Autocad and Mach 3 issues

[BIMP]

I just bought a plasma table and am having problems with the torch cutting lines that aren't in the dxf file.  The manufacturer of the table say's its a setting in Autocad but cant help me anymore than that.  We use Autocad to generate dxf's for numerous other cnc machines and haven't run into this before. Is anybody else using Autocad with Mach?

[ger21]

What are you using to create your g-code?

Can you post a .dxf that's causing problems, and a pic of where it's cutting that it shouldn't be?

[RICH]

Yep all the time. Respond to Jerry's requests.
RICH

[BR549]

Yep as well (;-) Follow Gerrys request for info.

(;-) TP

[BIMP]

Lazycam is the program that i import the dxf into for the gcodes.  As you can see the one vertical line is the problem.

[ger21]

I can tell you that it's not an AutoCAD issue. I don't use LazyCAM, but it most likely has to do with something you're doing in LazyCAM.

[BR549]

Do you self a BIG favor and buy a copy of SheetCam for your plasma needs.

(;-) TP

[BIMP]

thanks for the advice. I'll try and dig a little deeper in Lazycam.

[djc]

What does the machine do when it cuts? Say it starts top left of the outside contour and goes clockwise. I suspect it might go right, clockwise round the right hand semi-circle, then left along the straight bit at the bottom, then straight up (which is wrong) then anti-clockwise around the left curve.

What does the contour look like in your CAM program? Does it show as a closed polyline? Can you display 'span directions' for each segment?

One thing you could try is to explode the polyline that forms the outside of the shape and then do PEDIT, JOIN picking the entities strictly in the order you want them machined.

It is, as others have said, a CAM problem not a CAD problem.

EDIT: the small oval seems to cut OK. Copy, rotate and scale it then delete the big one.

[RICH]

File worked fine in both the Plasma and Mill of Lazycam. Since I have no plasma experience can't be much help on any of the plasma settings in LC, but as shown, it generated the
pathing.

RICH