Large Tool

[Kenneth Larson]

Ihave been using sketchup 17 for a good while and suddenly my large toolset just disappeared, never to return. The view>toolbars>large tool set is checked. I have reset it, and reset all, but no help. Any ideas? I miss it!

Thank you.

Well, for someone who might come along and still want to get the Selection tool back on the Large Toolset, go to View>Toolbars, highlight the Large Toolset toolbar in the list and click the Reset button.

My issue with the machine is this: When calling up a large tool and then tool changing to something else.... the machine first indexes to the tool that was called up, but when the machine realizes it isn't the correct pocket, it indexes back to the pocket where the large tool is stored at then tool changes and indexes to the right tool then tool changes. I hate that, the previous Mazak we had did not do this, the HAAS we have does not do this, our machine vendor wasn't much help, So i wondered if anyone here has a fix for it?

At the moment, the only thing i can think of is editing the post file somewhat so it doesn't index when "T35" is in spindle and once T35 is finished, machine tool changes to previous tool then moves onto the next tool. I don't know, maybe that's over complicating things in terms of post file...

I think you are stuck with it. It is trying to stage the tool, but by protecting the large tool pocket (I am assuming pockets either side are now disabled) it is turning the pocket "dedicated " to the large tool.

Are you sure pre-staging is not causing your issue? Seems to me that you are prestaging, then with the large tool going back into the carousel, it then rotates back to the large tool pocket and continues with the double tool change.

nick - as far as the machine itself there's always positives and negatives. The machine we have is gear driven so we have a lot of torque, which is a nice thing. Hardware wise, machine seems solid, software wise, I think it should be more user friendly.

We have a Haas VF-6 and a horizontal Mazak.... in terms of user friendliness, the HAAS wins, but again, the HAAS is 'okay' when it comes to hardware. The mazak we have is a sweet machine; its fast, its easy to setup, and it has 10,000RPM. The controls are a lil less user friendly, but anyone who runs Mazaks won't have this issue. Plus, with a mazak you can do a great number of programming at the control.

We pre-stage tools on all of our machines. Our previous mazak 655-60 had pre stage tools enabled, yet with large tool and empty adjacent pockets, the tool magazine remained motionless at the large pocket, even when the next tool was called up. I liked this better vs the Doosan, because with the Doosan the magazine moves to the next tool instead of remaining where its at to save time.

Only 2 or 4 machines in the shop have random pockets.... the Doosan being one of them. All the others are dedicated... and funny you should mention that because on of the old dinosaurs actually thinks the Doosan can be switched from random to ded, and I told him no so there was an argument about it till the repair guy came in and he asked him then said "my bad, you were right". Random pockets are nice if you are only running 4 tools, you can place them side by side, which saves a tremendous amount of time if you are only doing one hole per part.

We have a Doosan lathe and the control is definitely not as user friendly as a Haas, however we strive for "post and go" here (and our first part guys are pretty good) so this is of secondary importance for us.

The 50 taper machine is pretty solid as I believe they're a "big plus" spindle. We've had the machine for 2 years now and while there were some minor issues with the tool changer itself, drifting, and guzzling too much oil, it has been solid and stable. Still runs smooth.

The side loading tool mag is nice, but it can be a pain and none of the guys liked it so we had to make a step platform so we can get into the machine and load tools from the front, which is also a pain. I've used it to remove tools as needed.

The drifting issue we have happens when we shut the machine down all weekend then fire it up. Even after warming it up twice, G54 home positions are never the same; all axis are off anywhere between .0005-.001 each - This is still an issue.

Figure out which variables you want to track and step through the post blocks and see how the variables change as the post blocks are read and mst importantly where the staging is actually posted as code (the debugger will tell you this). It should be pretty obvious which ones you need to "bypass" to avoid staging the tool "if nextool = 35". Once you get an idea of what you are after throw it up on the forum and you should get plenty of help. People like to see you have done some "homework" before you ask for help.

N.B. I have not put this through any real testing! Make a copy of your post and try it out with the copy in some of your programs where the tool is called at different places in the program so you are satisfied that you are getting reliable code in all situations.

Now, I need to try and figure out how to insert a previous tool command after M01 so the machine forces T35

to return to its dedicated pocket. The issue is - a previously used tool will be sitting in the dedicated

pocket while T35 is in the spindle - I think this will be much harder as it has to be a parameter thing.

I have a few ideas, but not sure if they will work. There is something I need to try first at the machine. I know HAAS can tool change using the "P" code; Wonder if Doosan does the same. Its just a matter of adding a similar formula.

This might help get you going. I like this because it keeps you out of the "t" logic which is linked to other things like sequence numbers, so just safer to avoid any interference. I don't see any reason why yours shouldn't work though.

I do have a massive list of mi10 items as part of a custom M00 line with comments so we do not have to keep typing them by hand - this way if we switch the same program to another machine, the same comment appears in the same spot. It's just a matter of getting other programmers to remember it's there and how to enable it. Coding the mi10 is the easy part - it may have to be the way to go -

A little background insight into our post history: For about 18 years, we've had the same old posts until recently - 3 years ago - when CIMQUEST re-wote everything for us so the posts are fresh and new and updated. Then a year ago we switched resellers, however the new reseller we were with now no longer supports mastercam >.

So I went ahead and tried to add a boolean formula into the M01 section so the last 3 lines show up automatically when T35 is used, however the post file is setup in a way that mi10 needs to function on the next tool in order to get a custom code to post at the end of the previous toolpath. I almost got it, but instead i did this:

18" x 7" x 7" main compartment is lined with loop velcro to attach S.O.E. velcro back mag and tool organizers. Both sides have flat zipper accessed pockets that run the entire length and there is a smaller outside pocket on both sides. Handles are type 7 webbing that cradle the entire bag as well as run towards both ends to better support heavier weights. There is a slot on the inside bottom of bag were we have installed plastic to make the back more rigid, help hold its shape and better carry heavier weight like tools or ammo. John designed this bag for his personal use when he wanted to carry 400 piece Craftsman mechanics tool sets. Demand was so big S.O.E. has now offered them for sale.

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