CNC Machining Blog - Tips and Tricks for Machinists

5-axis workholding

For anyone new to 5-axis machining, it should quickly become apparent that fixturing can be one of the single most challenging tasks that you will face during the setup process. Although there are many different styles of professionally manufactured workholding devices available, from a variety of different manufacturers - like Kurt, Raptor Workholding, Lang, Jergens, Bock, Hirschmann, and System 3R just to name a few - creativity is the name of the game.

Hurco is well known for its powerful and easy-to-use conversational software, and for 2D and simple 3D geometries, the WinMax conversational control simply can’t be beat. But what about those jobs that share both simple 2D features and complicated 3D shapes that can only be programmed using CAD/CAM software? Hurco has an answer for that as well.

In the past, when using the Hurco control to program rectangular shaped geometries in which the four corners weren’t square or didn’t all have the same size radii, the feature needed to be programmed using a "MILLING LINES & ARCS" data block. However, thanks to the advancement of WinMax® mill software, this obstacle is now a thing of the past.

Have you ever needed to make the same dimensional change to multiple conversational blocks in the same program and cringed at the thought of tediously changing them one at a time? Well, cringe no more! Hurco’s Modify Dimension function makes this a simple task.

When programming a part, we often need measurement data that just isn’t on the print. Short of some very involved trigonometry, or redrawing and analyzing the part in a CAD system, there hasn't been a good way to find these reference dimensions… until now!

Hurco’s patented Automatic Safe Repositioning (ASR) feature is a very powerful tool for 5-axis NC or CAM programmers. One of the biggest problems when posting 5-axis NC code is configuring the post to always output safe, reliable data to reposition the tool tip without causing the machine to travel out of limits on rapid moves and display those annoying error codes that we all love to hate.

There are a number of features built into today’s CNC controls that are designed to make life easier for the programmer, and each has its own special place in our personal box of go-to tools. One tool I can’t live without is Hurco’s Absolute Tool Length feature, which helps enhance efficiency. 

​Hello, and welcome to the Hurco blog. I will be updating and posting something new each week on a variety of different subject matter: high-speed and 5-axis machining, workholding, the latest control technologies, and Hurco tips-and-tricks…just to name a few.