I'm making baby steps in using the Tormach PCNC, also because Fusion 360 is new to me but also because I have never used other mill with an ATC, I just worked in the last 4 years with my other Gantry style router that doesn't have an ATC, I unscrew the ER20 collet in some days maybe 100 times / day, because I only do very few parts the same, each part is different, and some parts uses even 8 tools.
So, now with the Tormach I placed 10 tools in the ATC, maybe in time I will remove some that are not used as often, but now I have the tools setup in the tooltable, also in Fusion 360 tool library, but for a small part that I work now I also need to use some tools that are not in the ATC, but I saved each one in both Pathpilot and Fusion.
The first question is what exactly you do when the program stops and waits for me to remove a tool manually and than fetch a new one from the ATC, I'm especially concerned about the note in the power drawbar manual that I should not close the collet without a tool inserted. While a program is running the tabs, including the ATC one are hidden so I can't press the OPEN / CLOSE button to keep the collet open.pressing the foot pedal also I don't think is an option, are you locking the collet open from the RELEASE and LOCK buttons (I found that is not so easy, I have to try multiple times to keep it open using Press and Hold RELEASE and than pressing and releasing HOLD)
Attachment 360476
So please, can you guys tell me what are the steps you doo when working in the same program with tools from ATC but also manual loading tools.
Also what about when using drills especially, you prepare each drill in a TTS holder, measure it and save it in tool table before starting the program? Or you do this when "live" when you are asked by pathpilot to manually insert a new tools?
Any advices are appreciated. Thanks.