Hey guys-
I’m an experienced manual machinist but 100% CNC neophyte. There’s probably an obvious answer to this, but I can’t for the life of me sort it out. I'm trying to program my Z tool offsets (3 axis mill) running Linuxcnc with Axis interface and am pulling my hair out. I've got 15 or so tools in holders that should handle 99% of the work I'll do. I set all the Z heights in the tool table by doing the following:
-Load the tool & MDI a T(n) M6 G43
-Selected "touch off to fixture"
-Very carefully jog down to a machined flat piece of stock and take a whisper cut
-Hit tool touch off button and leave at 0
I repeated that process for all the tools on the same flat surface. As I understand it, the Z offsets for each tool are now set relative to one another, but not in space.
Then I made a fairly simple program that uses all the tools, with all of them taking a facing cut. My process was to edgefind my origin and hit the "touch off" (not "tool touch off") button in X and Y, load the tool, jog down & take a whisper cut in Z, and "touch off" in Z. I was expecting this process to work (seems pretty straightforward) but it definitely didn't. Using the above it'll cut air, somewhere around 2" above the stock top.
After some advice online I added g59.3 in the MDI before the command above and that didn't work either. Rather than cutting air, it'd start tool one a few inches below the part surface.
I reloaded all my tools 3 separate times just to make sure I didn't make a math error, or change something inadvertently, but no luck. feel like I'm missing something simple, but can't get it. Anyone see something obvious I left out?
Linuxcnc Z Tool Offsets
Moderator: Harold_V
Re: Linuxcnc Z Tool Offsets
You have to set the tool offsets in relation to a master which should be the same or slightly longer than the longest tool.
I use a piece of 3/8 drill rod in a tool holder as my master.
You zero the master and then record the difference in length of each individual tool relative to the master.
I have no idea what Linuxcnc is, so this is just general info.
I use a piece of 3/8 drill rod in a tool holder as my master.
You zero the master and then record the difference in length of each individual tool relative to the master.
I have no idea what Linuxcnc is, so this is just general info.
Glenn
Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
Re: Linuxcnc Z Tool Offsets
Setting tool offsets can vary a bit by controller and machine however Centroid has an excellent video on the topic that may be helpful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJcq_G8yRdc&t=1016s
You can also just search around on youtube using keywords- there are a ton of videos regarding tool offsets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJcq_G8yRdc&t=1016s
You can also just search around on youtube using keywords- there are a ton of videos regarding tool offsets.
-Frank K.