Hi All,

I have some indexable and custom ground tooling that never seems to cut right to size when modifying existing tools within the tool library. I was wondering if one can draw half the tool and save it to the tool library or import a DXF drawing of the tool into the tool library?


(1) Is there a option to create helix tool paths on the XYZ axis to rough out pocket or to rough a circular interpolation? Basically I want to do is ramp helix to depth then helix from center out to the final diameter rather than plunging then stepping out to the final diameter.
(2) Is there an option to rough plunge a part?
(3) Can I perform a dwell drill cycle instead of standard peck drill cycle? I would like to drill to a certain depth pause for a second, drill deeper and dwell and so on as a chip breaker without a full retract.
(4) We use Camworks inside of Solidworks, for simple jobs can I program within a DXF or 2D drawing inside Solidworks instead of programming from the solid model? A lot of the stuff we do is simple pockets and profiling, drilling and taping.


Thanks In advance,
Eric