RASK KNIVES ON HOMESTRETCH, LIGHTS OUT MANUFACTURING, LATHE CRASHES, DATA & TOOL LIFE MANAGEMENT, MACRO VARIABLES, Q PARAMETERS, FUSION 360 BUG, PROVENCUT PART SERIES, and MORE!

Business of Machining

RASK KNIVES ON HOMESTRETCH, LIGHTS OUT MANUFACTURING, LATHE CRASHES, DATA & TOOL LIFE MANAGEMENT, MACRO VARIABLES, Q PARAMETERS, FUSION 360 BUG, PROVENCUT PART SERIES, and MORE!

Machining Verbiage The new rule is that when running machines, you add "ING" to the end of the machine brand name to create a new CNC-centric gerund. Acceptable examples are:

KEARN--ING TORNOS--ING HAAS--ING TORMACH--ING

A BUMP IN THE NIGHT... Just when you think it's dialed, you hit the lights and leave the shop only to be welcomed in the morning by 200-300 scrapped parts.

Grimsmo shares this one minor detail that derailed the entire lights-out process. Saunders points out that evaluating problems further up stream is worth doing!

FRIDAY - DATE NIGHT WITH A LATHE CRASH The ST-20Y is set to run the one and done, dialed process for SMW diamond pins but the lathe insert broke on the 2nd pin. And that's not all. Not only was the insert blown, the parting blade took a huge crap! Luckily, Saunders had back up blades on hand, right? WRONG!

With similar experiences being shared between them, they embark on an in-depth conversation about tool life management, tool counting, macro variables, and Q parameters. The question remains: how do you incorporate these into your shop operations successfully?

Forget textbooks---except the one Grimsmo is a true FAN...uc (I mean, fan of)

Fanuc CNC Custom Macros: Programming Resources for Fanuc Custom Macro B Users

Machines Personified Remember the poetic interpretation of Mars Rover's final message to NASA? While the rover never explicitly said, "My battery is low and it's getting dark," that partially humanistic phrase still managed to evoke a tinge of sadness for many. Why? We have a long history of personifying everything under, and including, the sun. In a strange way, machines have their own temperaments, quirks, likes, and dislikes--and that might be why it feels kind of sad leaving them alone in the dark.

Fusion 360 - Team Hubs & Documented Bug The guys discuss migrating to Team Hubs and the importance of a local back-up copy of data. By the skin of his teeth, Grimsmo saves his butt by using Instagram to approximate the date of the correct version of a specific file. During a livestream, Saunders stumbles across a bug that is driving EVERYONE insane! Finally, Grimsmo discusses how one tiny checked boxed beside, "Make Sharp Corners" has been life changing! Click here for the HSS Spline Shaft Tool Video that incorporates spring passes + make sharp corners for awesome results.

ProvenCut Part Series Saunders announces a new addition to ProvenCut that makes it more than just a library! Now, you can find parts similar to what you want to machine, select the machine and type of material, use the mouse to hover over the part to see which types of operations were used, and more! The first part being added to the series is a T-nut and there will be many more to come!

RASK IN HAND & FINE TUNING All parts have been made and now the only things left are final tweaks for the surface finish, fit, and solving the 5-10% lock-stick issue. Grinding is all systems go. The blades are now the best they've ever been!

Rebuilding The Shop - Custom Tables and Benches for Organization For Saunders, rebuilding the shop has been in progress for several months now but it's still like a breath of fresh air! He's excited to meet up with someone from Maker Pipe who's offered to help with custom solutions to get SMW to the next level!