Hello to the Forumverse, I would like to ask about some basic steps to control my DIY CNC lathe. I already have it built, but i'm having a difficult time with CAM in Fusion 360. Here is more information on my setup. DIY CNC Lathe: Wood lathe runs by itself with controls not connected to CNC. Router spindle also not connected to CNC (plug in to wall). I have a router with ball nose bit attached to the control board for X-Y Plane movement (Y Axis Parallel to spindles, X Axis Perpendicular to Y). I have the mill setup in the Fusion under 3D, but i cannot get the toolpath to run properly. I had it setup on contour 3d and it cut right through the design. I would really appreciate some advice on how to run this toolpath in Fusion 360. Any Help Apreciated... AMW
lathes normally run as X and Z where Z is the spindle axis and X is the tool infeed axis. if I understand you correctly, you are using Y as 'Z'. Can we also assume you do not have a pro license since otherwise you would be using the lathe CAM built into Fusion. You appear to be using a sketch to drive the toolpath, but Fusion much prefers solid models so I suggest you extrude a solid from your sketch, say as a plate 3mm thick then apply toolpaths to that. Since it is not a round solid you will not be able to use any of Fusions 3D paths since they are solid aware. The 2D paths have to be told exactly what to cut and that should not be difficult so long as you restrict Z movement, we don't want it wasting time trying to move a Z that does not exist. You can further extrude as a 'shelf' below the shape you want, the shape of the material (picture 2 sheets of MDF, one the shape of the material, the other the shape of the cut, glued together). Now the 2D path 'knows' it is cutting an open pocket and it knows how to do that without cutting where it is not supposed to. I know a picture is worth more than my words so when I get off work in about 8 hours time I will have a fiddle in Fusion and see what I can come up with, provided someone else does not get there first (Alex/Giarc/Rob?)
Here is what I have come up with Note where the origin point is, the end of the stock on the centerline. I have 12mm extra stock there to constrain the toolpath, so I should have moved the origin left by 12mm
