Solved: Default margin between nested parts - ceased working

Anonymous · ‎04-17-2018

I've only had this software a week or so and I'm getting bizarre issues.

As I'm getting used to it, I'm doing a lot of stuff manually before I start creating this database. Mind you, I'm coming straight int this from PM2000 (1998 BETA). With that said... I go to View -> Properties -> General Nesting tab.

This is where I set a margin for my different thicknesses. I haven't had any problems with it until today. Now, whatever I type in, it doesn't affect the margin around the part at all. I can change the Additional Sheet Edge Margin but nothing I type in to Default margin works. It just stays the same.

Mind you, I haven't changed any settings in Tools -> Setup. Now to screw around, I went in there and tried changing the default margin in the global settings and that changes it on my current nest.

The problem this causes me is that I have different thicknesses of metal, thusly, need to have different margins. When I go to Tools -> Setup, I can only affect it globally, there's no option for me to apply it to a material individually.

Please advise.

Anonymous · ‎05-01-2018

While experimenting with margins and such, I found a few places you could edit it.

You can modify it under Database -> Manufacturing or while manual nesting under View -> Properties.

I was under the foolish assumption that they may have really improved this software since 1998. Since I've spent most of my time on PM2000 (CAMduct's great great great grandfather).

I thought I could apply margins for each thickness of material, like ProNest gives you the ability to do. So while mucking about, I added a Global Variable to the tool settings of the machine. Turns out that overrides the nesting margin in the two other places you can set it. So now it's just a little vestigial box that means nothing unless you disable the global variable or change it there.

I'm told they're still developing the software but I'm not seeing much difference between them in the two decades between version. It's a little more polished. Crashes more. But there's some seriously silly oversights.

Just answering my own question for any other poor schmo who is having to learn this software in a high production environment and all the 20+ year veterans are reluctant to share their secrets.