Category Archives: Edgecam

Edgecam Training

Category : Courses Edgecam Training

Edgecam Classroom Training

This two day course teaches you to program from a basic part in Edgecam right through to machining on a real machine.

Learn to create a CNC program from lines or a solid model then post out the code you can then run it on a real CNC Lathe or Milling machine.

This course is designed to get you using Edgecam in the real manufacturing world.

The course is at our training centre in Nottingham, England

Apply Now Edgecam Turning

 

Apply Now Edgecam Milling

 

For more details or for on-site CNC Machine training

 

Call David  on :07834 858 407

 

Edgecam Onsite Training

Edgecam Articles

Edgecam Instruction Simulation

Edgecam Associativity How it Works

Layers in Edgecam

Roughing Edgecam (Centre Cutting Tool)

Edgecam Version Update Now

Services offered at CNC Training Centre

 Edgecam Training.

Classroom programmer training.

Onsite CNC Machine Training.

CNC Training on all controls and machines.

Mazak Training Fanuc Training

Don’t forget we offer training on all types of Mazak Machines and all Fanuc Controls 6m to 31i Oi old to young.


CNC Programming Using CAD/CAM

Category : Edgecam News

CNC Programming, When will it not be needed?

Are we fast approaching the day when we don’t need to know anything about CNC Programming in terms of G code etc.

CNC Programming
Tool Holder (Patent Pending)

Short answer is yes.

I was watching an interesting video on youtube the other day. This guy (seemed like a very clever guy) had bought an old CNC Lathe, a Mori Seiki.

I don’t think he had ever done any machining or general metal work type stuff.

His approach was untainted shall we say. He’d certainly never done any G code type CNC Programming.

CNC Programming

He immediately looked for software which would program this machine and said how in the past it would have been programmed with G code by hand.

Anyway he got something like One CNC or Fusion 360 and created a program. He went on to produce quite a few parts.

Really this proves that you don’t need to know G Code programming, or does it?

Because I am an old dinosaur and I make a living partly from teaching people G code type CNC Programming, I wonder if people like me are clinging on to these old skills and not moving forward.

It reminds of the times when CNC’s were first introduced all the old guys used to say they would never replace the capstans and autos. I remember my dad beating my first chess computer and saying it was just a gimmick.

CNC Programming

So what problems do you get when programming straight from software. Actually if you know what you are doing the answer is none. But do you know what you are doing?

The danger is when the person using the CAM system doesn’t really understand about work-holding and tooling.

I bet the aforementioned guy had some serious problems with his selection of cutting tools.

Don’t Drink and Drive a Baby-Walker

There is a reason why you have to be over 18 to drink, if you have ever seen any pissed up toddlers then you will know why. There is a reason why you wouldn’t ask your four year old to share a bottle of brandy (apart from the fact that he wouldn’t have the money to pay for his half).

This is just my opinion and it will definitely piss off my younger readers but you really need to have at least ten years machining experience to start programming off line.

Ten years!!!!!

Ten years is just a figure I made up. But the idea is you have lots and lots of varied experience.

I get to train some really clever people on CNC machines. I always warn them of the danger of being fast tracked into some office programming job. It’s very tempting for employers.

Rising to a level of incompetence is what it is known as. Wanking before you can run. Sorry I meant walking. It was a typo but my childish humour made me leave it in.

My advise it to work on as many types of machines and controls as you possibly can learning everything about everyone of them.

Oh yea and one other thing

Oh yea one more tip for office programmers, get off your fat arse and spend some time on the shop floor. That’s where the action is. Oh yea and always be there when your program is proven.

Taken to it’s logical conclusion it can’t be too long before the software will advise on tooling, work holding and what to wear for you mates wedding anniversary at Nando’s. I fuckin love Nando’s if they would like to sponsor me. I’ll even stop swearing.


Edgecam Support From CNC Training Centre

Category : Edgecam Training

Edgecam Support

The CNC Training Centre is a partner to Edgecam and are always working with the latest features of this innovative software. We can offer either Edgecam support on-site or Edgecam support off- site.

Edgecam Support

Lots of customers buy Edgecam and complete the standard Edgecam training modules.

After completing these modules they then find it’s not quite so easy when it comes to implementing Edgecam in their day-to-day machining. This gets put off and suddenly the guy who signed over the budget to buy Edgecam wonders why he didn’t just buy himself new car instead (well it might be second-hand).

Edgecam Support

One of the massive problems with any new technology in our day-to-day lives is we don’t get to use it properly. This can be due to several things but the most common is lack of time.

It’s easy to just scratch the surface or worse still leave it in the box. Now, honestly how many gadgets did you buy and never get round to using them? Come on we all did it. My misses still nags me about the George Foreman grill I bought, I think we ended up with a takeaway that night.

GeorgeForemanGrill

Anyway it’s time to change all that. We can offer you Edgecam support but sorry I can’t get you on that exercise bike, anyway you’d only break it.

If you want to come away from your busy environment with all its distractions then offsite training will be best for you.

It’s always best to give us loads of information before you start. Models, drawings, machine types, tooling, bank pin numbers.

Edgecam Support

That way we can work the way I prefer to work which is on real life components.

If you opt for on site training then we can really get down to the serious stuff. Link your machines properly to Edgecam with post processors that churn out code the way you like it. Code that is easy to read. Code that looks the same as hand written code with comments and well spaced out (not as in Ozzy Osbourne).

This way you will end up with real life working parts that you can use as templates for other projects.

On the job Edgecam support means that we don’t teach you, you learn. In other words we find real life problems that you encounter every day and sort them out there and then. And, because you make the mistakes the brain pathways are opened up permanently.

I am sure you have all been on training course where you only remember the first couple of hours of a three-day course.

Edgecam Support

That is because you didn’t make any mistakes in the real world.

When you make mistakes that’s when you really start to learn, that is providing you don’t kill yourself in the process.

So don’t hesitate talk to me today about getting your Edgecam system working efficiently linking directly to all your resources. Tooling, modelling CNC code and post processor.

This system can work brilliantly for you. We call it wasting time to save time. In other words we do all the stuff we need to do to get Edgecam running great.

At the end of the month when we need to get work out this would be perceived as a waste of time. Anyway when we have everything set up correctly Edgecam really starts to sing.

Don’t forget to watch my Edgecam Support Tutorial Videos

Other Edgecam Stuff

Edgecam Instruction Simulation

Edgecam Associativity How it Works

Layers in Edgecam

Roughing Edgecam (Centre Cutting Tool)

Edgecam Version Update Now

Services offered at CNC Training Centre

Edgecam training.

Classroom programmer training.

Onsite CNC Machine Training.

CNC Training on all controls and machines.

Mazak Training Fanuc Training

Don’t forget we offer training on all types of Mazak Machines and all Fanuc Controls 6m to 31i Oi old to young.


Layers in Edgecam

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Category : Edgecam

On or Offsite CNC Training
Tel: David 07834 858 407

Layers in Edgecam, when I was a planning engineer at Rolls Royce in 1971, the year they went bust and the government had to take-over, everything was done with a good old fashioned pencil.

The way that you could build up drawings was with the use of see through tracing paper. This meant that you could have different things on different sheets of tracing paper. For example one sheet could just be the dimensions. So when you layered them all on top of each other you could see the whole drawing. On the other hand if you wanted to be without the clutter of the dimensions you could remove that sheet.

Layers in Edgecam

Ok that said well that’s the principle of having Layers in Edgecam or any CAD system. You can put anything on any layer and then display the layers as and when you wish. If you just want to see your solid model and nothing else you can click show only on that layer and the model is all you will see.

You can see what a powerful tool this is when used right. Unfortunately when used wrong it can be very confusing.

When you are drawing (lines circles etc.) or you are extracting edges. Always be aware that this is going onto whatever is the active layer.

It is really easy to think that maybe you didn’t draw that line and it just disappeared (no this is CAD CAM not David Blaine). That line or extraction is just on a layer that is not turned on. It’s there, you just can’t see it till you turn it on.

Layers in Edgecam

It can be very difficult to find something if you don’t know what layer it’s on. So you try switching them all on, oh dear what a mess more clutter than a teenagers bedroom.

Layers in Edgecam

Ok so what you do is always use meaningful names for your layers. For example CLAMPS and if you have made containment boundaries I usually prefix the layer CONT and then the name TOP EDGE or whatever it is. I am sure you can work out your own system for this.

A few tips

If you prefix something with a space it will go to the top of the tree because in alphabetical index space is before letter A. You could use two spaces and be sure it will be above anything else.

Gif2

You could prefix all your containment boundaries with a number 1 so it would be 1 CONT TOP EDGE etc. That way these would all sit together in the list.

Gif3

I usually try to put my model, my stock and my fixtures at the top, each prefixed with a space. These are the layers I would want going into simulation so I can easily see them to turn them on.

If you click the model on the screen a box will appear with the layer name which you can change if you so wish.

Gif1

Please contact me if you require:

  • Fanuc training.
  • CNC programming training.
  • Want to learn CNC programming.
  • Fanuc programming training.
  • Yasnac programming training.
  • Any type of CNC course.

Other Edgecam Stuff

Edgecam Instruction Simulation

Edgecam Associativity How it Works

Roughing Edgecam (Centre Cutting Tool)

Edgecam Version Update Now

Edgecam Tutorial Assemblies and Filters

Services offered at CNC Training Centre

Edgecam programming and training.

Classroom programmer training.

Onsite CNC Machine Training.

CNC Training on all controls and machines.

Mazak Training Fanuc Training

Don’t forget we offer training on all types of Mazak Machines and all Fanuc Controls 6m to 31i Oi old to young.


Part Xplore New Addition to Edgecam Toolbox

Category : Edgecam

Part Xplore Edgecam

Part Xplore Edgecam never let me down with their ability to keep improving and advancing their software. Now they added Part Xplore to the suite of software. I am going to be using this no end in my videos and am so excited I had to make a movie about it.

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Call David: 07834 858 407