[tgskidoo]

looking to start my shop need software.
use mastercam at work but need cheaper software

[he1957]

Have a look at SimplyCam from the following: MR-Soft Nc Software Tools

It's easy to use, powerful and very inexpensive.


Cheers,

HarryE.
===

[metalmayhem]

fusion or bobcad ?

business-wise I look at it this way , One you own the software and you can always go back to old files years down the road , provided you never get rid of the software (sell it) .
The other is a subscription base at which you can access those files as long as you stay subscribed .
What happens in 6 months , a year , or 5 yrs if or when the company decides to deem the software obsolete . Those files , your time and effort are eventually toast ! Or , the company decides to double triple , quadruple the subscription fee . Your at their mercy !! Plus fusion is cloud based and you own nothing

Personally I prefer bobcad over fusions cam application , and that is considering the 3d features that I mostly work with . I find hsm to have a lot of the same functionality but I also find it more cumbersome to work with in comparison . Others may and probably disagree with me , but that's my opinion of it and it is the reason that I continue to use bobcad .

Best thing is to try both and decide for yourself which is best suited for your needs

[BlueChip]

Hi ... do you design? If not maybe look outside the CAD/CAM box.
Kipware CNC PROGRAMMING Software

Thanks to CNCZone for the chance to post.

[ger21]

Best thing is to try both and decide for yourself which is best suited for your needs

+1

Fusion makes it very easy to try for as long as you want, because you can pay by the month.

What happens in 6 months , a year , or 5 yrs if or when the company decides to deem the software obsolete . Those files , your time and effort are eventually toast ! Or , the company decides to double triple , quadruple the subscription fee . Your at their mercy !! Plus fusion is cloud based and you own nothing

You can export your files in neutral formats any time you want, so you never lose the models.
If Autodesk were to double (or more) the subscription fee, they'd probably lose more than half of their customers. I don't see that happening. I would guess that more than half of their user base are using it for free. I also don't see a product that's been under constant development for 5 years becoming obsolete any time soon.

No software is perfect, though. You might want to expand your options?
Maybe Rhino and RhinoCAM?

[tgskidoo]

no designing right now

[tgskidoo]

i know ask ten people get 10 answers.lol
just afraid to by the wrong stuff.

[ger21]

If you need CAM only, look at Visual Mill or OneCNC

[cyclestart]

i know ask ten people get 10 answers.lol
just afraid to by the wrong stuff.

Ask 10 people what they need from their software you also get 10 different answers.
For example to create an assembled product fusion 360 has some nice tools. Also the integration between models and CAM environment is quite nicely done.
On the other hand if you need simultaneous 4th axis toolpaths look elsewhere.
It's horses for courses.

Edit/ Fusion 360 also doesn't have nesting without a add-in hack and that hack has limitations. Bummer if you're cutting sheet goods.

[metalmayhem]

+1

You can export your files in neutral formats any time you want, so you never lose the models.
If Autodesk were to double (or more) the subscription fee, they'd probably lose more than half of their customers. I don't see that happening. I would guess that more than half of their user base are using it for free. I also don't see a product that's been under constant development for 5 years becoming obsolete any time soon.

I don't disagree . Being able to save the model is good , but the cam work is locked into fusion . I've got files from 8 yrs ago that I can go back to and do a quick tool edit at any given time , and in may years from now I'll be able to do the same .
Fusion can and probably will be around for a long time , but we are still at their mercy as long as it stays on a subscription base . I suppose the next solution is to go with inventor which correct me if I'm wrong will open fusion files ??

[ger21]

All Autodesk software is subscription based, and that is unlikely to ever change.

[he1957]

Cloud based applications and files may have a place but what if you can't get at them for whatever reason and you don't have the facilities to work off-line when you need to?

Just saying...

[ger21]

Fusion 360 can be run "offline" for up to 6 months at a time.

[difalkner]

And Fusion 360 allows you to export files to your hard drive if you want a local copy.

David

[warrenb]

I have both. I make money with both. I use BobCAD in Solidworks because I know both. But if it is a business startup you just can not beat Fusion. It is an amazing value. The only drawback is it is subscription based. BobCAD is a VERY capable CNC program (that uses ModuleWorks) but is not an intuitive design package.

[precisionmetal]

IMO, "subscription based" is where everyone (or at least many) are heading. I spoke with a number of (non-Autodesk ) CAD and/or CAM software companies at IMTS this year -- most admitted to "hoping" that Autodesk fails miserably in the long run with Fusion360, but most also admitted to working on alternate business models if Autodesk continues to grab market share (with Fusion360).

Subscription and/or cloud-based storage is likely the future, regardless of how many of us like, or dislike it.