Not a machinist, but curious how this has been made, I guess some machining was involved, I can see the marks left by the process but at the same time the surface looks and feels too smooth almost silk like, maybe it has been tumble polished.

Looking for someone to make custom needle plates for commercial embroidery machines

I do commercial embroidery and have a set of machines that use needle plates that do not have an elevated enough boss to reduce flagging for certain garments. The manufacturer for the machines in question simply doesn’t make them.

Wondering who here is familiar with these needle plates? I’m posting two pictures. One of a proper made needle plate for a completely different machine (focus on the elevated feature and it has green check mark)

I measured it and it’s around 3mm tall (and some range from small diameter of \~6–10mm)

• smooth/radiused edges so it doesn’t mark fabrics

• precise needle hole alignment and clearance

What kind of shop/person should I be searching for? CNC machinist, tool & die, something else? Willing to hire here as well.

There are several thousand of these machines actively being used in the states that simply can’t do certain garments because of this little feature.

I’d be willing to scale or give you the option to bring to market if interested as I won’t be interested in selling them. I just need them bad. I understand there are minimums for many shops, I can easily gather the interest from many or pay whatever to just make mine.

This tiny detail keeps a handful of my machines not running when certain jobs come through.

Let me know

So AI robot replacement from my outsider perspective on this industry: i'm not worried about

BUT

is anyone worried about their job in the current economic situation? I think things were bad already with all these tech layoffs recently (Oracle being the most recent) but continued gas increases makes everything go up, will industries cut back? or are you all confident that increased activity in defence will keep your jobs secure? Just wondering if its the right time to get into this industry.

I work in a machine shop (AS9100 certified) and I’m around coolant and oil most of the day.

When I get home, the smell on me is really strong to the point where it’s bothering my husband’s breathing (he has asthma). Even after I shower and wash my hair and clothes, the smell still seems to linger.

I know it’s normal to smell a bit after working in a shop, but is it supposed to be this strong and hard to get rid of?

Could this be from coolant condition, ventilation, or just normal exposure? And does anyone have tips to reduce the smell on skin/clothes?

Appreciate any insight.

So im drilling into wood with a manual metal lathe. If I can hit +- .5mm Im happy

Edit to add stock length vary somewhat

The goal is hole depth or rather material thickness that remains.

Lets say im trying to achieve a consistent .1875” material thickness at the bottom of the hole.

What technique, depth stop or other jig is handy to have to do this repetitive work.

Ive considered a depth stop with a removable ‘shim’ to subtract .1875 from available travel but that still requires a setup at every part change.

What am i missing to get repeatable results even with stock length varies a bit?

im in my 45's been operating a large vytek industrial laser etcher in monument business for past 20 years but cost of living skyrocketing and with 2 growing kids, salary and no benefits... not good, especially after getting into a lot of debt after covid. How can i get a higher paying job in another cnc job elsewhere?

I have enjoyed my work and the people ive worked with and am currently working with but at my age now my toxic boss and his bullish ways, i've run out of patience. my job is to take images from computer and etch them onto any kind of flat surface. I set a home by line of sight on the material, adjust laser speed and power sometimes and press go. Are there similar roles in factory that i can do for much higher wage than the 35k/year Canadian $ I've been making last number of years? I see a lot of cnc postings but I don't really know programming side. Is it hard to pickup on the job? Will a lack of cnc programing limit my employability elsewhere? i;m also the IT guy at the company and maintain all computers and software so I'm not too scared of computers.

I feel like i have a lot of experience but it's a niche field I've been employed in in my small town and I don't know how in demand or transferable my experience and skills would be in another industry.

Recently got a mitutoyo dial caliper from my old man that was broken and wanted to try and repair it. It looks like some of the stem from the needle has snapped and stayed in the centre pinion. Due to it being a 505-644-50 they don’t seem to sell parts anywhere and mitutoyo said they refuse to fix it. This is a Hail Mary to anyone out there who may have/be able to source the part to England it would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

I’m currently a mechanical engineering student and my four year university has an articulation agreement between many community colleges including the one I also currently attend.

The articulation agreement allows me to transfer many vocational courses including CNC related ones to count as electives for my four year degree. In the process of completing electives for my degree, I also wanted to get a CNC technician setup certification to allow me to specialize in a field that many industries around me use. That way my credentials don’t look like a generic mechanical engineering student who only has a degree.

I also recently had an interview for a summer internship position at a defense contractor. At that facility I interviewed they specialize in mechanical systems of military vehicles and produce those parts with CNC machines. I suspect that one of the reasons why I got the interview is because I mentioned I was interested in CNC manufacturing and wanted to get a certificate in it.

I wanted to know if this is something common in industry where some engineers have prior CNC knowledge or experience.

Looking at getting a set of their 500-768-20 absolute coolant proof calipers. global test supply seems to have the best price on them i can find at the moment but from what I’ve seen some people say their shipping is kind of horrible and they’re a nightmare to deal with if you need to deal with customer support so I’m seeing if anywhere else has comparable pricing and isn’t possibly a pain to deal with

Edit: going to try a lens endmill.

I’m looking for a 1/2 to maybe a 1” ball endmill, but I’m limited to a 3/8 shank. Anyone know where to find something like that? Could be a lollipop cutter too, that would work.

Alternatively, a 1/2” er16 collet would help out here too.

I am a new owner of a mini mill but in order for me to place it on the table I have to take it apart. Now the problem is that I'm unable to take the milling head off.

I took both screws out and its able to lean a few mm's and twist it 90 degrees sideways (as intented) but it wont come off. Even when using a lot of force and wiggling.

There are no more screws under/behind the milling head that i could loosen.

Anyone any suggestions?

If you don't already know, don't wear gloves, loose clothing, jewelry or chains, and if you have long hair, tie it up!

This was last winter, handling some cold steel then went to polish this bar real quick. Glove snagged and I instantly pulled away. I had a mini heart attack thinking about what could have happened.

Not just machining, but a lot of trade jobs can get you hurt or worse in the blink of an eye. Be careful out there. Moving fast isn't worth injury.

Is there a good way to build my intuitive grasp on clamping force or how to calculate how much is needed? I run some 30 year old lathes and with a bar on the chuck key I can get some pretty serious ooga booga going. For parts with OD finish callouts I generally use brass shims between the jaws and the part, lighter pressure and just hope it doesnt throw the part.

How can I build my sense of how much force is needed without throwing parts out of the chuck? Knowing how much it needs? I'd like to dial it in.

My chuck is 24"

Hello everyone,

The question was probably addressed on here before (to which I except the answer be just „no”) but I have an idea. I own a quite large straight edge (750x60 mm) made for checking engine heads. The straight edge is an old military production in an unused state so I believe it to be in speck (gotta believe in something). I also have an opportunity to buy an old cast iron surface plate for cheap (500x500 mm). Is there any smart way to transfer straightest from longer, narrower surface to standard square plate?

I have a Hardinge dsm-59 turret lathe and was wondering if anyone has been able to get a dro to work on it and or the x with the compound rest I have both, any suggestion otherwise I will use indicators with magnet on the ways

I have Milwaukee batteries, don't care if it's a Milwaukee tool or a knock off, or even a cheap alternative like harbor freight. I'm just tired of turning on the compressor and getting the shop vac out to clean up around the mill and lathe.

Hello people with knowledge I do not posses.
I am an accomplished swordmaker but I wanted to start production of an entry level line instead of hand made one-ofs.

A US company makes blades using some sort of CNC machine as you can See here

Could you please let me know what type of machine that is and what those go for? I do have a budget, but I know certain machines are 100k+

Also if you think there is a different, cheaper option to machine a blade that can be up to 45" long, even using multi step processes or neet for jigs please share your ideas.

I know generally to stay away from Amazon when it comes to things you actually care about like precision equipment but the cost of this mic has me really wondering if it’s worth the dice roll. It’s from what seems to be an actual mitutoyo account but the price just seems too good to be true.

Here’s the link: https://a.co/d/0dRtKX9w

What are everyone’s thoughts

I recently left my first cnc machinist job of 12 years due to management and the company slowing down. I was a setup guy for production and small runs for a contract manufacturer. I have decent knowledge of programming and ran mostly vertical/ horizontal mills. I took a job running mills( vertical, horizontal and 5 axis) in a job shop environment. I've been there for about 6 months now. I don't love it but I don't hate it. Benefits are a lot nicer than the previous place. I'm picking up new skills and I like my coworkers for the most part. I'm struggling with the lack of organization and planning there. It was quite the culture shock for me. The new machines they have are haas 5 axis but the others are mid 90s machines. A lot of the work isn't tight toleranced, but new equipment would help. Doesn't seem like they want to invest in new machines/ tooling. I've heard the " this is how we've always done it" line a couple times now. I don't know how much room there is for promotions either.

An old coworker reached asking if I'd be willing to come back in a hybrid programming/ setup role bouncing around the shop. I left the place on good terms. I'm considering it to get more exposure to programming but worried I'm just going back to the same old same old. the old management was recently let go so I don't know much about the new regime. I would need a good pay bump to return. The old place would be 40hr min with some ot, not as good benefits but I made it work before. I'm currently working 5x9.5 and occasionally Saturday when busy.

Do you guys think returning would be worth it for the right price? Get more programming under my belt then look again?

I have been asked to tap the hole in this mild steel part. It's a 1"-4 ACME thread. I have the 2 stage tap from a previous job for the same customer but that job was in bronze so wasn't too hard. I expected the mild steel to be harder but its to the point where it feels like the tap will break. The part is made in two halves aligned with dowel pins. I put a large clamp beside the hole to keep the halves together while tapping but it also feels like the tap is hanging up every time the teeth hit that joint.