I have been trying to get good code out of Lazy Cam I it sure is not easy.  I have a dxf file that has many elements, these elements are all to be cut as one.  I did a polyline edit and joined all the elements and that was the wrong move Lazy Cam didn't not like that.  So I went back to the original and processed it and ended up with about 15 index moves, that just plain will not work at all.  I set the tool file not to raise the tool, or at least I thought that I did.   I took this same file and ran it through D2NC and guess what?   It is up and running.  Somehow I think that Lazy Cam is trying to do too much or something.  I found that D2NC was very easy to work with and I had the code I wanted.   What am I missing?   Is Lazy Cam useable at all?

Hi Stitcher,
  Just out of curiosity, would you mind to post the DXF you are referring to ?
Thanks,
RC

Here is the dxf that I have been working with.   The diagonal line is to position the machine in the proper field with stops at each end, then an index move to the starting position.  Then it works the internal tool path, coming out to the next offset tool path by following the same path it took to the internal line, when this line has been followed it again moves to the last outer offset tool path via the path it took to get there.  Never once raising the tool or making an indexing move after the initial locating move.  I have tried to make this work with Lazy Cam but I get numerous indexing moves.  I must be missing something somewhere.

That's a tricky one....for me anyway. The outer chains are no problem but the inner petals that overlap one another is something that I'm not sure LCam can handle as a single chain.
Doing the inner petals individually seems to work OK but I see that you do not want to approach it in this manner.
Wish I could help more.
Good luck Stitch,
RC

Hi,stitcher

how about posting the gcode that you generated with the d2nc ,i have allready downloaded your dxf. there might be a chance of a solution.

bill

Hi, Stitcher

LazyCam hasen't been worked on in 2.5 Years or so, It was put on hold bigger fires i guess, It was getting really close to bugs being worked out at that time, Hoping it will get past bata version at some point.

Your dxf has some extra stuff in it, Hears a tap file for you, You'll need to edit the Z moves and F speeds though.

Chip

What i didn't understand was trying to generate a gcode with the z never lifting since the othside and middle
petals were not connected. So that is not possible. Maybe i miss read something. As far as comparing to some other program,and saying it can do that, quess that one is not doing something correctly. No two programs wiill
 genereate paths exactly the same and each has a mind of it's own, and dosn't generate paths the way you would want then without you manipulatiing it. Even then you may be restricted or spend more time foolling with
it then just accepting the paths ( different story if it was a lot of them) .
Don't know nothing about D2NC, but you got to admit that LazyCam is freebee.
RICH   

Thanks for everyone looking at the file and thoughts, when I get back to work on the 5th.  I will try and remember to run this file through Microvellum.  The last time I tried a file with such geometry all I had to do was provide a break where I wanted to start.  I would on this have to provide a path to the outer offsets, then to run it as a single enity I would have to do a polyline edit/join.  Where this is all leading is the adaption of a long arm quilting machine to cnc.  the z axis is not needed at all and as such you cannot lift the tool and start a new path, it has to be one,  this is being done as they are on the market, some are using G code and others are using the Gerber file format.  I can generate Gerber files at work as well but I don't know of a controller that I can get my hands on the will run that code.

Stitcher,
You can generate a strictly x-y code and Mach will run it. Depending how you create the profile in CAD
LazyCam would create the gcode diifferently. Usualy in machining we we are concerned with trying to get
a very smooth cutting of the profile. You can create all the arcs etc in CAD and break them into line segments
equivlant to a stitch length. Some programs will take a curved surface and if you wish change that curved surface
into line segments ie; instead of a 1" circle you could get a group of say 36 arc segments which fit a 1" circle.
Thus you get a whole bunch of straight lines without g2 or g3 codeing.
I know nothing about sewing or quilting machines which are cnc controlled or how that specific software is interpreted by the controller. LOL
RICH

Since you mentioned Microvellum, I'm assuming you're using AutoCAD? I wrote a macro that exports g-code from polylines that might work for you. Just join your lines into a single polyline using pedit, and it'll give you the code.

http://home.comcast.net/~cncwoodworker/acad/downloads/AC2GCv039.zip

There's an issue with circles and cutter comp that I'm waiting to fix until Mach's comp is redone. But other than that, it works great.