4th Axis Surfacing

It is. You just need the proper machine definition for the software.

J

I know you said you can figure it out yourself, but for the sake of keeping a good thread going im gonna list some ideas anyway. (2 cent's is the change you get regardless of what you are buying lol)

1.) Looks like a good thing to wrap. Have the 2d geometry drawn, and wrap it around a cylinder diameter given the correct axis. it's the simplest way if you have the 2d geometry available. Easiest to edit too, since your dealing with just a 2d contour and typing in a diameter to wrap on. 2.) 3d the thing in 3axis with 4 axis positioning. Good for when you have a model. The only thing I feel mastercam falls short is It seems to only want to cut on the centerline. I wanted it to 3d back and forth off center. Mastercam says their software isn't true 4 axis. 3 axis with 4 axis positioning. Whatever that means. What I think it means is no 4 axis moves on one line of code. 3.) 3d the thing in quadrants using contour 3d surfacing. Basically in the top view square off a boundry real quick by eye. Do this around the part. You can do this by all kinds of ways, rotating your boundry around the centerline, using tool planes, etc... I seen one guy make 4 copies of the geometry he was using saving it on 3 layers. He went into each layer and rotated all 90 degrees around centerline. Then he made a copy by dragging his operation, and added that new geometry from each level. Took like 2 minutes. Good way on semi small files. Mastercam will throw in an index incriment for each cut you do if you use tool planes, but if not, just add in an index between cuts. Do that in the ops page by adding a comment op between operations that does an index. I suggest contour surfacing because it will cut the 3d in z levels, and you can make it climb cut. "Great" for ball slots.

As far as reliably, as reliably as your model and cutters are. Mastercam defaults to .001 for filters, curve smoothness, surface trim, etc...Thats the only non-reliable part of mastercam. Set those tight and it makes a part as good as your cutters and deflection.

I know you didnt want ideas, but im bored, we need some good cam system threads going. Just got to use plane mask from a thread here last week. Kicks ass. Wish Id known about that years ago. Maybe I should of went to mastercam college for 4 years and got my BulShit degree in cnc programming lol

Worst case scenario would be using the rotary axis as an indexer and machine the involute one quadrant at a time like I did on the piece in the photos. Coudn't be arsed to build a riser for the rotary axis to get enough swing to make a few prototypes though, I used an angle plate instead.

It's good to know I can wrap toolpaths around this part if it goes into production.

Thanks John.

Uh dood, yeah you must be really bored. I thought I've made it pretty clear I know how to surface shit. If not, here's a sample of another job I'm working on right now.

We've got a mold to build for a squirrel cage fan which is close to the same size as this one. Hopefully that will be the last big 3D job I'll do with Mastercam. I really want to move on to Cimatron for stuff like this, it makes Mastercam look like a bad joke in comparison, but finding the time to sit down and learn it is difficult.

no comment.

It's merely a way to eek out a living.

I don't drool over work.

'Things' worth drooling over:

Diane Lane Amanda Tapping Milla Jovovich Keegan Connor Tracy

For starters.

Yummy. Methinks I need a bib now. :)

BD:

Cool pics. Nice pieces of work. How do you get core and cavity to reliably shut off on the edges of the fan blades without creating a bunch of flash?

seconded!

How I hate my cable supplier for falling out with Rupert Murdoch's sky satellite tv co, and dropping the only channel with sg1 on it with no notice.

Wayne...

The impression is split. Look closely at the pics. Half the thickness ( more or less, it varies some) of the blades is in each cavity half and there's a .5mm radius all around the edge of both sides of the blades.

What you talking about anyway Willis?

Flash? !

That's a fightin' word!

My shit shuts off damn near perfect right out of the machines every single time and don't you ever forget that! ;)

Juicy indeed. Time is doing Amanda very well, she's aging like a fine wine.

Same with Diane Lane. From "The Outsiders" to "Unfaithful", and beyond. Smokin'!

Several times a week on SciFi on Time Warner Cable here. I really need to get myself a DVR. Since getting back into hockey again (NHL - Sabres) several years ago I've missed quite a bit of SG1. :(

Wayne:

Do you get episodes of the new series, Sanctuary? Amanda with an English accent.

hmmm...I can see your a humble person.

Flash is relative. What kind of material are we taling about and at what gap does it flash? Could be .0003" or .003". And is the venting top quality?

Is the gating in the middle of the fan, making the outer blades less prone to flash due to cooling material? (Basically is this a top notch plastic processed part?)

And the mis match, how critical is that? Was the designer nice enough to design the blade and flat in one side, and just the radius on the other side to hide mismatch? Or does the blade have a line all around it down the centerline where to flat parting line walls meet?

Truth is those fans look tricky...but...cut one side...cut the other...(nevermind lol)

Sadly No. I'll eventually get to see them when another channel starts airing them.

Amanda Is actually English btw, but you may have known that. Essex girl in fact, though hardly now since they emigrated to Canada when she was a tot.

Wayne....

I've eaten my fair share of humble pie, believe me. :)

Glass filled nylon. Doesn't flash in .002" vents and I've seen it not flash in .005" gaps.

With a half day of handwork breaking corners and suchlike, those mold halves will close up easily to better than .001" with no pounding or clamping.

If they were P-20 instead of QC-7, it would take a day or slightly more.

Venting is adeqate.

Maybe. Yes. No.

It'll be within a couple thousandths, well within an acceptable range for a part of this nature.

Not possible in this case. The blade is split in the middle of the thickness where possible and tangent to the corner radii perpendicular to the direction of draw, so it can draw. IOW, it varies as the angle of the blade changes.

I keep one of these in my tool box and only bring it out and use it when I'm finished with jobs like this fan tool.

:)

Just pulling your chain man.

I was mistaken. Closed the cavities up yesterday and they were better than .001" without any benching at all.