Different CAM systems.

Bawl'n Bluetick · Mar 3, 2012

I often wonder why I don't see too much here on FeatureCam. I see a lot on MasterCam. I've used both and even taught Mastercam in a Community College. I've used a lot of different software. Heck, I started writing CNC programs when they were only NC programs. In those days a CAM system was a scientific calculator.
I remember the move to Compact II. Then to NiCam IV. Now there was a step forward. You could actually draw a line and see it on a computer! Of course you couldn't trim the geometry. That technology wasn't invented yet. Then I moved to Unigraphics, Teksoft, SmartCam, MasterCam, Featurecam and Gibbscam. All of these softwares will get the job done. They all have there plusses and minusses. Some in my book have a lot more minusses than plusses but to each their own.
But I can do more easier and faster with Featurecam. Especially when working with live tooling on a lathe or when working off of a solid model.

So I wonder... why do I not see a lot of Featurecam users?

I know this post will somewhat turn into a... well I can do this with Mastercam.
Or I can do this with OneCNC or do that with Camworks. Like I said, they all get the job done.

I'm just curious as to why I don't see too many post about FeatureCam.

cadcamwiz · Mar 3, 2012

I have been a loyal Featurecam user since the 90's and still use it today. When EGS sold out to Delcam I think that was their down fall. They have incorperated the best of FC into Powermill and partmaker while just toying with FC. Also, they seem to be gearing up towards the European market and dumping the U.S.

It is a shame because it is so simple yet as powerful as anything else I have used (I will catch hell for that remark). AFR with Curly corner and chip thinning is a nice feature that I have not found in any one other cam system.

SeymourDumore · Mar 3, 2012

Like Wiz said, it appears that most of the "brains" were put into Featurecam in the past, and most new releases are just little gimmicks building on the exiting features.
Nonetheless, many other packages out there would die to have just half the options FC has.
As to why the userbase not bigger? I'd have to fault their marketing. Ads for Powermill this, Delcam that, Powershape etc etc .... then some small tidbit about FC somewhere on the bottom of some page. It really deserves a whole lot more than that.

bryan_machine · Mar 3, 2012

It appears to me that you see no posts or few posts about a large set of CAM systems, most of which appear to be very capable, and often very costly. Probably lots of mastercam posts because relatively lots of mastercam users in small operations who post on boards.

Hypermill, Tebis, Solidcam, Featurecam, Powermill, .... probably mostly used by more "institutional" folks who don't post so much.

That's not to say that any of them might not be better (or worse) than mastercam.

Also, I think basic 3D cam (discounting "bob..." stuff) has similar price levels for similar levels of maturity.

jvangelder · Mar 4, 2012

cadcamwiz said:
AFR with Curly corner and chip thinning is a nice feature that I have not found in any one other cam system.

Whats curly corner?

Dan B · Mar 5, 2012

You could ask the same question about WorkNC. Very few people on the popular CNC forums seem to have ever heard of it. Yet if you look at their Facebook site, there are over 56,000 "likes". Compare that to Mastercam with 3,700 "likes" or Delcam PowerMill with a whopping 23 "likes". Is Sescoi just using social media more effectively then the competition, or is WorkNC the best kept secret in the CAM world? :-)

Dan

cadcamwiz · Mar 5, 2012

Whats curly corner?

curly corner is the term Featurecam uses for trochodial milling mixed with chip thinning.

Trochoidal-Milling-316-Stainless-Steel.mov - YouTube

dstryr · Mar 5, 2012

A lot of shops out here in Cali use it. I love it. I've been doing a lot of 3d style mold (lamination fixtures) and the tool paths are great. The 3d requirements was the reason I bought FC...2.5 stuff can be done by almost any cam.. My friend has been using FC since 1998-1998 and would never switch. He is the programmer for a shop with about 30 machines and the time required to crank out good programs is ridiculously quick.

jeffj · Mar 5, 2012

SeymourDumore said:
As to why the userbase not bigger? I'd have to fault their marketing. Ads for Powermill this, Delcam that, Powershape etc etc .... then some small tidbit about FC somewhere on the bottom of some page. It really deserves a whole lot more than that.

Marketing CAM software is tough. Some companies have way bigger budgets than other companies. It doesn't mean one's products are better or worse.

It's tough to be a featherweight and go up against a heavyweight in the ring. Sometimes you gotta think outside the box, or do something different. But to trade blow for blow is crazy when you're the underdog.

When Cimatron bought Gibbs and numbers were released, I was not surprised that Gibbs had spent as much as they did on marketing. I was surprised at how large of a percentage of sales that number was, I had always thought their sales were bigger. Basically, you never know.

FeatureCAM especially was in that mid level market. That pond has a whole lot of products to compete against for the same amount of food, including some products with considerable market share, mind share and trained user base already. The number of players at the high end is quite a bit smaller, but still quite competitive.

SeymourDumore · Mar 5, 2012

dstryr said:
The 3d requirements was the reason I bought FC...2.5 stuff can be done by almost any cam..

I dunno about the 3D, but the 2.5 capability is one major reason I use it. It is configurable to some insane detail.

Jeff, what I was trying to say that FC deserves a lot more fanfare than it gets from Delcam when compared to Powermill's marketing.

jvangelder · Mar 5, 2012

cadcamwiz said:
curly corner is the term Featurecam uses for trochodial milling mixed with chip thinning.

Trochoidal-Milling-316-Stainless-Steel.mov - YouTube

That style machining strategy looks a lot like the volumill path's that gibbs uses in its newest release's, right down to the light roughing the notches around the part before doing any substantial milling, so similar kinda makes you wonder..

Keeping with the spirit of the thread. What kind of options does curly corner give you? Im only asking to see how it compares with what gibbs offers? Off the top of the head gibbs had fixed maximum radial step-over, definable chip thickness which it maintains by varying your feed rate. ridge height control if for roughing surfaced parts, typical offsets, z steps like you would expect etc

-Jacob

SeymourDumore · Mar 5, 2012

I don't know how they compare, but Curly corner has been in FC for at least 3 releases, perhaps even more.
AGain, I'm not sure if it is the Volumill type of strategy tough.

dstryr · Mar 5, 2012

SeymourDumore said:
I don't know how they compare, but Curly corner has been in FC for at least 3 releases, perhaps even more.
AGain, I'm not sure if it is the Volumill type of strategy tough.

FC just came out with new 2d pocketing / boss strategies that are amazing for HSM. Also, one of the best things I've seen so far is the auto 3d deburring that you can do. If you import a solid model it will auto find any areas that you would want a chamfer and configure lead in/ lead out so that there is no gouging automatically and it will calculate how to get as close to a wall automatically as you change tool diameters. Parts with tons of pockets or cutouts are a breeze to get chamfered.

I'll post a screenshot.

dstryr · Mar 5, 2012

2012-03-05_2000 - Dennisrathi's library

Here is a screenshot showing the new HSM stuff. It will auto calculate when to do a trichodial movement based on the overload numbers you tell it. Curly corner is cool for slots but there is a lot of wasted movement because it applies it to the whole curve. The new toolpaths only apply it where you need it. This feature is awesome for stainless.

SeymourDumore · Mar 6, 2012

Dennis

Since I'm the child of FingerCAM and RollYourOWnCam, the vast majority of the features I create is "Side" features because it has some settings not found in pocket or boss.
I occasionally use the Curly corner, most often in extreme angles and slots where I can blast through at full depth without having to lift the tool.
Another nice feature of FC is that you can specify pre-drill points and then use them as exact plunge points, so the curly corner only comes into play when all else fails.
One thing that drove me absolutely bananas with another "Famous Cam" that it wanted to start and end wherever, whenever and however IT wanted to without you having any say over it.
With FC, if you want a hundred different start points, then you have a hundred start points. You then have control whether you want to feed over to each or plunge in each. If one makes no sense, FC will ignore it. If one makes a ding in the part, FC will ignore it. Otherwise, it will only do what you tell it to. Period.

dstryr · Mar 6, 2012

SeymourDumore said:
Dennis

Since I'm the child of FingerCAM and RollYourOWnCam, the vast majority of the features I create is "Side" features because it has some settings not found in pocket or boss.
I occasionally use the Curly corner, most often in extreme angles and slots where I can blast through at full depth without having to lift the tool.
Another nice feature of FC is that you can specify pre-drill points and then use them as exact plunge points, so the curly corner only comes into play when all else fails.
One thing that drove me absolutely bananas with another "Famous Cam" that it wanted to start and end wherever, whenever and however IT wanted to without you having any say over it.
With FC, if you want a hundred different start points, then you have a hundred start points. You then have control whether you want to feed over to each or plunge in each. If one makes no sense, FC will ignore it. If one makes a ding in the part, FC will ignore it. Otherwise, it will only do what you tell it to. Period.

I used to do everything with side as well but have found these new controls to be very nice. Give it a try. Do you only use the updates that are sent out or do you use the betas?

Edster · Mar 6, 2012

dstryr, what verison you running to get the HSM options. I'm on V18.3.0.19 and don't have thoes options.

I was wondering when FC was going to incorporate some newer HSM programming options. Curley corner has been in FC since I started using it, I think that was around 07. In my opinion curley corner was the first generation of HSM programming before HSM was even popular. Nice to see some progress.

spin-tek · Mar 20, 2012

After a decade of using our old & outdated cad/cam, not that it was bad, it was good enough to do what was needed for the last 10yrs, I have just decided to buy FC w/all the 3D options. I just wanted something more up to date, & was just impressed, during my demo, at how fast & easy it takes to make a program with FC. Whether it be drawing lines & arcs or importing in a solid model, FC's pretty quick at spitting out NC codes compare to other cad/cams out there. Hopefully, it's a good investment, but only time will tell.

dstryr · Mar 20, 2012

Edster said:
dstryr, what verison you running to get the HSM options. I'm on V18.3.0.19 and don't have thoes options.

I was wondering when FC was going to incorporate some newer HSM programming options. Curley corner has been in FC since I started using it, I think that was around 07. In my opinion curley corner was the first generation of HSM programming before HSM was even popular. Nice to see some progress.

Version 18.5.0.34

dstryr · Mar 20, 2012

spin-tek said:
After a decade of using our old & outdated cad/cam, not that it was bad, it was good enough to do what was needed for the last 10yrs, I have just decided to buy FC w/all the 3D options. I just wanted something more up to date, & was just impressed, during my demo, at how fast & easy it takes to make a program with FC. Whether it be drawing lines & arcs or importing in a solid model, FC's pretty quick at spitting out NC codes compare to other cad/cams out there. Hopefully, it's a good investment, but only time will tell.

I've been very happy with FC and I went from using a very barebone 2d program to cutting 3d mold type parts within a few weeks. I use the 3d aspect of featurecam daily.

Different CAM systems.

Plastic

Cast Iron

Diamond

Diamond

Aluminum

Hot Rolled

Cast Iron

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Aluminum

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond

Plastic

Diamond

Diamond

Similar threads