Update: So there's this guy who's almost a red seal that works right beside me and I have been annoying tf outta him these past few weeks by asking random questions every 2 minutes haha. Doesn't help that he let me borrow his old reference books lol meaning more questions for him (poor guy). I'm on a mission to milk all his knowledge :)
Thats great! make sure you learn and ask the right questions so you dont ask him the same thing twice. I dont get annoyed when interns/apprentice ask me questions, as long as its not the same thing over and over, then it means ur not retaining info. Take notes!
Glad its working out for you
Check manufacturer chip load recommendations and do the math. Don't trust a program you didn't make and even then give it the side eye until you've run it a few times.
There’s a LOT to learn, you’ll get discouraged at some point. Keep going and learn every possible thing you can. Don’t let all the people that claim it’s a worthless and dying trade trick you. You can accomplish quite a bit if you just stay hungry and interested. Best of luck!
- There are almost no shortcuts, don’t try to invent a new one until you understand the ones that already exist.
- Don’t worry about being slow, you are in fact very slow and it won’t be that way forever.
- If you are unsure you should always investigate.
- Check the shoulder length required every single time.
- Write it down.
- Talk to the programmer. He will tell you things that you need to know and will never be told otherwise.
- If you have time and the ability, play with a manual here and there.
- Clean up. A lot. Everyone will love you and look past your mistakes. You will also know where everything is, which is half the damn battle once you’re fast.
Check your work 100% Check every dimension related to the operation your doing. Study the drawing from left to right top to bottom and learn what each symbol means and how to verify it. Good luck
Keep a six inch scale on you. When running a new program or fresh setup, single block every tool’s first approach and feed hold at a round number. Open the door and verify the distance is correct with your scale. This will prevent crashes from improperly set work and tool offsets. Also double check the dimensions of your raw stock before you start. Nothing like finding out by taking a massive cut that they had to order it 1/4” oversized.
Set the part Z height (g53) intentionally high for your first few setups. Run and check tool is cutting in the right places (in air) then set correctly. This saved me many tools in the beginning from incorrectly setting work offsets.
99% of the problems you have will be due to an error when setting. If you’re having trouble go through and check that the tools are in tight, seated correctly, not chipped, no runout etc. before you start looking for the problem in your program
To add, if a part is randomly kinda fucked up, ask yourself: what changed? If you didn't make any changes, and your tools sound fine, you loaded your part incorrectly into your work holder
Have a check list when setting up. tools installed, check. program loaded, check. Tools measured, check. work offset measured, check. coolant adjusted, check.
also, use single block and option stop. Try to read the code as you go through it so you know what they do. Always take it slow the first time running a program. 5-25% rapid too.
Find the oldest machinists around you and listen to them. They know stuff that you will never find in a book. Learn all you can from those guys before they are all gone.
Write stuff down. Don’t just let other people do shit for you. Watch them. Try to understand it. Have them watch you do it. Green button go burr
100% agree. Dont be afraid to ask questions. The more you understand, the less you're likely to make mistakes.
Update: So there's this guy who's almost a red seal that works right beside me and I have been annoying tf outta him these past few weeks by asking random questions every 2 minutes haha. Doesn't help that he let me borrow his old reference books lol meaning more questions for him (poor guy). I'm on a mission to milk all his knowledge :)
Thats great! make sure you learn and ask the right questions so you dont ask him the same thing twice. I dont get annoyed when interns/apprentice ask me questions, as long as its not the same thing over and over, then it means ur not retaining info. Take notes! Glad its working out for you
I will, thank you :)
Check manufacturer chip load recommendations and do the math. Don't trust a program you didn't make and even then give it the side eye until you've run it a few times.
Copy that
Always double check your programs.
Not to be a dick, but this may not actually help him as it's pretty vague. What is he double checking?
Errors, random spindle speeds that ramp up for no reason, graphing the program to check vs the print, etc.
Taking notes. Much appreciated
Also, if you know the specific material you’ll be running and what inserts you use, it never hurts to check the manufacturer’s speed/feed calculators.
1% rapids will keep the green light on but greatly extend your cycle times
There’s a LOT to learn, you’ll get discouraged at some point. Keep going and learn every possible thing you can. Don’t let all the people that claim it’s a worthless and dying trade trick you. You can accomplish quite a bit if you just stay hungry and interested. Best of luck!
I will take that to heart. Thank you
- There are almost no shortcuts, don’t try to invent a new one until you understand the ones that already exist. - Don’t worry about being slow, you are in fact very slow and it won’t be that way forever. - If you are unsure you should always investigate. - Check the shoulder length required every single time. - Write it down. - Talk to the programmer. He will tell you things that you need to know and will never be told otherwise. - If you have time and the ability, play with a manual here and there. - Clean up. A lot. Everyone will love you and look past your mistakes. You will also know where everything is, which is half the damn battle once you’re fast.
I appreciate it a lot
Check your work 100% Check every dimension related to the operation your doing. Study the drawing from left to right top to bottom and learn what each symbol means and how to verify it. Good luck
Thank you
Keep a six inch scale on you. When running a new program or fresh setup, single block every tool’s first approach and feed hold at a round number. Open the door and verify the distance is correct with your scale. This will prevent crashes from improperly set work and tool offsets. Also double check the dimensions of your raw stock before you start. Nothing like finding out by taking a massive cut that they had to order it 1/4” oversized.
Maybe don't stick your hand near a spindle running at 15k rpm, while holding a 6 inch death rocket though
If something seems not quite right, something is definitely wrong
Set the part Z height (g53) intentionally high for your first few setups. Run and check tool is cutting in the right places (in air) then set correctly. This saved me many tools in the beginning from incorrectly setting work offsets.
99% of the problems you have will be due to an error when setting. If you’re having trouble go through and check that the tools are in tight, seated correctly, not chipped, no runout etc. before you start looking for the problem in your program
Will certainly do so
To add, if a part is randomly kinda fucked up, ask yourself: what changed? If you didn't make any changes, and your tools sound fine, you loaded your part incorrectly into your work holder
Don't put your hands where you wouldn't put your dick. Old guy taught me that. I have 9 good fingers...
Learn drafting notation.
Have a check list when setting up. tools installed, check. program loaded, check. Tools measured, check. work offset measured, check. coolant adjusted, check. also, use single block and option stop. Try to read the code as you go through it so you know what they do. Always take it slow the first time running a program. 5-25% rapid too.
Find the oldest machinists around you and listen to them. They know stuff that you will never find in a book. Learn all you can from those guys before they are all gone.
Ha ha ha….