Business of Machining

TOPICS   Does a College Education Matter? Grimsmo and Saunders share their different paths and initial interests BEFORE they got into CNC machining. Someone is looking for a new machinist---could it be you? Optical Flat & Monochromatic Light for Part Flatness @laneymachinetech Grimsmo and Saunders offer each other workable solutions for tool break detection and other quirky issues. Renish...

TOPICS:   Reaming holes. Endmill coatings and storage. Grob factory tour. Tool like time and replacement methods. Johnny Five returns. Links: https://www.mscdirect.com/product/details/09782467

TOPICS: Trusting Instincts Social proof for marketing and branding Creative Fixturing and Workholding Grimsmo and Saunders Approved Tools! Grimsmo's Favorite Gripper Pad The "I can't believe it exists already" wrench Good reasons to outsource things beyond the scope of your business Xometry Pay - Solving Collection of past due accounts for businesses? Prusas, 3D printed 1/4" Royal Collet for sub s...

TOPICS:   Ordering Lathe Material - Purchasing/procurement Finances in Business What makes you happy? Growing a business in 3 stages Lathe talk Past due accounts receivables? Creating your own cnc machine?

  Saunders on feeling overwhelmed and a defining moment at Pierson Workholding. Can daily tasks actually KILL your business? "You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems." - James Clear Marketing  Business accounting Tool life for lathe parting inserts

TOPICS: Saunders is starting 2021 off great with their ERP system and staying busy with orders. Saunders also tells us about his broken tool on the lathe.   Grimsmo has been getting their Okamoto surface grinder up and running and it has been awesome! The big news out of Grimsmo is that the Rask is back! They have been hard at work for almost 4 years to bring back the Rask.  

TOPICS:  Grimsmo starts us off with a smooth lead in SMW Product Demand Increases & The Struggle to Reduce Lead Time  Super Helpful Tools & Gadgets (Scales & Pallet Jacks) https://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200680712_200680712 Precision  Abbe's Principle The Perfectionists: How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World A Crazy Metrology Question on the NY...

2020 has been a wild year, and we are sure you are tired of hearing about it by now. But here at the Business of Machining we decide to reflect on the positives. Thank you to everyone for being with us throughout this year!   Grimsmo has found a solution to lift very heavy objects within their shop without the need of a forklift. It takes them back to the old Volvo days in the garage. Saunder...

TOPICS: - Podcast Feedback & Developing a Consistent Opening Statment - Strategy: Learning Your Customer Base & SEO - Email from Brewery | ERP VS Wiki - Covid Hits Close to Home at SMW - Staffing A Growing Business & The Concert Mindset - Recycling Chips: The Need for a Compactor

Grimsmo makes a big move and purchased a Okamoto surface grinder! Saunders' offers his input and general advice on purchasing new machinery. The boys talk about the potential of using "Slack" in their respective companies. This could help bridge the gap between consumer and company and it is worth looking at.   Saunders has started to step away from his ERP system "LEX" to let his team run it...

Business of Machining has now reached it's 200th episode! That's 3.84 years of "private" conversations about manufacturing and growing small businesses.  A sincere thank you to the listeners out there--or as we've lovingly dubbed them, "parking lot circlers." In the past 4 years, this podcast has been downloaded over 1 million times!    TOPICS: - The importance of authenticity - Det...

Saunders & Grimsmo are ending of the year with expansion! Both shops are on similar growth paths in their respective shops. Grimsmo has hired on Pierre to help boost production, while Saunders has hired 3 people around his shop.   Grimsmo's surface grinder should be here in a couple of weeks! Which means they have to make some room for it and figure out how to bring it into the work flow....

TOPICS:  Auctions, Warranties, and Riggers Is Saving Money the Ultimate Purchase Factor? Developing Decision Making Framework Formalizing the Interview Process Tom Lipton's Test Jig Pierre - New to GK Team SMW Phase 5 of Shop Overhaul Machine Modifications for Chip Evacuation & Larger Coolant Tanks Water & Coolant Delivery System Update Vendors and Relationships DLC Coating Sandvik QS...

The boys have been crazy busy this week. Saunders' and his team have developed a little bit of a safe word around the shop. PINEAPPLE! This signifies that the person is safe. For example, if you hear a loud bang or somebody drops something and hear the safe word. Than you know that person is ok! Its actually a very good idea especially when you have a lot of ground to cover or a lot of employees....

Today the Johns are reppin' each other by sporting SMW and GK tees.  Grimsmo Knives Tee SMW Tee TOPICS: Orange Vise Tour Grimsmo's Next Machines Process for Pressing Bearings into Bearing Cages Surface Grinding Machines - CNC or Manual? Air Compressors & Sound Proofing Tasks - Batching VS. Whack-A-Mole Organizational Chart - G Suite Alias Emails SMW is Hiring! SMW Careers  

Have you ever had such a premium custom table experience that ruined every other table in the world for you? Well Saunders has! He is loving the MakerPipe table systems to make some custom solutions for his shop. You can find Makerpipe here .   Both Grimsmo and Saunders are falling more in love with the idea of full ERP integration in their respective shops. Grimsmo especially are looking to...

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--I...

John & John go over the never ending struggle of the classic make vs buy scenario. This time they are talking about making a custom shipping table to help speed up Saunders' work flow. Grimsmo has a Canadian version called FlexPipe.   Saunders' has been doing some WORK when it comes to Automatic Brix reading of coolant systems. He has been using a digital refractometer that you can find t...

Solopreneurs, Robots & Payloads, ERP + Inventory Tracking, Brix, Automated Coolant Distribution, and MORE! Business of Machining Podcast = The Manufacturing Entrepreneurcast You CAN Be The Crazy Guy In Your Garage Forever! The idea of expanding beyond oneself or even becoming self-employed isn't enticing to everyone---and that's okay! Grimsmo reflects on his evolution from solopreneur to entre...

Grimsmo has made some glorious progress on the kern. They have finalized an auto grinding routine for Rask blades. While Saunders' and their team have been toying with the idea of buying a Horizontal machining center.   Saunders' also has some awesome upgrades he is adding to Proven Cut. References: Surebonder.com

RASK PROGRESS, THREADMILLING, WORKHOLDING FIXTURES, 5-AXIS ROTARY TOOLPATHS, DIAMOND BURNISHING, GRINDING, SURFACE FINISHES, PROBING, & TOOL BREAKAGE DETECTION. KERN IT UP. Grimsmo machines his own ER 16 collet for the KERN! Wait until you hear about how he made this monolithic-integral ER. All this talk about holding parts on center brings back a good ol' Memory with Marv. Saunders recounts a...

The year 2020 has not been exactly how we have imagined it. But it is in full swing for both Saunders' and Grimsmo, especially in the ERP department. Saunders' is cooking with LEX and Grimsmo is full GERP ahead.   Both John's and their teams have worked hard to make it happen this year. It is a great teaching lesson for anyone to make the best of what you have. Focus on the things you actuall...

This podcast is GOOD VENTING and BAD VENTING all things manufacturing and entrepreneurship. Blade to the Grindstone After taking Saunders's advice (perhaps a bit too literally) Grimsmo takes a Zedaro Miltera Endmill to a knife blade and ends up with an incredible surface finish but the grinding wheel was another story... Throughout the talk of grit, mesh, and desired results, Grimsmo casually drop...

Overcoming obstacles is the foundation of life. But also one of the most important parts of running any type of business is being able to see an obstacle as a challenge and not a failure. This week on the business of machining podcast the John's talk all about making progress and continuing on moving forward. This includes getting the old machines running again and constantly finding new and impro...

MANUFACTURING ENTREPRENEURS--THIS IS FOR YOU! This podcast has 186 episodes about the experience of two entrepreneurs improving their skills in their trade and learning how to create successful businesses. "The day I stop learning is the day I fall asleep and never wake up." - Grimsmo DELUSION & HONESTY Entrepreneurship is a constant battle between delusion and self honesty. Justifying decisio...