Feature request: allow more than 200 tools in the tool library (I have 301 unique tools 😮)

[Sergio]

I have 301 unique tools that I’d like to use with my CNC12 Acorn Pro, but I see that both Acorn Pro and Ultimate have a 200-tool limit in the tool library.

Could this limit be increased?

Expanding the limit would make my life much easier, as I could then map my entire Fusion tool library into Acorn without having to reuse tool numbers. Otherwise, I'll have to find workarounds that will also make managing these tools much more error-prone.

Thank you for considering this request!

PS: Surely I'm not the only one with 200+ tools, right?

[suntravel]

I have only tools mounted in a toolholder in the CNC12 tool lib.

And no, I do not have +200 toolholders for a machine.

Uwe

[Sergio]

I have only tools mounted in a toolholder in the CNC12 tool lib.

And no, I do not have +200 toolholders for a machine.

Uwe

Makes sense, but here's the part I don't understand: what will happen when my NC file has a tool change for a tool numbered above 200, like an "M6 T201"?
My understanding from reading the CNC12 documentation is that it will fail, as it allows numbers 1-200 only.

[cnckeith]

SOP is to number the tool holders, not the actual bits.

[Sergio]

SOP is to number the tool holders, not the actual bits.

Got it. But what will happen in CNC12 when it receives an "M6 T201"? Will it:

A) Ask for tool 201 to be loaded? (I'll be using an ATC with 10~20 positions, by the way).

B) Fail because the tool number is invalid?

The reason it would receive T201 is that in Fusion/Aspire, I’d have all 301 tools defined. This way, I wouldn’t have to manually change tool numbers in CAM every time.

I understand the standard practice is to number tool holders rather than individual tools, but a higher limit would allow me to directly map my Fusion tool library to Acorn without extra workarounds or the risk of tool number conflicts. Would there be any technical limitation preventing an increase, at least in the Ultimate version, if I were to upgrade?

[cnckeith]

yes 201 is an invalid tool number.

ultimate has the same max number, but that is a great idea. 2000 tools for ultimate 10x!

[Sergio]

That would be awesome! A 2000-tool limit for Ultimate would completely solve this issue and make tool management much easier for users with large libraries. Is this something Centroid would consider implementing?

Heck, if you make the limit 999 instead of 2000, you don't even have to worry about UI changes as the text width remains the same.

[cnckeith]

ha! as soon as i make it 999 someone will ask for 1999

i put it on the to do list for investigation on how this could be done and how it would affect things.

[suntravel]

yes 201 is an invalid tool number.

ultimate has the same max number, but that is a great idea. 2000 tools for ultimate 10x!

Yeah, and 5min time wasted to scroll the tool lib not to find the right tool

Uwe

[IPGregory]

I second the increase the tool library request. I use Fusion to manage my tools, I then export the fusion library to HSM Advisor and again to CNC12 so they are all in sync. It's easier to keep everything straight that way. I don't have more than 200 tools (yet) but I do like to allocate 'blocks' of tool #s for similar types of tools with spaces left for future tools. Makes it easier to find them in Fusion. That eats up blocks of numbers quickly though.