How to set up drills with auto touch off probe. LATHE

[PhilipTrueman]

I couldn't find this information in the lathe manual.
To set up a drill in the lathe tool offsets page using auto tool touch off with a probe.
You have to set the X axis ref to the diameter of your probe plus the diameter of your drill that you are setting up.
Then you have to set the probe to approach from the + positive side.
Then it will put the correct figure in the offsets page.
So for a 12.5mm drill it would be 12.5 + 10mm for the stylus diameter like in the photo total = minus -22.5 in the X REF diameter figure

Is it possible for the next version of Centroid to have a seperate columb in the tool offsets page for the drill diameter so as it would not need the X ref figure changing for drill setup?
So when the drill is labeled DRILL in the tool table it takes into account the drill diameter.

Another point is when making a tool probe stylus it needs to be made wider to accomodate setting up a drill point.
The probe only moves in the Z direction half the width of the stylus which using Centroids probe it looks like t is only 5mm wide.
On larger drills like 12mm diameter the angle of the drill tip makes it greater than 5mm. So when auto probing it would be measuring on the angle point end of the drill instead of the full diameter in the X direction. "see photo" I had to put a wider dimension in the tool probe setup page to allow it to touch onto the full diameter of the drill.
Also when using a tool turret the drill bit needs orientating with the full diameter facing away from the rotating centre line of the turret.

[bazgazem]

I'm not experienced here but I saw there were no replies so.. My question is- I understand setting the Z of the drill but the X should just always be the center line- so could you just get away with measuring your drill chuck/collect center and recording that X offset fro your reference tool and always enter that information for what ever drill is installed there?

[PhilipTrueman]

I'm not experienced here but I saw there were no replies so.. My question is- I understand setting the Z of the drill but the X should just always be the center line- so could you just get away with measuring your drill chuck/collect center and recording that X offset fro your reference tool and always enter that information for what ever drill is installed there?

Yes when you get the offset for the turret holes centred with the spindle that measurement is the same for all the drill positions. The problem is if you decide to change tool number 1 for a different insert then all the offsets will be wrong.

[vw_chuck]

Wouldn't you use half the diameter of the drill bit?

[PhilipTrueman]

Wouldn't you use half the diameter of the drill bit?

It only seemed to work with the diameter of the drill.

[vw_chuck]

I don't use tool number 1 . It is only for setting the part.