First, hello everyone. This is my first post here.
I recently bought a working CNC machine to build guitar bodies and necks. Part of the deal was that I’d get copies of all of the code. I was supplied with only the G-Code, but no CAD or CAM files. I’m unable to get anything else.
After a month or so, I can use the programs relatively efficiently. To cut a compete guitar body, there are around 10 programs that are run on the front and back, with 6 different bits. The front is all done while being screwed down to plate that fit in a specific spot on the table. The screw holes are removed when the back is cut. To do the back, there is an outline of the body that is cut into a plate that is mounted to the table. I have known offset for cutting either the front or the back.
The computer with the machine has mach2. I downloaded and bought mach3 to run on my notebook for testing. I’m not sure what configuration goes into changing to mach3, so I was just planning on sticking with mach2 for now.
I have the following goals for making mods to the programs.
1. On the front side, I’d like to cut different shapes of bodies. So long as the neck programs are run on the same location, all the hardware will still work. I took the program for the outline and ran it through a g-code to DXF converter. Then I had someone from work that knows CAD do some mods. It shows up as 7 layers, so he stripped the top layer, then made a slight mod to the shape. I took that file into lazycam and did the procedure like on page 63 of the manual and set up a .5 dia cutting tool with .25 inches per cut. Then I generated new g-code. It seems to run in mach3 as a simulation, but on the mach2 machine, I can’t see the profile. When I run the program, it just pulls the tool to the corner and stops. The original test worked when the lead-ins from the original code where part of the cutting path, but once those were removed, something is wrong. Any tips on how to finish this off? Is there a better way?
2. In one program, there is some finish routing that is close to being accurate to the original intent, but not quite. It looks like if I switched from a 1/4 inch round end bit to one a little bigger that it would be perfect. Maybe 9/32 as a guess. A buddy of mine said I should be able to simulate that with cutter compensation, but that looked really complicated in the mach2 manual. Is this even possible to try different simulated cutter sizes like this? This program is the most complicated, so I’d rather not start from scratch.
3. In another program, 3 cavities are cut on the back for the guitar electronics and hardware. Then a little lip is cut to let a plastic cover fit. That last lip cut is just a bit too small, so the plastic covers need to be sanded to fit. It even worse if the body had a lot of paint. I pulled that lip into a separate G-code program. I was thinking I could do either of the techniques above, but would rather just make them a bit bigger in the original code. I’d rather not run even another separate program. Is there an easier way?
Any help would be appreciated. I’m spending a couple of hours a day on this trying to get everything going.
Chris
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