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New Job

In one sentence: Create a CAM Job — the top-level container that holds the model reference, stock, tool controllers, and ordered list of operations for a machining programme.

Overview

Workbench: CAM
Menu: CAM → New Job
Command: CAM_Job
Shortcut: none

Creates a new CAM::Job object. All machining operations, tool controllers, and stock definitions are children of the Job.

Intuition

The Job is the starting point for every CNC programme in FreeCAD CAM. Think of it as the workorder: it says which model to machine, what stock it starts from, which tools are available, and which operations to run in which order. You must create a Job before you can add any operations.

When to use it

  • Starting any new CNC machining programme.
  • Setting up a different fixturing configuration for the same part.
  • Creating a second Job for a different post-processor or machine.

Step-by-step

  1. Have a Part Design body or Part solid in the document.
  2. Select the solid in the model tree.
  3. Choose CAM → New Job.
  4. In the Job task panel:
  5. Model — the solid(s) to machine (pre-filled from selection)
  6. Stock — choose stock type (see below)
  7. Post processor — select the G-code dialect for your machine
  8. Click OK. The Job object appears in the document tree.

Parameters

Stock types

Type Description
Create Box Axis-aligned box auto-sized to model bounding box + extension
Create Cylinder Cylindrical stock (for bar stock)
Extend Model's Bounding Box Box with explicit X, Y, Z oversize values
Use Existing Solid Select an existing FreeCAD shape as the stock

Job properties

Property Description
PostProcessor Name of the post-processor script
PostProcessorArgs Arguments passed to the post-processor
PostProcessorOutputFile Default output filename for G-code
SplitOutput If True, write one file per operation
OrderOutputBy Order G-code by: tool, operation, or fixture

Setup Sheet

Each Job has a Setup Sheet that stores default values for all operations (feed rate, step down, clearance height, etc.). Operations inherit from the Setup Sheet but can override any parameter individually.

Common mistakes and pitfalls

Stock is smaller than the model

If the auto-computed bounding box has zero extension, the stock coincides with the model. Increase the stock extension (extra material beyond the model on each face).

Wrong post-processor selected

G-code from the wrong post-processor may have incorrect axis letters, wrong modal codes, or missing header blocks. Verify the dialect before running on the machine.

See also