A last word of caution - don't forget to TURN THEM OFF when you are done. I put a slip of paper on my screen as a reminder. (Doesn't work, but I do it anyway.) :wink:
Click to expand...

Sounds like a lot of trouble just to make a perfectly level surface to cut pockets in. I put shims under my headstock so that the cue is always level. If I'm cutting slots for tubes of deco-rings I have the same height of spacers that I slide under the tail stock so that now the tube is level. Doesn't take 10 seconds to change from cue level to tube level

Dick
 
Scratchy said:
OK, let's try this! Going to the original question of level surface or level axis, one thing that I have done is to use Formulas in Mach 3. You can leave the forearm (for example) so that its axis is horizontal, and have Mach3 adjust depth of cut to accommodate the sloped surface by entering a formula such as f(z) = z - .007*x in the formula window. As the cutter moves up the X axis, it adjusts the depth of cut at the rate of .007" per inch of X in this example.

Formulas are found in the third tab on the top, Function Configs, in the dropdown under Formulas. After you enter your formula, you have to also 'Enable formulas' by checking the box. There is a 'test' setup that you can enter X, Y, Z... values and see what the result will be to check your work. I mess up +/- on depth. Practice.

A couple words of caution: Formulas are NOT a 'robust' development in Mach 3. They seem to be OK for linear type functions but beyond that, I recommend you use caution. Trig stuff like Sin/Cos seem to be Radian, not Degree based, I think. Also, they get screwed up if/when you manually jog. All moves need to be under M3 control (G0/G1) for things to play nice.

A last word of caution - don't forget to TURN THEM OFF when you are done. I put a slip of paper on my screen as a reminder. (Doesn't work, but I do it anyway.) :wink:
Click to expand...

well, this is an edit...initially i thought that was a bad idea but just did the math and the discrepancy at the bottom of the pocket (.100") deep is less than 1/2 a degree (.4ish) and .0007" gap at the intersection of the sidewall and the bottom of the pocket.
 
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When I did things like barbells on my lathe, I did them with the cue axis level. I don't know that anything ever suffered from that.

Now that I do them on a CNC machine, the cue surface is level...because that is how the fixture that came with the machine is set up.
 
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