[s2jesse]

Attachment 316116

Well that was fun! I spent like 4 hours and about 5 broken endmills learning something very basic. Pay attention to the temper on 6061 when you order. I had been ordering a few odds and end pieces from amazon since its fast free 2 day shipping. I didn't notice that i chose O temper 6061 this time. I thought it was just a really crappy gummy batch of aluminum. I ended up learning a lot about how to work through problematic material however and ended up getting my part milled.

I didnt know this and maybe it will help another noob.

6061 O Temper is very soft / anealed great for welding aluminum to endmills!
6061 T6 harder temper better and chips for milling

Jesse

[WOTDesigns]

LOL! That's fantastic info!! Didn't even know amazon sold raw materials! And I'm an amazon junkie

[Hirudin]

I have a few blocks of a certain size that have gummed up on me and failed each time I tried them. I wonder if it's just that they have a "bad temper". Thanks!

[WOTDesigns]

Had to check the prices out of curiousity. Which ones do you normally order from?

.875 x 6' bar = 4.221 lb

Locally IMS charges me $2 - $2.75 lb depending how much I order and over $150 is free delivery

Amazon: $42.35
McMaster: $28.51
IMS: $10.55

Shipping from McMaster is about the most fair I've ever seen, and would still run you less than Amazon on this particular example.

[iwaskevin]

Who is IMS

[WOTDesigns]

Sorry, Industrial Metal Supply.

In the last month I have ordered from Schorr Metals, Anaheim. Fry Steel (has AL too), Santa Fe Springs, Coast Aluminum, Santa Fe Springs. All have free delivery over their minimum usually $150. If I need a bar of .75x.75x144 which I do right now, I am going to add the required amount of 1.25x2 bars for soft jaws or another size I use frequently to get the free shipping. When I do a large order I order my stock stuff I am low on too and get the price down to $1.99/lb on 6061 and that is Kaiser USA aluminum form IMS not the import random temper with hard spots and varying radius corners. I use Talon Grip Jaws for ruffing and need fairly sharp corners to grip. I am running 7075 right now and the massive radius made me order a larger size just to be able to sink .3 of waste into the jaws to hold it while roughing.

[s2jesse]

I just ordered two 0.25x12"x12" plates from "Small Parts".. they were 36 each and free shipping.

They are a few bux cheaper "30ish" at mcmaster, onlinemetals, speedymetals etc. But free shipping makes up for it on small orders. Its pretty nice for quick little pieces. If i were doing some sort of large production id prob find the most efficient price. Prime is pretty convenient tho.

Jesse

[Steve Seebold]

3/4 x 1 x 72, 5.5 pounds $11.00 plus about $10.00 for the cut from Fry Steel.

[WOTDesigns]

I guess if its the only time you think you will ever need that size it makes since. I plan to need everything again. .25x12"x 72 is only $112 from Mcmaster. That's $18 each or half price and you can cut your 12" or 13 or 16 or 18 or whatever you need then you have 3 free feet left over. 3 free feet is a good price

It's definitely an economy of scale thing, but I hate paying $100/hr for someone to do my job. That $10 cut Steve mentioned takes me about 60 seconds to make from a full bar so that's $600/hr I am paying them, or on the 1/4" x 12" I do have a bandsaw that can make that, but it would only take me 5 minutes with my skill saw or 1 minute with the Milwaukee 8" circular saw

[pickled]

Wild, I have bought a lot of end cuts from Alro (Kaiser and Mic 6) for less than $3/lb. The beautiful thing is that I can walk in and look at the material (with a mic or caliper in hand) and say, "Yup-I'll take that one :-)". Nearly all of it has been stamped with a correlating temper number too. This post makes me feel quite fortunate.

[Steve Seebold]

I do my cutting like Brian at WOTDesigns does it. I'll buy a full bar of material and cut it on my band saw unless said material is too heavy to handle. I'll buy a full bar a lot of times because most of the time the full bar isn't that much more than what I actually need plus the cut charge.

Then, I break out the chop saw. Yep, I use a 7 1/4 or a 10 inch Craftsman chop saw for cutting large bars of material (a large bar being anything over 1/2 X 3). The ONLY thing wrong with using the chop saw is, it makes one hell of a mess in a big hurry.

I do most of my cutting while the machine is running. these CNC machines have no idea if you're standing in front of them or not, so you might as well do your cutting while you're making parts.

Hey Brian, have you stepped up to a VF2 yet, or are you still running your TM2P?

[WOTDesigns]

I do my cutting like Brian at WOTDesigns does it. I'll buy a full bar of material and cut it on my band saw unless said material is too heavy to handle. I'll buy a full bar a lot of times because most of the time the full bar isn't that much more than what I actually need plus the cut charge.7

Then, I break out the chop saw. Yep, I use a 7 1/4 or a 10 inch Craftsman chop saw for cutting large bars of material (a large bar being anything over 1/2 X 3). The ONLY thing wrong with using the chop saw is, it makes one hell of a mess in a big hurry.

I do most of my cutting while the machine is running. these CNC machines have no idea if you're standing in front of them or not, so you might as well do your cutting while you're making parts.

Hey Brian, have you stepped up to a VF2 yet, or are you still running your TM2P?

Still running the TM2P at the moment. Picked up the Miyano in December for $14K shipped. Needed live tooling for a production part that I was tired of running on the Mill. Running it on the lathe with live tooling lets me load four foot long bar and has 15 Parts spit out ready for the mill every time I push the button. I am actually looking for something smaller for a second CNC along the lines of a robodrill or Haas dt1. Probably will pay cash and get something used because it will only be dedicated for one specific part but it will free up the TM for my other production stuff. I have another two years until the Haas is paid off then I will get to make the decision between another new machine or a couple smaller machines paid in cash. It really depends on cash flow I guess. A VF2SSYT ends up just shy of $100K. I could run 3 smaller slower machines and make a lot more parts a lot faster for a lot less $$$. We will see... I have a waiting list of over 200 people on a new product that I'm launching in a month.

[WOTDesigns]

+1 on the chop saw MESS. I had a evolution saw than ran into the ground FAST then got a Dewalt MultiCutt that is better, but makes such a mess I am rarely in a big enough hurry to use it.

Wish list is a nice 5HP cold saw.... mmmmmm.....

[Steve Seebold]

Still running the TM2P at the moment. Picked up the Miyano in December for $14K shipped. Needed live tooling for a production part that I was tired of running on the Mill. Running it on the lathe with live tooling lets me load four foot long bar and has 15 Parts spit out ready for the mill every time I push the button. I am actually looking for something smaller for a second CNC along the lines of a robodrill or Haas dt1. Probably will pay cash and get something used because it will only be dedicated for one specific part but it will free up the TM for my other production stuff. I have another two years until the Haas is paid off then I will get to make the decision between another new machine or a couple smaller machines paid in cash. It really depends on cash flow I guess. A VF2SSYT ends up just shy of $100K. I could run 3 smaller slower machines and make a lot more parts a lot faster for a lot less $$$. We will see... I have a waiting list of over 200 people on a new product that I'm launching in a month.

Hey. if you want to farm some of that stuff out, I'm still here, and I do good work. I'm the kind of guy if I'm not satisfied with your parts, I won't try to sell them to you.

I don't want a lot. I only want to work 4 or 5 hours a day hence the name Mid Day Machining.

[WOTDesigns]

If this next product does half as well as I expect I may be farming work out most job shop work before too long. Problem may be travel though, most of my customers are local around Anaheim and like face to face.

[Steve Seebold]

If this next product does half as well as I expect I may be farming work out most job shop work before too long. Problem may be travel though, most of my customers are local around Anaheim and like face to face.

Travel is not a problem. I can come to you.

[pickled]

+1 on the chop saw MESS. I had a evolution saw than ran into the ground FAST then got a Dewalt MultiCutt that is better, but makes such a mess I am rarely in a big enough hurry to use it.

Wish list is a nice 5HP cold saw.... mmmmmm.....

Did you have an EVO380 Raptor Evolution saw? I've had mine for 6 years now and cut up a LOT of 4" aluminum round bar and 2" stainless round bar with it....it's still going somehow even with the abuse it took from my employees that used to pop 20 amp breakers from leaning on it a "bit" too hard. Out of the box I wasn't happy with the geometry and squareness of cut, but once I got everything dialed in it has been a beast. I actually went backwards to an abrasive saw for a lot of my stainless now, but a 5HP cold saw would be a welcome addition here someday too!

[WOTDesigns]

Did you have an EVO380 Raptor Evolution saw? I've had mine for 6 years now and cut up a LOT of 4" aluminum round bar and 2" stainless round bar with it....it's still going somehow even with the abuse it took from my employees that used to pop 20 amp breakers from leaning on it a "bit" too hard. Out of the box I wasn't happy with the geometry and squareness of cut, but once I got everything dialed in it has been a beast. I actually went backwards to an abrasive saw for a lot of my stainless now, but a 5HP cold saw would be a welcome addition here someday too!

No I had the orange RAGE model. Probably should have stepped up to the other one. I built a big cardboard box to house it in and be able to feed bars in the side and mounted it on a stand to cut 500 pieces from 3" round bar. Did a LOT of 1/4 x 6" bars and that was about it. Cuts started getting scary because the bearings were shot.

[WOTDesigns]

Travel is not a problem. I can come to you.

If I refer any work to you it is because I am too busy, you you leave ME alone and go to THEM ;-) We will see. I have a couple massive PITA customers I would REALLY like to get rid of all together. :banana: (chair) :banana:

[Steve Seebold]

If I refer any work to you it is because I am too busy, you you leave ME alone and go to THEM ;-) We will see. I have a couple massive PITA customers I would REALLY like to get rid of all together. :banana: (chair) :banana:

Send them down.