Since the release of PP v2.x some new features have been added. Specifically the tool table description field now supports something called “Rich Tooling Description”. You can now add certain keywords in the description field that both define tool material & geometry. This aids in better calculating speeds & feeds in the conversational tabs but more importantly helps prevents problems with tool geometries.
After realizing I wanted to use this feature I could not find any info about them other than the popup help example when you edit the description field - not that helpful. So I searched the Tormach website & downloaded the latest manual from Tormach “UM10225_15L_Slant-PRO_Manual_0916A_WEB.pdf” & still no mention of this.
After calling Tormach several times they finally realized the new manual was not uploaded into their website. So the new manual is now available for download & you should receive “UM10225_15L_Slant-PRO_Manual_0318A_WEB.pdf”.
This updated manual give a pretty good description of the “Rich Tooling Description” keywords on pages 70 & 71. If your using Tormach tooling you can simple enter their P/N into the description field & a properly formed description is automatically entered for you.
If you’re using something else then you need to do a little more work. For the most part the manual provides a pretty good description about these keywords except for the Front Angle (FA:xx) and Back Angle (BA:xx). After grilling Tormach about this my understanding is the following:
For insert tooling the Front Angle is the tool clearance listed in the Tormach specifications minus 90 degrees. The Back Angle is simply the Front Angle minus the IC angle.
So I have a profile tool using a 55d insert with a 1d clearance angle. My FA is 90d-1d=89d & my BA is 89d-55d=34d. So in the description field I would use “FA:89 BA:34”.
Just to be clear the clearance angle is the difference between the part face & the side of the insert.
Just a heads up.
