A new toolpath called Mastercam Chamfer Drill has been added to Mastercam 2021. This new Chamfer Drill toolpath allows you to use a chamfer tool, spot drill, or drill to chamfer multiple size holes in a single operation. In practice, this will allow you to use a single spot drill to make the desired root chamfer on many holes in one operation. This new ability will allow you to significantly reduce the number of toolpaths [...]
This article will cover using Mastercam Air Regions when cutting open geometry in the 2D Highspeed Dynamic toolpath. With multiple open sides many times programmers will try to select the inside edges of the open Geom. In this example, we will select the geometry along the two walls. This image below illustrates the preview chains utility that shows what the toolpath is calculating to be cut. With the machining region set to cut from the [...]
Let’s take a look at how to use Mastercam Slot Mill to program undercuts using settings in the depth cuts utility. For this example, we will use the Circle Mill toolpath. Open the Circle Mill toolpath and select the geometry. The depth cuts are going to be set as step ups from the bottom to top, using the top of the slot mill to create the undercut. You can select either the upper or lower [...]
Recent releases of Mastercam have implemented some big improvements to the Sweep function within the Solid Modeling function. Prior to these releases, Sweep operations required a fillet between entities on the Along curve when there was a change in direction of more than 5 degrees. Sweep is ideal for cylindrical-shaped parts. Fixtures, propeller blades, door handles, wheel spokes, exhaust pipes, and engine ports are some examples. We want to make sure you are taking advantage [...]
With Control X, you can prepare an inspection routine to process a single scan or point cloud against a nominal CAD model and create whatever inspection criteria you require, including; Color Maps, Whisker Plots, 2D and 3D Dimensions, GD&T callouts, Feature Deviation Comparisons, as well as date and time-stamped inspection reports. In addition, the 3D inspection criteria consisting of datums, dimensions with tolerances and GD&T can automatically import into Control X from your CAD software [...]
In this article, we will discuss Cartesian coordinates along with X,Y,Z orientation in Mastercam’s Planes Manager. When working with Mastercam, it is helpful to remember that we are working in a Cartesian coordinate system with regard to an X,Y,Z origin. The Mastercam X,Y,Z coordinates system also follows right-hand rule whereas X positive moves from the left to the right of the origin. This is also represented by the motion in common vertical CNC milling machines. [...]
How would you like a handy reference guide for all of Mastercam’s functions? The Mastercam 2021 Quick Reference Guide is one simple chart that shows all the Mastercam icons, what functions they call, and the associated keyboard shortcut. It’s the perfect thing to have near your computer. The back of the reference guide even shows quick tips for the on-screen editing tools. Did you forget how to use the Mastercam Dynamic Gnomon or need some [...]
This article will explain how to use the edited tool holder to create a custom tool assembly in a Mastercam tool library. With the tool holders defined, we can take advantage of gouge check and tilt strategies in the surface and multi-axis toolpaths. To create the tool assembly, we will use the Tool Manager in a Mastercam Mill part file. Open the Tool Manager and create a tool. Next, right-click on the tool and select [...]
