Machining

If you enjoy the growl of heavy milling cuts, the machine-gun sound of chips striking glass and the heady odor of superheated cutting fluid, a compact machining center might not be the right machine for you. Like I used to, you scoff at phone booth-sized machining centers, with their tiny toolholders and tables not much larger than a 6" machinist vise. If so, you’re not looking at the big picture. 

Have a person familiar with a machine go over it with you. A person showing you how to do something can filter unneeded information, according to the Shop Operations column in the February 2017 issue of Cutting Tool Engineering.

More lathe purchasers are choosing automated material handling options, according to the February 2017 Machine Technology column by Bill Leventon.

There have been days when it was easy to be a pessimist and see the glass as half-empty. But eventually, perhaps when least expected, something provides inspiration and my inner optimism returns. One such event occurred with an employee I’ll call “Mario.” Manager's Desk Column by Keith Jennings.

Shop Operations columnist James A. Harvey underscores the importance of his initial CNC training, which involved changing tools on a new mill. Just the act of changing a tool let him interact with the machine and controller in a way that gave him confidence.

Michael Deren, who writes the Machinist's Corner column for Cutting Tool Engineering magazine, explains why he now believes wholeheartedly in lean manufacturing.

The Look Ahead department covers electro-erosion metal removal with a 5-axis horizontal machining center in the January 2017 issue of Cutting Tool Engineering.