I have been playing with several CAM demos, including RhinoCAM, Rams 3D Gold, MadCAM, MeshCAM, etc. The ones that are able to generate 4-axis G-code seem to be limited to two basic tool paths; either perpendicular to the X-axis, i.e., circumferentially as the 4th-axis rotates, or parallel to it (more like indexed movements of the 4th-axis).
The part I need to mill would be more efficiently created if the cutter movement, for a given Z-axis depth, was largely along the X-axis, but was synchronized with small, continuous movements in the 4th-axis. The two paths described in the paragraph above create far too much up and down movement of the Z-axis.
Do any of the CAM programs with 4-axis capabilities offer such an alternative tool path?
Thanks.