The Bishop

26 January

OK in the meantime I'm trying to get caught up in last semester's tasks so I turn out a Bishop.

This entails really reading through the lathe manual and procedures and really dialing it so I know what in the hell I am doing instead of just following a document like a dumb chimpanzee at a keyboard.

Drawn on EMCO DOS.
Saved as DXF from the DOS program and imported into EMCO WinCAM.
CAM program created with EMCO WinCAM.
Cut on EMCO PCTurn 50 CNC lathe.

The Haas Gator

January 24 2009

CHECK IT -- The first part I cut on Steamboat Ed's Haas Mini Mill. It took a whole lot of time but finally we got first chips. Here's a closeup of the part as cut on the Haas.


Drawn and programmed initially with Emco WinCAM, then hand-edited on Haas Mini Mill.

This is the culmination of perhaps three weeks of study of his mill.
We had to:

• Install the vise
• Tram the vise
• Get the coolant system working
• Fill it up and then get the grate/filter thing installed (he had to order it)
• And me going through the big fat binder to figure out the control panel, etc.

We loaded a 3/8" endmill to cut this but did not put it into the automated tool changer turret.


What I learned: it's about impossible to hand-edit a program created by a CAM program. There are simply too many things to change in too many places. Better way would be to re-do the decisions using the CAM program and re-generate the G-code. At this point I am a bundle of frustration over not being able to made G-code at home.

I embark on a lot of study of CAM programs and reading forums etc.
End up downloading Predator CNC.
So the method is to use the G-code from WinCAM and then pop it into Predator and edit it there.
Predator is a royal pain in the ass and a hassle to set up.
It probably takes an hour just to set up Predator to be able to run a simulation of the cutting.

At this point I realize what a great program WinCAM really is. I had dismissed it as rinky-dink but I am wrong. It has everything in one package - CAD, CAM, what they call "post", and "verification", which means you can see in 2-D the toolpaths and you can see in 3-D the cut-out part. So, WinCAM freakin' rocks at this point. Only problem is that I can only use it at school and when I get to Steamer's and need to make a change it's quite difficult.

The Gator

This is the very first thing I made on a CNC mill.

Drawn using Emco WinCAM.
CAM program by Emco WinCAM with arcs, countours, and pockets.
G-code created by Emco WinCAM.

The Beat Bearing

9 January 2009

At work I am making this thing called The Beat Bearing. You can read all about it in Issue 17 of Make. Here's an eyes-shut photo of me with the finished Lexan piece. Milled on Bridgeport manual mill by Steamboat Ed.


I get Steamboat Ed to mill out the Lexan piece. The dimensions given are all in metric and the mill is in inches, so I draw it all out in AutoCAD in 3-D and then I create a 2-D diagram for him. So, I go over there, and it takes him about 5 hours. Very cool, very educational. He's got a gizmo that sort of CNC's the X-axis, which rocks, and also he has a quick change tool holder. WAY better than having to unscrew that drawbar thingy every time. I learned about wigglers too.

I end up bartering my skills to get it done. He wants a PCB made. That's another story.