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Business of Machining

John Grimsmo of Grimsmo Knives and John Saunders of NYC CNC discuss their success, struggles, goals and more as machinists, business owners and entrepreneurs.
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Business of Machining
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All Episodes
Archives
Now displaying: May, 2018
May 25, 2018

GOOD OL' TUG AND PULL
Grimsmo's laser focus on the SAGA means that
attention to other business areas may be lacking a teensy bit.

Machinist Woes
The pieces and parts of your business are running like clock-work but something's missing.

Easy Answer: Get a dose of SPINDLE THERAPY!

Following the SAGA of the SAGA?
If you listen closely, you'll hear the sound of awesome!

Blade Show is fast approaching AND the SAGA's in the 5% tweak stage! Grimsmo's on a quest for honest feedback from those around him. If you're going to Blade Show, make sure to stop and say, "Hi!"

TIME TO TROUBLESHOOT
Grimsmo's trying to drill a 1/4" hole--2" deep but the drills are EXPLODING! Speaking of time, how long do the set-ups take? Touching off each tool = Confusion

"You're reinvigorating my hate (for lathes)!" - Saunders

SAGA SATURDAY EPISODE 1
Saunders gushes over the mechanism but wants to see more about the lead up!

Sharing the PROCESS
Showing mistakes takes guts when you have a reputation for excellence but that's HOW EXCELLENCE is made! Excellence in itself IS a process rather than a fugue state.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP & BUSINESS TOPICS
Minimum Product Viability (ARTICLE)
Actionable Items
Legitimate Scarcity

"Your mama was a snow blower!"
SMW team embarks on making the Johnny-5 from Short Circuit and Grimsmo's got only ONE REQUEST.
EDuino makes a cameo for a nano second.

THE STRUGGLE IS REAL
Saunders grapples with a big decision.
"This might be the last one I have in me."

CALLING BUSINESS OF MACHINING PATRONS:
What should the Johns should do while they're visiting together?

May 18, 2018

Saunders is in Connecticut for a Yamazen/Matsuura event. A new technical center was opened; there’s going to be lots of learning to do!

Getting info is great--but info for the sake of info isn’t always a good use of time. You’ve got to know when to get your head out of that Rabbit hole! At the end of the day, you’re making parts, and only need to know so much before getting started.

GRIMSMO PEN PROJECT IS A GO #writeyoursaga
What’s the hardest part about designing a pen? Cutting it on a lathe. Grimsmo works out the final bugs in producing a pen (the Saga), and debates new methods of machining it.

“That should not go on a lathe, but I can do it.” - Grimsmo

Keep an eye out on Grimsmo’s channel for the first “Saga Saturday” video!

Also, is there a replacement for general ER collets? Saunders talks about what he learned from a presentation last week.

Busy doesn’t have to mean stressed, and it doesn’t equal success.

“Make sure you own your business, it doesn’t own you” - Saunders

It's definitely...something! Maybe even a milestone?

Grimsmo can focus without interruption now! It may not seem like a big deal but this is actually a milestone for his business. 

Question of the Day:

How do you market your first product?

May 11, 2018

*YAWN*
Saunders is s bit sluggish from last night's informative
and intoxicating brain picking session after a DMG event in Chicago.

At a customer panel, Devon--1186 mfg and Albert from Machined Concepts share their stories and some food for thought: 5-Axis isn't just for one-offs or complex parts! A great deal of people are using 3+2 machining in a production environment, which is a great way to transition into full 5-Axis capabilities. So, does that make automating a 3-Axis machine worth it? Maybe not.

1186 mfg Tour

A NEW METRIC
Calculating your REVENUE per sq ft per YEAR has its merits.

THE SAGA of the SAGA
Grimsmo gets a blast from the past when he steps into a local spring making shop. With the fitting nomenclature and high quality, custom springs checked off the list, GK gears up to bring as many pens to Blade Show 2018 as possible! Get your Blade Show tickets here!

CORPORATE ESPIONAGE?
Alarm bells are raised when Saunders stumbles across a knife maker who's got a strikingly similar mechanism design...and you'll never guess who it is!

Grimsmo wants to be open about the processes and design for the new product BUT for now, he wants to keep the "secret sauce" simmering for a bit.

May 4, 2018

Hiring is RISKY business...

But Grimsmo’s gotten super lucky so far! Saunders points out that Skye might just have been Grimsmo’s riskiest hire, but so far it’s all good!

How long should it take before hiring = more product produced?

First it’s necessary to get a system set up! Grimsmo is in the midst of switching from temporary solutions to permanent solutions. Looks like it’s time to talk ERP SYSTEMS!

How to sketch a pen without a pen to sketch?

The Johns talk about Grimsmo’s process for designing and making pen parts on the ever slow Fusion.

 

Also, if you didn’t document the process, did you even make the pen?

Grimsmo feels bad about not making progress videos for the pen.

BACK TO BASICS

Sometimes the best improvement you can make to a shop is getting rid of everything that doesn’t make your product. Saunders would tell you BE BRUTAL ABOUT IT! Go for the purge.

On a softer note, you can read The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing. Grimsmo mentions this book as a method of organizing your life.

It’s nice when things take a while.

Okay, this maybe isn’t the case if you’re waiting for Fusion to load, but if you’re learning something new or making a decision, the Johns agree that rushing doesn’t equal results.

 

“Everything of value comes after much hard work” - Grimsmo

 

Are you in the Chicago or Hartford, Connecticut, area? Do you want to meet Saunders and the Saunders Machine Works team? Now’s your chance!

  • Wednesday May 8th Saunders will be in Chicago for the DMG Mori Innovation Days
  • Tuesday May 15th Saunders will be in Hartford, Connecticut, for Matsuura’s Open House.

Both events are free, and the Johns are always thrilled to meet listeners!

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