Parts Department

Jem and Justin trade toddler war stories before Jem confesses he'd rather tear down 4.5m pallet racking alone at midnight than hire anyone. Justin reveals his June sales cliff after a domain migration tanked Google traffic, hitting Profit First distributions hard. They also riff on the Obsidian exodus from Notion, breaking up with Cursor for Claude Code, and why rearranging the shop is happening b...

Jem and Justin chat about the World Cup's surprisingly warm reception in the US, Jem's Kitta Parts Builder getting a 3D preview upgrade (doors that actually open), and a FedEx API build that finally came together. Justin shares how Shopify's AI flagged a 430-pound weight bug before support did. They close on a real Profit First curveball: what do you do when a big deposit lands early? Watch on You...

Justin makes himself a 5-axis trophy and a quick YouTube shop tour and tests his Gimbel CoolantClear. Jem survives a short production week down a person, rants about builder POs and spirals into late-night Rhino scripting with Cursor. Plus bot orders, prototype hoarding, and the emotional weight of unfinished projects. Also, sea shanties. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic D...

Justin migrates from Squarespace to Shopify (finally!), accidentally nukes his navigation menus with AI, and drops $1,200 on used Lista cabinets. Jem wraps up 10 months of robot programming, ships his first four-shelf new robot sanding programs. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Migrated the Blog! Lost my menus Big Ass CNC CRO Skills skills skills ꘎ Caveman AirShop Updates...

Justin Gray joins Jem and Justin to talk vibe coding, from NASA open source to CNC tool library nightmares. They riff on AI security traps, why machinists need GitHub, and the chaos of managing 400 tool holders. Plus toddler nostril emergencies and why pie charts are almost never okay. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Justin Gray of Justin Gray Labs - formerly of Toolpath...

Justin just crushed a record sale. Jem is actively avoiding his books. Together they navigate code benders, steel headaches, and the beautiful disaster of trying to keep a shop running. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Addicted to tokens, Jonny too Never bookkeeping again Claude Code first impressions Brain fog, how to leave breadcrumbs Big Ass Sale progress? No donkeys th...

Justin caught a facing issue on fresh UMC pallets before they could ruin parts, while his Shopboard reel blew up on Instagram. Jem survived a surprise WorkSafe inspection and a brutal $8k robot service bill. The guys talk selling out of ATC Pedestals, $5 McMaster parts versus Haas tax, custom ERP dashboards, and a new quest for decent video editing help. Home Assistant just works. Watch on Youtube...

Jem powers through a sick week and sales slump while Justin accidentally nukes his revenue with a premature sale popup. They swap stories about migrating to Obsidian, testing Parakeet voice dictation, and rant about industrial e-commerce still living in 2005. Also: Allbirds going full GPU, Cursor buyout fears, and why keeping credit cards on scrap paper is a bad idea. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍...

Justin wrestles with a backwards-wired Tormach AF50 saw and delegates tasks to his new hire. Jem rebuilds his job management system on a local server. They discuss 150% increase in aluminum, meeting fatigue, and their skepticism about SimTheory's Canva acquisition. Roomba learning to clean pegboard. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Tormach AF50 Saw, no bueno Linux server?...

Justin hires his first office employee, Jem catches up on emails using Cursor, and both discuss the challenges of delegating tasks in their growing businesses of delegating tasks in their growing businesses. They cover AirShop new features and a big milestone, 3D printer mishaps, expensive robot maintenance, profit-first accounting discipline, and building new custom product configurators. Watch o...

Justin and Jem weigh up if expensive trade shows are worth the $15k entry or if walking the floor with a "trench coat" of products is the smarter play. Between squashing bugs in the kitchen and mourning 62% price hikes on magnets, they tackle the absolute loop of shittness that is FedEx losing custom plywood shelves. Plus, Justin notices used Mac prices are on the rise and orders a cardboard shred...

Jem and Justin chat about complicated speaker parts, CAM programming headaches, and why wood routing feels less reliable than metal work. They geek out over Joe Roggenbuck's knowledge-sharing channel, discuss Jem's new Profit First spreadsheet rebuild (RIP Laura), and explore hiring challenges for a growing team. Plus: trade shows, work stops, and late-night coding sessions as a form of meditation...

Jem quoted big this week while glued to his desk, ditching ChatGPT for Claude and getting his staff into Cursor. His parkour bricked iPhone became surprisingly zen. Justin scored a Tormach autosaw from Seattle, and he's hiring a Shop Coordinator. Both are wrestling with Xero bookkeeping. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Soggy phone delights ꘎ Dumping Chatty G New role at P...

Jem's rocking top-tier muffs that isolate a screaming spindle while the guys talk one-click Kanban card glory. They discuss the magic of good- documentation, fighting AI amnesia with markdown, and the logistics of shipping PS2 kits to the States. From bike-ride domain buys to handling trade apathy, it's a heavy look at refining the systems that keep a modern shop running. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSE...

Jem's dialed-in tumbler workflow is pumping out thousands of little widgets with barely any intervention, while Justin redesigned the Fang clamp packaging to keep up with demand. They swap war stories about terrible powder coaters, Jem races his cousin vs Cursor on a Raspberry Pi battery project, and Justin finds a surprisingly old-school solution to stop Slacking across the shop. Watch on Youtube...

Justin literally sold a room of his shop. Jem's questioning if his furniture business is secretly a tech company, someone stayed up til 2am installing sketchy AI agents, and plumbing codes make a surprise guest appearance. Also Fusion's new file types are confusing everyone. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Praise for Jonny ꘎ Are we a technology company? ꘎ Who buys the stu...

Jem's dealing with wrong-white paint drama and bushfire heat waves while Justin finally cut steel and loved it. They nerd out on slitting saws, spindle grippers, and robot pick-and-place logic. Justin's close to launching AirShop billing, got a tenant for his extra shop space, and is scheming ways to script Blender renders without learning Blender. Classic shop talk with a side of automation dream...

Jem's recovering from bushfire evacuations and finding thinking work tough after the chaos. Justin's got a glorious new hole between his shop spaces and AirShop is streamlining daily operations nicely. Both are geeking out over Random Routing's insane 48-tool carousel upgrade. Jem's dumped ChatGPT for Gemini, and Justin's testing coated CNC tooling. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Sugges...

Justin's been deep in AirShop development over the holidays while Jem dealt with diesel generator drama amid fire danger. They chat five-axis workflow wins, a $30 kid's microscope that's surprisingly shop-worthy, permit nightmares for a simple door, and SendCutSend's wild live machining stream. Plus Chippy vs forklift round two. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic AirShop Inc...

Jem and Justin wrap up the year with tales of inventory headaches, Home Assistant tinkering, and soft jaw frustrations on the new UMC. Dylan Jackson from Within Tolerance drops by to show off his fresh Hermle 250 setup. Plus: electrocution survival stories, air compressor mysteries, and why bricking your phone might be the ultimate productivity hack. Happy holidays from the shop floor. Watch on Yo...

Jem and Justin chat new computers, shop reorganizations, and the joy of Facebook Marketplace finds like conveyors and what was sticky in Justin's new IBC tote. They swap notes on year-end revenue wins, FedEx driver diplomacy, and why thermostats are amazing ROI. Plus: Home Assistant rabbit holes, AI voice chat absurdity, and holiday shipping plans. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest...

Jem and Justin catch up after Thanksgiving, celebrating the sale of Justin's YCM mill and his new fiber laser adventures. They swap stories about home automation dreams, robot programming, and the joys of hiring with AI assistance. Plus, a touching tribute to the generous soul who gave Jem his robots. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic UMC Ep2 Youtube Chatty G voice feels so...

Jem records from a van battling massive audio lag while engineers occupy his shop floor. He celebrates winning Business of the Year and permits for the new home shed. Justin is drowning in rush jobs, finding a surprise in the YCM sale, and daycare lice. Plus, they discuss buying fiber lasers, upgrading the Fusion Bulk importer, and fancy 5-axis calibration tools. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Com...

Jem's been grumpy after a slow studio sale, while Justin's juggling rush jobs solo. They chat about robot vacuums saving thousands in labor costs, Justin's new task app that harasses you into productivity, coolant mixers, and why reflection time keeps slipping away. Plus hacked Unitree robots spreading viruses like worms. Both feeling the squeeze between email and actual work. Watch on Youtube DIS...

Jem and Justin geek out over Jon Klassen. Jem’s selling equipment. They chat UMC updates, marketing consultant wisdom, and why email rules sales plus thoughts on pneumatic air line strategy. Watch on Youtube DISCUSSED: ✍️ Comment or Suggest a Topic Jon Klassen books are good Where is my hat So many jobs UMC update, closer Jem sells his Multicam Router May sell YCM? Unhook, dismantle room Talked to...