One of the most versatile ways of clamping irregular -shaped parts is with use of soft jaws.

In this one I had to machine a triangular-shaped part from two sides.

It is going to be some sort of a part holding jaw for a robot.

So step one: Machine one side of the part in vise. hold on to 1/8" of stock. So make sure to cut your part on a bandsaw oversize.

Step Two: Bolt soft jaws to your vise and machine a pocket using outside contour of your part.

Be sure to relieve corners.

Step three: Clamp your part in the soft jaws and machine the second side of your part.

One important thing to consider is: this method is not very accurate. depending on the size and a shape of your part you may be able to hold it within 0.001" though.

See attached photos of the steps below.

1. Machine one side 2. Machine pocket in soft jaws 3. Clamp the part 4. Machine the second side

Recently I had to machine a few pieces after turning.

Because the very top of the part was supposed to be machined off, I could not clamp through the central hole like I often do.

Decided to quickly turn an expandable washer out of aluminum and a plastic spacer that would collapse a little bit under clamping pressure and allow the part to sit firmly against the base of the fixture.

I liked this method so much I am going to do the same next time I have similar part to make.

See pics below.

Later on i will try to post some more pictures of other setups I did.

All the pieces apart Fixture, spacer, expandable washer, FH screw Workpiece mounted on

It is no secret that i am trying to make my software fit the broadest possible group of people.
And while my much-respected hobby customers is a big deal for me, industrial machining is where HSMAdvisor really shines.

Recently a PracticalMachinist forum member Atomkinder posted a video of him machining something on his 1997 Fadal VMC.
Here is what he had to say:

Originally Posted by Mtndew

One thing that I just thought of, you may want to look at buying the HSM advisor ($50) for your high speed toolpaths. Doesn't even have to be high speed, but toolpaths with long engagement and small stepover are proven to run a LOT faster than hogging out the conventional way that's been done forever.
Advanced CNC Speed And Feed Calculator - HSMAdvisor

I use it daily, and I can't think of a time it's let me down.
I second HSMAdvisor. I own my own seat (work doesn't have one) because I like it that much.

This isn't particularly special, but it is a 1997 Fadal VMC2216 box way machine. Removed a whole tool and something like 40% of the cycle time from the second operation of this part.

Atomkinder

And here is the link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHN5z4EKODQ

40% of the cycle time. Aint bad, is it?

In industrial settings, with such great savings HSMAdvisor may very well pay for itself within a day or less!

I have just uploaded my first FSWizard CNC MAchinists Speed and Feed Calculator video tutorial.

This is a quick walk through the basic functionality when using milling tools.

Please excuse my tired voice and occasional stuttering. This was my 9th take- every time either my computer crashed or i was interrupted by my kids running around and causing mess.

I am planning to release more videos. So please let me know what other topics i need to cover.

I would like to thank everyone who has helped with the development of our software by investing your time and money, making suggestions, reporting bugs, recommending our software on various professional online message boards and to your colleagues.

Every bit of money I charge for our software goes back to development.

Unlike most other software developers, who often hold back on features to not allow their products to compete with each-other, every useful feature available on mobile FSWizard goes to the desktop-based HSMAdvisor and vise-versa. Even if it ends up hurting overall sales.

I was the first developer who was able to bring a speed and feed calculator as complex as FSWizard to the mobile platform and I have just uploaded another update to FSWizard Mobile app, that makes it even more powerful. Almost as powerful in fact as HSMAdvisor.

Why bother? Why create a competing product that does almost as much, but costs almost 3 times cheaper?

Because I know that most of our mobile users are not only unable to buy a more expensive desktop product, but they are also often younger, less experienced and hold machinist positions without access to desktop computers.

These users deserve every help they need to grow skills and their careers.

And when they grow to be CNC Programmers and get to sit in the office, they would need something more convenient and more powerful.

I hope they then remember that the same guy who develops FSWizard:Mobile also develops an even cooler desktop application called HSMAdvisor, that will certainly help keep their bosses even happier than before!

Once again, thank you, guys. Please have a Safe and Prosperous New Year.

Here is the list of recent changes to FWizard:Mobile v1.38

Read More 

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First of all Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

There has been a spur in development in the last couple of weeks.
Mainly due to the fact that i took a vacation from my day job.

I also used this time to pay a visit to some businesses operating in the area to get some feedback on my software, hear out their needs and desires.

I have not been able to post about the latest updates, so let's summarize what we have at this moment in the latest v1.110 update

• New 90 Degree metric Flat Head screw reference tool
  
• Ability to use comma sign instead of dot as a decimal point.
  HSMAdvisor will still convert comma to dot, but now it treats input properly
  This was done to accommodate users whose language settings use comma on their numpad
• Fixed scaling for all DPI types.
• Added a bunch of materials like Machinable Wax, Plywood, some Steels etc.
• Improved and made more predictable loading of tools and cuts from the database
• Made improvements to Machine definition window.

Most of the work has been finished on the CAM integration feature.
If any of you, my users, feel like you want the FREE integration with their favorite CAM, please nag your CAM support and/or sales desk!!

........

........

Now did I mention I plan on NOT changing a dime for the integration feature?

If not, then let me repeat it again.

CAM Integration feature will come at no price for my users!

So if i were you, i would file support tickets (make some phone calls, write letters) to your CAM providers and ask them to consider enabling their software to speak with mine.

My contact details can be found here: http://hsmadvisor.com/index.php?page=help&shell_id=241&article_id=4426

Have a nice New Year!

A couple of days ago I helped a gentleman by answering a few questions about using HSMAdvisor Speed and Feed Calculator to machine a 310 Stainless Steel piece using HSM techniques.

Today he created a post on PracticalMachinist forums walking us through his experience.
And he even took a video of the part being cut!

Endorsements like this is the best thing any software developer can hope for.

I always welcome any feedback regarding my software and never mind helping anyone, whether he is a novice, experienced machinist, my customer or not.

Thank you Sebastien, good luck to you!

I have just uploaded the latest version of HSMAdvisor

In this one I made some changes (again) to the layout of the FSWizard tab.

Changes were made according to Your feedback, so i hope you guys like it!

As you can see from the screen shot above Tool Type selection drop-down lists have been moved to the Tool Data panel.
This was made to make it more obvious which values get saved and loaded when user does operations with saved tools.

For the same purpose Saved Cut drop-down is now located on top of all cut parameters that it affects.

The top-most panel (Workpiece) now contains Machine and Tool Library drop-down lists.

I urge everybody to download this update as it fixes all of the existing issues regarding layout changes.

Also in the previous version, when Trial version gets expired, the Splash Screen blocks the License Activation dialog, which would make it impossible to purchase a license or enter your license information.

This glitch and many others have been fixed and i would like to ask everybody to download the latest release as soon as possible!

Cheers!

There is more than one way to skin a cat! Previously i have showed how to machine multiple pieces out of a flat plate holding only on to 0.010" thick material on the outside of the part. (here) But there is more than one way to do it. Sometimes your part is so hard to hold, that using tabs or skin is the best, or even the only way of machining something. Very often, working in prototyping, I have to make only one single part and designing and producing special fixturing is also not feasible.

Here is how you can easily machine a difficult-to-hold part from both sides without using a separate fixture:

Setup: Put or part in vise. Make sure to square off at least two sides contacting the jaws for accurate positioning and minimum distortion.

Program part normally. Perform as many operations on the first side as possible.

When machining outside profile, machine to the exact depth of your part.

Here is how your part might look after completing the first OP:Read More