I’m having trouble with depth of cut. I’m not sure if the problem occurs in partcam or the z-axis in ground control. I have set up my profiles for cutting .197" utility plywood at :
tool diameter - Ive tried both .125 and .25
target depth -.22 in
step down .12 in
Partcam seems to accept these parameters but after generating the g-code and downloading into ground control, as I start the cut, the Maslow wants to cut the full depth…twice! I believe I have set the z-axis properly in ground control. Could this be a “communication problem” from svg. > partcam > g-code > ground control. I must admit, I have been away from my machine for while and had no issues previously.
There also seems to be a problem generating tabs. I can create the tabs but if I zoom in or out, the blue indicators end up scattered all over the screen and, try as I may, they never return to the original placement on the design.
I know these are probably “operator errors” but I do want to get back to cutting. Love the machine and have lots of projects on the back burner. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. tiara
I hope this will suffice for your analysis. The ellipses I generated this morning in partcam. The other is a design I generated in CorelDraw. It is the one that plunged quite deeply into the material.
I generated this today for the purpose of the test. I added tabs but, they didn’t show up on the screen after they were generated. I wonder if, indeed, they are there but just “hidden” shall we say. I’m beginning to wonder if my problem might be with my computer. Would another CAD/CAM utility work better? Thanks for your help. tiara
I am using “partcam”. It appears to be a version/copy/clone/? of MakerCam. The browser version of MakerCam is having issues so someone in the forum suggested it.
I’m going to research other CAD/CAM programs. I really just need CAM as I generate all my designs in CorelDraw. I haven’t had any issues with MakerCam until recently. But, I would rather have a program installed if possible.
To answer your question about the thickness. No, those should not be 2-3X thicker. It was assigned a thickness of .21", the same as the second image you sent (the ellipses). You can see my frustration. I never know what the cut is going to be.
Grab Camotics from Camotics.org or use ncviewer.com to verify the Gcode. I don’t have a single go to CAM solution. I use several depending on the goal.
Thanks. I will try these out. I’m so used to Corel for designing I’m not sure I can learn a new one at this stage (I’m 71 years old) but, I guess a new challenge couldn’t hurt. I truly appreciate your efforts.
The gcode looks fine, for “parttest1” first it’s raising to 0.25 above the surface to move the cutter into position, then it drops to -0.12 to cut the first pass and -0.22 to cut the second pass.
For “clock1”, first it is raising to 0.2 to move into position and then it drops to -0.12 for the first pass, -0.24 for the second pass, -0.36 for the third pass, -0.48 for the fourth pass, -0.60 for the fifth pass, -0.72 for the sixth pass, and -0.76 for the final pass. (for each of the profiles)
Can you share an image of your sled with Z-axis? perhaps your bungees are too tight and the arm is slipping out of the groove if you have the ridgid router.
Thanks for the input. I have, indeed, found that my problems have been mostly mechanical AND I have had to reacquaint myself with generating the g-code due to not having worked with the Maslow in 6 months or so. I’m about to get things back to normal however. I do have one question concerning MakerCam (or in my case partkam). How do I use the “batch modify” feature? I assume this is for setting up one set of parameters for the toolpaths to cut a particular project but I can’t seem to make that happen. A little guidance would be much appreciated.
Thanks, tiara
