This is what I needed so TY Sir and yes Fusion is my go to for any aluminum cutting.
I have the gen 1 non hybrid table plates that don’t line up with the T slots on the sides. Just the center holes line up so I figure aluminum slats will add some extra mass and once surfaced shouldn’t need to be resurfaced again. This should also reduce the need to shim the SMW plates but we will see.
So waiting on a new chiller, but the hdm is setup, my fog buster setup is almost done and it will be ready to roll I hope next week.
Here are some parts from the pro today, all new speaker grill sizes, .25 single flute at 75ipm and .1 doc. Slotting with ramp and finish they look great. Can’t wait to try them on the HDM
When you cut the center out do you use ramp contour with a roughing pass and let it drop down or did you use a contour with roughing pass and tabs then come back to cut the tabs and let it drop?
I recommend trying .1875" single flutes when you need smaller than .25" they can be pushed significantly harder than .125".
So far .25" is the largest drill I have run with my HDM and it was an old Irwin brad point drill. It got the job done but was sketchy when used on a hole that had a pilot hole because of the tip geometry.
“never again will that style be used on my machine” I have a .25" carbide stub drill on order for future jobs.
Also the 1" 3 insert face mill by bush machine tool leaves a fantastic finish and for $40.00 is well worth it. I saw Vince had good results with a .75" version a few years ago and then I saw DIY Engineering run the 1" version so I bought 1 and I am very happy with the results.
I’ve been looking for something different to do. Care to share or post a link to what the finished speakers look like?
I’ll upload some examples of the tool paths I do, on the pro, I don’t do tabs in aluminum as the lack of rigidity makes marks on the sides, so I typically cut and leave 1.5 to 2mm to them do a final cut thru as the last operation and let the part fall thru. The middle of these speaker trims I do all the way at first as there are no other operations.
I got the enclosure up and a new chiller going today, so far I’ve tested a few operations that are from the Pro and damn the rigidity of the HDM is so nice… I’m having a few issues with what look like an axis jamming and it went haywire. I know it’s not the Gcode as it’s what I’ve run for months. I’ll chase it down.
Abe and @Griff here are some pictures of the finished speakers and some of the tool paths I use. Basically the contour is a slotting process that uses a RAMP, selected on the last tab of the fusion tool paths. This makes all the difference in running these consistently. AND also I run a fogbuster/DIY Mister all the time, without that the slotting is not a good idea, with it, its like butter.
Adding a touch probe to the mix on the HDM, all I needed to do was make sure the spindle was grounded to the same bolts as the mist mount, hoping this will make complex setups easier to replicate vs by eye…
Thanks for sharing the tool path info. My knowledge of all the options in F360 cam is negligible. Nice to see actual examples.
Curious about the touch probe you mentioned in the following post. I haven’t a clue on how to pick one. I have a project in mind that will need to be zeroed on a bore. I think a touch probe might come in handy?
I too had a hard time deciding so I picked a cheaper one to test and see how it will work. It seems to be a good option to find exact edges and then adjust the X or Y by 2.5mm to get exact center. As I test I will report back, as of now I have been mostly setting Zero by eye with a spot drill point bit with much success.
Some more part runs today, this time a new small trim ring for porsche window switches, the accuracy of the HDM is great, I even stopped 3 times to redo a few paths and the final M4 thread milling was perfect… this is so much better than my pro…
Here are some videos of more aggressive cuts I am starting to get comfortable with on the HDM, it is pretty insane how rigid this machine is and how much I realized I was able to push my PRO, but was always chasing my tail for good surface finish (rigidity is the key there)… Enjoy
Here is a sample of a single flute at 120ipm and .3 doc with .04 step over
This is +40%
How do you manage all that liquid?
I cut mostly with air only, sometimes with IPA mist on my HDM at similar speeds/feeds.
It’s 70 alcohol and water with some lubricant, it evaporates pretty quick after a day of cutting, I’m also running a metal frame and chute to a collection bin for all the chips, so under the machine is open to that
Just air blast makes my tools wear too quick in my experience on the pro
Still figuring out all the nuisances of the HDM and where I can push more, but overall I can’t even compare to the Pro for aluminum, these are finish passes similar in step over and tool paths as on the pro only 3X faster and the finish is almost polishable. I blast and powder coat most do this is perfect as is for final. In a month I’m sure I’ll be polish ready on most parts, insane how well this machine works!
Here is a test on a part I’m pushing, single flute 0.35 DOC
