I have an American flag I want to make. Most people want the stars to be made with a V cut bit and I've done quite a few of those. However, for this flag I want the stars to be cut with and end mill, and I want the end points to be nice and crisp so I'm doing a pocket cut with a 1/32 end mill to a depth of .05 inches. The run time on the stars alone is around 5 hours. I'm wondering if anyone can suggest a quicker way of doing this other than reducing the dept of cut?
Thanks
Machining Time . . . HELP!
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- Tex_Lawrence
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Re: Machining Time . . . HELP!
If you're set on cutting a pocket, then select two bits in the Tools section. One larger one to clear most of the cut, then the next one, the 1/32 bit, will AUTOMAGICALLY clear out just the remaining corners.
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Re: Machining Time . . . HELP!
Not completely true. The smallest bit also recuts the entire pocket periphery, so it does not show tool marks from the earlier tools. You can work around this by adding a .002" diameter end mill to your tool list, including it in the tool list for the pocket toolpath, but do not use its toolpath when you actually cut.Tex_Lawrence wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 11:41 pmIf you're set on cutting a pocket, then select two bits in the Tools section. One larger one to clear most of the cut, then the next one, the 1/32 bit, will AUTOMAGICALLY clear out just the remaining corners.
To verify this statement, look at the toolpath for the smallest end mill in the 3D preview with the toolpath checked, compared to not checked.
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