CNC first-timer with some easy CAM questions

[Ryan Gallo]

Howdy, I've been working to develop my CAD skills and am working on producing two inserts for Festool systainers. Below are some slick looking renderings of each insert I've designed, and I'm working to produce them right now on a friend's CNC machine:

Custom Sharpening Kit for SYS5 Systainer
https://gfycat.com/HealthyEvenBluefintuna

Custom Router Bit Organizer for SYS4 Systainer
https://gfycat.com/EuphoricElegantAlbertosaurus

I've nested the parts on a single DWG and am using MillRight to set the CAM parameters. (It's a very antiquated program.)

Question 1: How can I configure a POCKET such that it would include the risers as shown below? Essentially, I'm trying to ask the machine to route the pocket, but avoid the circles. Once I set the pocket cut depth, it pretty just mills out the entire cavity, skipping over my circles. I know there must be a way to set this up correctly, but just didn't know how. Here's a picture of my design intent:

Systainer-Sharpening-Set-Pocket.jpg

Question 2: While cutting the router bit storage decks, I noticed I was getting some burn marks at the base of each 1/2" bit cavity. I was using a 5/16" downcut spiral bit with end mill, for the quality of the surface finish cut, but was wondering if going with something like a full 1/2" spiral upcut would product better results in the cavity, while perhaps requiring me to sand the surface (no big deal). Any thoughts on the best bit to use here? Here's an idea of the cuts I'm talking about:

Systainer-Router-Bit-Storage-Cavities.jpg

The design above calls for more than 200 of those cavities, so I think perhaps heat build-up could be a concern as well. Any ideas for how to alleviate that would be great!

Thanks!

[Bruce Page]

Easy to do in Vectric's V-Carve or Aspire with a simple pocket command, I don't know jack about Millwright. I'm not much help but wanted to comment on your beautiful models. It looks like your material is a birch type ply. I think you would want to stick with a sharp down cut bit to keep from chipping the edge. If your pocket is deep enough you might look at compression up/down bits.

[Gary Campbell]

Ryan...
To add to Bruce's words, and to possibly oversimplify, you will need to select vectors based on the parameters that you wish to apply. In most cases these would be bit selection, cut depth, direction, inside, outside, etc. Each different parameter requires a separate toolpath. For your pockes with circles, I would select the circles and group. Then select the outer border AND the group of circles for a pocketing operation. Current Vectric software is intuitive enough to determine how you wish to cut based on the selection and grouping.

[Brian Lamb]

I'm not familiar with MillRight, but I use a program called Sheetcam which is pretty basic. I would suggest the files to be DXF and set each operation to a different layer in the DXF file. For example your pocket with the risers, it appears the risers are below the top surface of the piece, maybe halfway from the top to the bottom of the pocket. I would have one layer just be the pockets rectangular shape. Call that layer up, apply my machining operation at a depth of say 1/8". Then my next DXF layer would be the pocket with the round islands, set up my machining at say 1/4" deep and it would do a pocket routing in the bottom leaving all the round dots raised.

As for tools to use for the 1/2" holes, I would stick to the 5/16" end mill but spiral mill to depth. Helical circular paths sloping down maybe .100" per circle until you get the depth you want, with a final circle at the finished depth to clean up the bottom if you want. That should yield the lest burning possible.