Machining the Beauty Ring Fixture for Op. 2- American Pacemaker Lathe

Next up we'll machine the second fixture needed for our beauty ring project. We'll use the American Pacemaker lathe for all of the facing work and the Flex CNC for the drilling and milling. Again our new Techniks magnetic vises worked great for this! #lathe #cncmachining #abom79
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[@nicholasfrediani9466]

I love the clunky sound of the pacemaker running. It's not broken. that's just the wonderful sound of old machinery. My family owned a printing company for a very long time, and i was brought up around older printing presses. They made similar noises, but where as tight as sewing machines. Keep that old heavy iron running adam. Great video as usual.

[@michaelpeace716]

These have got to be the worlds most expensive beauty ring

[@byronservies4043]

Really enjoying this series. Looking forward to a multi-part American Pacemaker refurb series sometime in the future :) Edit: I also appreciate the photo montage at the end of each video. It reminds me I need to like and give me time to do so.

[@bcbloc02]

Considering the environment the video came out really clear. Well done!

[@harlanmartin9964]

I am still amazed at how your shop looks now....I was here when it was an empty building...haha......very cool sir!

[@frankhott5568]

I’ve watched your videos for years and must repeat , you make me a better potter! What you do with your metals I do with clays. Only best wishes to you and yours!❤

[@KeithDDowning]

Adam, I would give my right leg for those magnetic clamps for plate work. We typically have our fixture plate stock Blanchard ground so we know things are flat and parallel. If we had those clamps, we might get away with not having to do that. May I suggest, while you are sucked down from the bottom and well supported, you take a little time to profile the outside edges. That way you have all those features done in one setup, and if you ever have to indicate the plate on the table, you have four straight edges to align to. Also, when making those features, I would indicate off the Center of the stock, not the left back corner.

[@marley589]

A straight machined edge will be needed to orientate the plate to align the radial holes on both plates

[@PaleoWithFries]

Looks like Keith Rucker needs to take a look at that vintage machinery

[@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994]

Think his retirement plan needs to include some more work on his own large lathe before working on others.

[@garywoodard5759]

really liking the tuesday editions! keep it up!!

[@Michael-nu1py]

Beautiful work

[@2696kyle]

Very excited to see the bevel finish of the flex cnc. Great work as always adam! 🦅

[@TedRoza]

G'day Adam. The fixtures are turning out very nicely. I hope by making these that you get another hundred units to make. The alloy bases, must be a test for some High End Light Fixtures. Well done, wouldn't mind seeing a completed unit if that is possible. Ted

[@michaelpechousek]

Good luck on the milling. I hope you succeed.

[@ellieprice363]

The best way to watch Adam’s videos without getting too frustrated is to never read the comments from keyboard machinists.

[@marley589]

How are we supposed to tell the difference between comments from toolmakers amd machinists and 'keyboard machinists' ?

[@ellieprice363]

@@marley589Toolmakers and machinists respect and admire the work of other machinists and make only positive comments if any at all.

[@marley589]

@@ellieprice363 I would differentiate them by what technique they are promoting or defending. Either: Clamp a 28lb standard toolplate blank that arrives pre-machined flat and square as standard to the machine bed, machine all the relevant fixture details on one side, leave it set, load the blank, machine all over then remove it fully finished. Rinse repeat 7 times. Or: Get 200lbs of flame cut steel and make 1 ring on the mill yet to be finished turned, 1 square fixture plate - machined both sides, 1 round fixture plate - turned both sides then CNC milled, machine the face and diameter on all the Aluminum rings on the lathe, setup the 1st fixture plate again, load the ring, machine the bore details, repeat 7 times, remove the fixture plate and setup fixture 2 again then load and machine the taper repeat 7 times. Which one is the Toolmaker?

[@ellieprice363]

@@marley589The first of course. Simple straightforward common sense setup in minimum time. The second is a Rube Goldberg that costs three times as much but produces a much longer video.

[@marley589]

@@ellieprice363 👍👍 Beneficiary 1 - Society 0

[@murmurmuram8533]

very cool. this is the kind of work i love to watch and see the operations

[@michaeldurling793]

While watching manual machining is my preference I understand CNC is the technology of today and it's great to see you progressing in that modality looking to your future in the industry.

[@bigbloodaxe]

Lovely machining as always Adam, keep up the great work work. 😉

[@ErnieMathews]

Always great content, and today is some fine camera shots. Nice to see what's happening.

[@peterlee8982]

It’s always a pleasure to watch your progress and your work. Well done.

[@garychaiken808]

Great job. Thank you 😊

[@themattygm]

Does this mean we will be seeing a tear down and repair video of the monarch? Like the old days lol

[@richardkelleher1711]

The flap wheel grinding is a lot less likely to affect the function of the machine than using the jaws to remove the same metal as you move the tool into the workpiece!.

[@tates11]

Or advance the compound so the tool is nearer the chuck, or a boring bar. Less rigid, but time does not seem to be an issue. No abrasive grit on the precision bedways too.

[@JohnSmith-vi5pz]

@@tates11 That was already done.

[@tates11]

@@JohnSmith-vi5pz ​ At 37:47 you will see there is barely any overhang of the compound slide past the support.

[@thaddeuszukowski4633]

Thank you for these videos. I've learned so much about what I didn't know I needed to know before even starting a project.

[@michaelscheibel6064]

The stream of coolant left of the spindle at 48:14 might be from the leakage line of your rotary union for your through-spindle coolant. Might want someone to look into that.

[@josaonline09]

Tool is meant to do a job… Modifying a tool to accomplish the task absolutely the right thing to do

[@dlwilliams76]

Love them ABOM Blue chips! I haven't seen them in a while.

[@michaelpechousek]

Really nice Adam !!!

[@matthewhesselgesser9914]

You should invest in some sealed collets for your thru spindle coolant. You’ll see much better tool life with your carbide drills.

[@JohnSmith-vi5pz]

I think he just got some - he talks about it on a previous vid.

[@non-binaryjesus]

I bet you are loving this cnc stuff but i miss you using the shaper, mill, and stuff.

[@kindabluejazz]

I thought this one was a good example of half-n-half manual-CNC.

[@propulsar]

It's a work of art Adam.

[@SStudiopro]

Man I’ll tell ya what, if we had them machines 50-60 years ago could only imagine where we’d be today. In a way it’s kinda scary. Great work Adam, you are da man!!

[@manifold1476]

I'm impressed. I can't see any mark on the disk where the lathe kicked out of gear around the 32:20 mark, and you repositioned with a lower surface speed. Excellent work.

[@moosetallone2]

Mount a tool on the chuck and clearance the bed that way

[@larry3064]

Very cool. Looking forward to seeing the next video.

[@pkplexing]

It's so relaxing watching machining videos for some reason. Nice video :)

[@andyd1006]

Hey Adam I've been watching your channel for about 3 years now. I worked in a machine shop when I was a teenager. As a grunt. That experience got me interested in machining. However, I didn't follow up on it at the time. I was a heavy equipment technician for the past 18 years. When I turned 40, my back had other ideas. I decided to go back to school for machining. I start September 2025. I keep adding to my school tooling list with tooling you use in your videos. I'm like hey that's cool. I want one. Keep up the great work. I love being able to understand what you're doing. How you explain things is great. Could you do a segment on reading veneer calipers? Thanks

[@ronnydowdy7432]

Great job Adam

[@angelramos-2005]

It works,Adam.Thank you.

[@buckzillakiller]

Great work. Be safe!

[@andyhatton1285]

Love watching any video where something is being faced

[@JimBirch-ps2qx]

Another great video!

[@MRHSDM316SD18186]

Adam; if you can grab the bull by the horns & rebuild the lathe. Another channel I watch; Cutting Edge Engineering over in Australia Kurtis is a one man band like you & he's done various modifications to his equipment that suit his needs. One of his machines he only drew up his cad drawings & sent them to his steel supplier & they cut the pieces to his specs; he welded everything together in a couple videos. He also does line boring & he's designed larger mounts for the nature of the equipment he works on is massive; mining equipment. He's also made some pretty large "shop made tools" as well.

[@sylvainrichard1577]

You know what they say...a man got to do what a man got to do

[@iannorfolk3288]

Great to have a good project in the shop to see how you tackle it. CNC work is coming on quickly. Sadly when you get confident with the programming the old manual machines quickly get a layer of dust on them.

[@Rimrock300]

Manuall machines is anyway good to have in the background for quick jobs that will take much more time to set up in the CNC, even if one are quick at programming

[@denniscraven5959]

I know the fixture your making is for the beauty rings that are tapered. Your cuts on the monarch are insane. My eye/brain sees the taper of the beauty ring.

[@denniscraven5959]

My bad Pacemaker.

[@floridaflywheelersantiquee7578]

Enjoyed thanks for sharing Adam

[@Ervan-l9v]

A lot of work for a visual component. I know you want to use your CNC. I understand, I would too.

[@mfc4591]

Am liking this series. Thanks for the content.

[@phased-out-24-73]

My Old Foreman said I spent too much time making Fixtures. We made thousands of pieces with those various Fixtures. He was from Shiffer Island. He had Shiffer brains!

[@demonknight7965]

😂😂😂😂 Shiffer Brains. 😂😂😂😂💀 soooo going to use that in the future lol

[@doublepenn5732]

Fixtures are important.... If you made a fixture for this part I would fire you. No fixture is needed for any part with a .06 tolerance... That being said, I'm pretty sure Abomb was just practicing and showcasing what is needed for a critical part.

[@garystillman2724]

HOWD STATEN ISLAND GET ITS NAME??? 2 INDIANS FROM THE BRONX CANOED OUT PAST IT AND ONE GUY ASKED..... IS STAT EN ISLAND???

[@snappingbear]

​@@doublepenn5732I would fire you for not using a fixture and then hire the guy who did to replace you.

[@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994]

@@doublepenn5732 Just how do you support that fine edge without a fixture? The bed rails on the flex have a place but without a large bed of some sort you make fixtures.

[@RustyInventions-wz6ir]

Very nice work sir

[@bboomer7th]

Fascinating Adam.

[@shortribslongbow5312]

Very interesting video thanks for sharing. :o)

[@jameswood9764]

You can also use a boring bar to get the clearance to do the facing??

[@phillipchen7749]

very cool

[@bertblankenstein3738]

Getting the hang of the cnc stuff. Now if only there were a tool holder for the brush to sweep the chips away.

[@tates11]

Search for a chip fan. No need to manually brush the chips off.

[@KodiakWoodchuck]

Any plans to fix the pace maker gear box? I'd love to watch that

[@Galerak1]

Keith Rucker collab??

[@demonknight7965]

I doubt it. That would mean tearing the whole head apart and putting it out of commission for several months.

[@d.graydraftinganddesign361]

Very cool project, well presented, oozing expertise, love it.

[@passenger6735]

I'd have done the lot on there but it might be worth just running an end mill around the large circumference followed by the chamfer tool. Make it look real nice.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

There are reasons that doesn't work out as well as you think it might when you first have the idea.

[@marley589]

It will need a reference edge somewhere to radially align the holes with the axis when it is setup again. Sorry I can't help with the secret reasons why your idea would not work.

[@firesurfer]

I would have just ground it all the way across to avoid problems in the future. I also think a small bevel on the front edge of the jaws to prevent unnecessary whamos would be a good idea.

[@joselrodriguez5999]

Great job.Corios about if you can reproduce a lathe finish with a rotating spindle. Look forward to it!

[@ravenheartFF]

If it were me, I'd have made the clamping ring out of aluminum, but since the finish on the part's flange isn't critical, I suppose making it out of steel is cheaper...

[@doublepenn5732]

Done

[@doublepenn5732]

See you tomorrow

[@tates11]

Or just use 6 penny washers to spread the load.

[@jmptaz]

That was the first thing my grandad did to his new to him lathe in 1970 it was a lathe from the 30s

[@rialtho_the_magnificent]

always wondered what the music was and tried Shazam on my phone at the end of this video. It came up with : Childhood Farmyard Memories from Heaven Tracks Vibes. Just here for the record and in case someone wants to know.

[@CA10Z]

Man that's so close a cat can't scratch it

[@demonknight7965]

There's good enough for government work close, theres not critical close, theres close then there is Hydraulic close then you get ABom close lol.

[@KeithDDowning]

Clearance is Clearance Clarence. Until it's not.

[@tankerboysabot]

For some reason I feel like these are for Jimmy Diresta, but I could be wrong.

[@Rimrock300]

No comment. Very high security rating. Parking lot lighting.

[@ypaulbrown]

Time to head to the Bonneville Salt Flats

[@LablnberGaunt]

🎉🎉

[@RobertGracie]

Always a joy to get a midweek episode of metal working from you Adam keep these coming please!

[@JohnSmith-vi5pz]

I wonder if the finished product needs anodising? They're going to go dull quickly outside maybe.

[@Sugarkraft]

I think there’s a ‘Shaper Vid’ coming soon! 😅

[@demonknight7965]

That would be great. I need some sleep 😂

[@demonknight7965]

I'm not saying it's boring, but it's so rythmic it puts me to sleep. Lol

[@musicbro8225]

@@demonknight7965 Should be a mandatory shaper video every few weeks. Even just whittling a chunk of metal into a cube or enormous tuning fork or something :)

[@johnnybrigham8754]

Excellent job Adam! Did you put a new insert in on the pace maker wen the lathe stopped????

[@tates11]

The 4 tapped holes in the square plate look suspiciously like they could also be used to locate a plasma cut blank with the clamp studs. ( no round recess required ). The 6 clearance holes look suspiciously like they could be tapped to hold the part once the bore is finished, just like the ones he is about to machine in the round disc..

[@CA10Z]

Hey Adam are those some new boots you're sporting there?

[@andyd1006]

Whats the air blower you were using?

[@Garth2011]

Those are going to be expensive beauty rings by the time they get to the customer. Lots of machine/shop time...that's what it takes.

[@kevinmartin7760]

Will each workpiece be chamfered on the back of the large central hole before moving to the second station? The fixture, as made, will have a small radius where the central register meets the flat face and if the work is not chamfered this will not clamp down properly, or, if the clamp bolts are overtightened, it will be difficult to remove the finished workpiece.

[@marley589]

Yes there should be relief at the corner, standard fixture practice. Better still add a hole in the center of the first fixture to clear it and also pop the tapped holes in it to only use one fixture.

[@miken3260]

If the finish isn’t good on the Flex CNC, would you still use it to make a rough cut and just do the finish cuts on the lathe?

[@Brian-L]

Probably an obvious answer for the following, but how does a shop usually estimate and factor in fixture making time and materials when quoting a job?

[@kboy4526]

Adam, I have a question for you that I hope you can answer. I'm looking at about 13mins into this video at the top left of the carriage where there seems to be 5 cap screws. If you look at the one in center of the near row it has a shallow socket head with a smaller one recessed inside. Do you have any idea as to the function of this feature? I've been looking at mine for twenty years now and have been reluctant to move anything because I don't know what's on the other side. Love your vids.

[@travisbaucom7576]

I'm curious as to why you didn't add the bolt down pattern to the first fixture and run both ops on the same fixture?

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

First fixture locates off the OD, Second locates off the ID. The first fixture has a clearance zone so the center of the aluminum can be milled out.

[@tates11]

So is everyone else. Once the bore details are finished, clamp it down with the 6 bolts and then remove the clamps. It is already set at zero. If the center of the first fixture was removed and machined slightlly larger than the finished part bore all the crap will fall through. There won't be a bowl created full of chips being recut.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

@@tates11 Bolting it down won’t center it. The clearance holes are bigger than the fasteners so simply bolting the part to the fixture won’t make it centered.

[@tates11]

@@MechanicalAdvantage It will already be centered exactly on the fixture once the bore details are finished. Just bolt it down BEFORE removing the clamps.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

@@tates11 If you want to indicate every piece in for OP1

[@MadmanJimbo]

“Mechanically functionable”

[@JohnSmith-vi5pz]

I'm going to guess that those magnetic clamps are super expensive and beyond the reach of a hobbyist?

[@MoparStephen]

Quick search lists the ECB-120s anywhere between $1700 and $2000 PER piece! I'd say an $8,000 clamping rig is out of the reach of most hobbyists for sure.

[@JohnSmith-vi5pz]

@@MoparStephen Golly, you're going to need to make a helluva lot of aluminium feet to pay for those. 😞

[@andyd1006]

The price of that machine was 200k, so small change for the hold down magnets in comparison.

[@keithkrueger1609]

the way the cnc rapids to the next hole is nerve racking. you have to have your clearance set above any surface or clamp to be safe. is that a fusion 360 thing or the flexmill processing it that way?

[@KeithDDowning]

CNC usually uses 45 degree dog legs to get where it's going in rapid. There may be some parameters that can be set in the Flex CNC to change that. Yes, it can be scary. It's bit me before. Good practice to make sure you are always moving up in Z first, then in X & Y. Always make sure your rapids happen well above your part and fixtures.

[@CothranMike]

@@KeithDDowning before there were CAM programs us manual programmers created a fixture avoidance area called a ceiling to go to before any translations in X & Y. We called it the Z ceiling. Reclamping zones were called 'gotchas' and crashing tools into part, fixtures, etc., was all too common with the newbies. This was when the machines were 4 bit and the paper tape was measured in miles, and the number of reels per job might exceed 6-10. But it was not like we were making rocket parts or anything, oh, wait we were here in the North Alabama area. Mostly milspec rather than NASA, but that group was also in the mix from time to time.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

@@KeithDDowning That is very dependent on the controller. In this case, all moves happen with the tool retracting in Z first and then moving in X, Y.

[@KeithDDowning]

@@MechanicalAdvantage True. Most posts I've used do a Z move first.

[@cncit]

I suppose the fixture could have stayed on the mag vises for machining the part or will it be machined in the other cnc mill?

[@tates11]

Usually when a fixture is finished, it is left in position ready to use, all datums are set.

[@garystillman2724]

DO YOU HAVE A RECOMMENDED READING LIST? IM A NOOBY THATS BUILDING A COUPLE OF METAL WORKING TOOLS, 4" LATHE AND SHEET METAL BRAKE, BUT WANT TO BUILD A FULL SHOP. BOOKS THAT I CAN REFER TO AS I GO WOULD HELP. 😁 A LOT....😂

[@garystillman2724]

ALL CAPS=ALMOST BLIND 😂🤣🤣🤣😎

[@firesurfer]

@@garystillman2724 ᴵ ᶜᵃⁿ'ᵗ ʰᵉᵃʳ ʸᵒᵘ. Hey, in a few years I may be right behind you. :)

[@CothranMike]

@@garystillman2724 know the problem... my Father in law had AMD, age related macular degeneration as well as PCO, posterior capsule opacifaction, sometimes called secondary cataracts, after cataract surgery for both eyes. He had other health problems as well because of the high dosage (over 100MG per day during drug loading, your body makes this steroid in micro grams) prednisone therapy he was on for his disease, they finally named it Castleman disease. Major inflammatory problems as well as tumors growing on the outside of his organs in short. His final choice for texting, writing and such, was dragon naturally speaking (the original) to get text on the screen so his screen reader could work with it for him to edit. A very fraught time for a decade before he passed. Good luck! Reading lists can be gotten from the Practical Machinist forum, and more help can be had with machining support groups everywhere. Try talking to a local "maker's" group. Many around, maybe some where you live, one can hope.

[@jamesdavis8021]

If you are expecting to get the same finish with a ball mill on the CNC that,you got by turning it on the lathe,I am afraid you are going to be very disappointed.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

He knows it won't match exactly.

[@Kaptn_Obvious]

Just remember clearance is not touching & There is no such thing as sorta pregnant. Either it fits or it doesn't...

[@lynnplestid2711]

Why did your spotting drill flex upwards when it started on the plate.

[@CothranMike]

Well, all lathes force tailstock tooling to find the true center of the material, all things being equal. This flex can be due to tool dogleg, not in this case, it can be due to the surface being slanted, again not in this case, or, and most commonly, the spindle droops in the tailstock due to over usage and lack of service. Edited to add: What must be done to correct droop here in this circumstance. If it was horizontal, this means in X or the direction the crossslide moves (not the direction the carriage moves, that is Z), then what must be done, and what if it was diagonal? Just a little conversation starter folks. Edited to add a bit of wording for clarification of what direction zed is.

[@bertblankenstein3738]

The drill bit did the same thing.

[@Peter_Riis_DK]

@@CothranMike The chuck didn't move.

[@CothranMike]

@@Peter_Riis_DK ok, I'll bite, to which of my words, phrases, or conjectures is this comment addressed. I said nothing about a (tailstock) chuck, I talk about the holder of the 'drill chuck', the tailstock. While it is true that sometimes a drill chuck or some other tool in the tailstock might move slightly to firmly seat the tang of that tool in the spindle, this too is not the reason for the jump, lift, or what-have-you it will be called when that happens - droop in the holding of the spindle, looseness in the clamping of the tailstock, or some other source of explanation for this event... time is 15:45 or thereabouts.

[@Peter_Riis_DK]

@@CothranMike You claim that something, either the tailstock, the spindle or whatever moved (can't define what from your text), and if that's it - would you agree that the chuck would move too? I see nothing but the spot drill move and a bit later the jobber drill dancing around.

[@harlanmartin9964]

wow! that big ole disc would sure hurt it if fell on a foot....I bet that thing weighs 100 lbs

[@marley589]

Aluminum jig plate is the ideal choice for this fixture. Ready machined parallel and flat from the stockist.

[@MechanicalAdvantage]

Checking the CAD model, it's roughly 80 pounds at finished size.

[@bsforge]

Hey, Adam. Complete n00b question for you. What does “Jobber” mean? Is it the length of the drill? I’ve heard you say that before but always forget to ask. Anyway, great content, as usual! Im building a shop soon, so hopefully I’ll finally be able to get a lathe and get busy learning!!

[@johnjohannemann1220]

Good morning Adam. Welcome from the Jersey shore. I’m curious, I’ve watched many of your videos and always hear you describing the tools you utilize by brand name and part number. Is this done for the viewers that may be just getting into machining, or is it done with the hopes that you will get some type of sponsorship from the manufacturer or a combination of all the above. Either way, love you. Thanks for sharing. Be well. 😊

[@claytonsteckel]

I know nothing about machining but I always assume he does it because he gets tons of questions about the tools he uses. I know youtube rules say the creator must disclose sponsorships. I could be wrong on both.

[@FrankSurateau-h4y]

Ça y est, c'est parti,bla,bla,bla 😔

[@KarolienStofferahnhn]

Cette vidéo a amélioré ma journée. Je sais maintenant comment me remonter le moral à tout moment✨

[@CothranMike]

After pausing the video at 23:21 (no special place here) to check and see if anyone else to this time had posted about the cord being in the way while chucking the disc, for both opps. Seeing none I offer this observation and maybe a remedy - make a shorty chucker to assist you around the chuck when you have a lot of stuff in the way. They help with success in the clamping of the jaws, if made correctly, they help with removing and reversing the jaws, and you can't tell me they are not CUTE as a button. If you make two of them four jaw centering is a lot easier. They will require practice though, usage of both hands and some auxiliary support mounted on the ways or carriage to keep the part in the chuck until you acquire the skillz, amazing fact here... work can be fun.

[@larrylong6268]

That bit of grinding is like a flea fart in a hurricane.

[@PaulMSabol]

If the piece is bolted down, why did you cut the center register in?

[@jamesogorman3287]

To perfectly center it and likely reduce stress on the bolts while milling the taper.

[@KeithDDowning]

Bolts are bad at registration.

[@tates11]

@@KeithDDowning 3 locating pins and 3 bolts.

[@utidjian]

@@tates11 Why do all that when one hole will do?

[@tates11]

@@utidjian you will always need some tapped holes to hold it down with bolts. This is probably not accurate enough location using just bolts. A couple of pins will give a more precise location. Then the central register will not be needed for location and can be completely machined through so the chips can fall through.

[@snappingbear]

Why wasn't that fixture made on the Flex? It would've been much faster because there is no need to spend time bumping it into place so it's centered on the lathe. Just lock it down on the magnets as it is now and then face mill it. Done and done. The lathe made the job much longer and harder.

[@evanpenny348]

But much more fun to watch.

[@CothranMike]

The bolt holes would hit the magnets, maybe?

[@snappingbear]

@@CothranMike He just installed all the bolt holes on the Flex using the magnets. The only operation he did on the lathe was facing and a center hole all of which could have been done better and faster on the Flex.

[@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994]

In part because if you pull a raw plate down magnetically it will move flatter/bow (plate is not ever really flat) so when you release it any face cut you have made on one side will no longer be flat. The face off the lathe and hole gets you flat and a defined center for the second side.

[@snappingbear]

@@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994 I very much doubt you will deflect that round plate given it's thickness and small dimension especially with three magnets holding it. Also the surface of the magnets and the Flex's bed are machined to much higher tolerances that that old lathe chuck. They are flat. The difference in flatness from what you suggest will be barely measurable if at all and irrelevant given the tolerances he is maching to. If anything the Flex would produce a flatter surface. Moreover, he already used the Flex to surface the square feature. Using the Flex was the best way to machine both fixtures. The lathe was a waste of time.

[@sgermain06]

Any reason why you use the FlexCNC more than the Milltronics? Is it just more convenient or is there a technical difference that makes the FlexCNC easier to use? Just curious.

[@snappingbear]

Those fixtures are too big for the Milltronics mill or lathe.

[@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994]

16" Y travel on the Milltronics. It is just a small Toolroom mill more than a production CNC.

[@ric355]

The Flex guys are paying him more than the Milltronics guys.

[@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994]

@@ric355 Go look at the spec of the Milltronics bed and travels before typing garbage!

[@ric355]

@@seabreezecoffeeroasters7994 I don't know if you maybe intended to reply to someone else, but I didn't say one machine was better than the other. The shop is full of sponsored equipment everyone knows that. The channel is run on that basis. It's a dig at the channel, not the equipment.

[@Journeyman1642]

10 min cut 2 hr set up 😂

[@charliemiller3884]

How come the company that made the prototype didn't make all the finished units?

[@CSWeldFab]

Probably prototype vs production. If he is building fixtures, it will probably be a return order, or a production run.

[@grntitan1]

Priced themselves out of the market.

[@johnkanaly1242]

👍

[@kindabluejazz]

He said the original's are no longer made. They could be from 20 years ago by a defunct company.