Hot take: Manual tool changes beat automatic on certain jobs

Had a rush order for 50 aluminum parts last Tuesday. Tried running it on the auto tool changer machine. Kept stopping for tiny adjustments. Switched to an old Bridgeport with manual change. Finished in 3 hours flat. Anyone else find manual setups faster for small batch runs?

2 comments

2 Comments

alice_barnes354d ago

My buddy Dave over at R&R Fabrication had a similar thing happen last month with 20 stainless steel brackets. He was all set to program the CNC with automatic changer, but after 45 minutes of tweaking offsets he just walked over to his manual mill and cranked them out by hand in two hours. Said the auto changer kept losing time on tool measurement routines for a job that only needed three different cutters. I've seen him do that a few times now actually, especially when the parts are simple profiles or straight edges where you don't need to touch off every tool. It's funny how sometimes older setups just flow better for quick turnaround stuff.

emma_ramirez4d ago

Did your buddy Dave ever figure out how much time he actually saved by doing it manual instead of fighting with the auto changer? I feel like sometimes we get so caught up in using the fancy gear that we forget the simple way is faster for small jobs. Kinda makes you wonder how much time we waste on setup that could be spent just cutting metal.