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Gunsmithing New machine...

I sure wish I was in the right place to pick up the kitty. What new toy is coming in?
 
I bought a new VF-3SS, 15k, 50 tools, blah, blah.

I get this all the time, "Why didn't you buy a Makino or Matsura?"

Yes, they are better machines as a whole, BUT they totally suck ass when trying to be fluid, dynamic, and flexible. For all practical purposes, "custom gunsmithing" is little more than prototype work because so much of it is one off stuff. In that arena, Haas surpasses the competitors simply because their control interface is stupid easy to navigate and I can get a rock solid post processor with a download.

Been there, I love my Kitamura machines, but for the tempo I want on the floor, they suck ass. They are meant to be setup and run for 10's of thousands of cycles doing the same thing over and over. That's not what we do here. Plus, I have a control that every person in the shop can operate. At one point I had Fanuc, Yaskawa, Mitsubishi, Haas Next Gen, and Legacy Haas. I knew them and was fairly fluent, a new guy coming in however was reaching for the razor blades by day 3. :)

When you pencil out our work statement, Haas is tough to beat and I can actually get a service guy to the shop with them. All the other manufacturer's SUCK when it comes to supporting my neck of the woods. -Gotta remember that we are mostly cow pastures and oil rigs out here.

C.
 
I have been back and forth on buying a HASS. I have the mix of machines also. I figured you would have gone with the HASS to match the 5 axis.
I'm in the same boat with very little production work pretty much all prototype, only gun work is my own.

Good luck with the new gear!
 
Treating gunsmith work for what it truly is, were not building hyper sensitive parts like a turbine blade or whatever. The only "truly" critical part on a rifle is the bore diameter, inner surface finish, and twist rate consistency of the barrel. An action could really give two shits if the trigger pins are off position by a .0001" or two. -Besides, I'm not in the action making game.

I started inletting stocks using 3D surfacing strategies 15+ years ago on a VF-1 made in 1992. In all reality, that machine was a wore out pile of shit and I spent as much time cursing at it as I did running jobs. That said, it did all the machine work on the 2015 Hide Cup rifle's stock and it did a pretty nice job.

This stuff is not "that" hard to do from a machining standpoint. What'll test your patience is the infrastructure and tribal knowledge requirements. That tuition price is high and you only acquire it by sticking with it.
 
I bought a new VF-3SS, 15k, 50 tools, blah, blah.

I get this all the time, "Why didn't you buy a Makino or Matsura?"

Yes, they are better machines as a whole, BUT they totally suck ass when trying to be fluid, dynamic, and flexible. For all practical purposes, "custom gunsmithing" is little more than prototype work because so much of it is one off stuff. In that arena, Haas surpasses the competitors simply because their control interface is stupid easy to navigate and I can get a rock solid post processor with a download.

Been there, I love my Kitamura machines, but for the tempo I want on the floor, they suck ass. They are meant to be setup and run for 10's of thousands of cycles doing the same thing over and over. That's not what we do here. Plus, I have a control that every person in the shop can operate. At one point I had Fanuc, Yaskawa, Mitsubishi, Haas Next Gen, and Legacy Haas. I knew them and was fairly fluent, a new guy coming in however was reaching for the razor blades by day 3. :)

When you pencil out our work statement, Haas is tough to beat and I can actually get a service guy to the shop with them. All the other manufacturer's SUCK when it comes to supporting my neck of the woods. -Gotta remember that we are mostly cow pastures and oil rigs out here.

C.
Nice choice
 
Mazatrol destroys anything Haas has to offer on the control side.
Just sayin’.
 
Mazatrol destroys anything Haas has to offer on the control side.
Just sayin’.

Mazatrol is too inefficient with its tool paths. Running EIA is where it’s at with them.

I’ll take G code as I hate arguing with a machine. Haas is my favorite control I’ve ever worked with. Makino is my favorite machine I’ve played with and the Pro 5 is a pretty close second for a control.
 
If you are a HAAS shop, best to stay one. There are lots of people around that already know the control and you aren't making oil field parts. Less training and more work goes out the door.
 
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Mazatrol is too inefficient with its tool paths. Running EIA is where it’s at with them.

I’ll take G code as I hate arguing with a machine. Haas is my favorite control I’ve ever worked with. Makino is my favorite machine I’ve played with and the Pro 5 is a pretty close second for a control.
With very minor TPC approach tweaks, which are parameters you can change globally, it’s just as efficient. You’re offered every bit as much control. No one ever takes the time to adjust those parameters though, or even read what they are, and then rag on it for being inefficient. I can be making chips on a first off for anything but simultaneous 5 axis, before any of my cam systems even boot up on my laptop.
In a jobbing shop environment where things are different every day, nothing beats it for efficiency of getting code to the machine. Especially in a Smooth control where I can program right off a STEP or X_T file.
 
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Sorry. I didn’t mean or want to clog the thread.
congrats on the new machine Chad. I’m sure the work coming off of it will be just as good as the rest of your stuff.
 
Got a Remington 700 receiver and stock looking for the "Full Chad".

You could take my 1965 receiver and film a M40 style clip slot/true. Than dazzle us with your ability to map a wood stock and cut it for my receiver/barrel with an install of LRI DBM preferably with an AW cut receiver.

For educational purposes and to show people your new machine capabilities.

Im not tryning to get my gun built before anyone else or anything, just trying to help show what you can do.

Made the same offer to @Frank Green this morning regards the barrel for this build.

I understand you guys are busy with Shot and machine installs but if somehow expediting my rifle build in anyway benefits your two fine businesses Im willing to allow the pictures and I will update my expected timeline for receiving a new gun.......

:)

p1069100-jpg.7218741
 
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Sorry. I didn’t mean or want to clog the thread.
congrats on the new machine Chad. I’m sure the work coming off of it will be just as good as the rest of your stuff.
Good save. (y)
 
pmclaine-That a Kyle Taylor stock?


Negative. Kyles are very good M40 representations. This one came from Ebay....

Here is his current offering...


Extremely low priced piece of wood but the quality isn't bad, inletting looks good, its not a hockey stick.

I reshaped the butt to take an aluminum 16601 butt plate.

If the butt were cut for a 16601, the comb rose higher and it had a safety bump it would be an M40 stock.
 
Good rigger makes it look easy. Just had a 16K pounder pulled out of here headed up to K&P in Rapid City.
 
Air skates make pretty much everything easy. I moved my machines into my net shop with them. My wife and I pushed the 12k VMC in with them, surface grinder, tool room lathe, 10k CMM, all with the air skates.

They moved our 400 ton condensers on air skates at work too, 4 guys on tuggers pulled them in.
 
Good rigger makes it look easy. Just had a 16K pounder pulled out of here headed up to K&P in Rapid City.


Yes.

My gun safe wasnt nearly the job this one was but the three hundred bucks I spent hiring riggers to move the safe into the house from the curb was much cheaper than beer expenses and less costly damage wise had I had a bunch of friends help me do it.

It was almost theft how easy and how short the time it took them to do it but it was way worth the money.
 
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Yes.

My gun safe wasnt nearly the job this one was but the three hundred bucks I spent hiring riggers to move the safe into the house from the curb was much cheaper than beer expenses and less costly damage wise had I had a bunch of friends help me do it.

It was almost theft how easy and how short the time it took them to do it but it was way worth the money.


Amen. Just cause you can does not mean you should. :)
 
Looks like you need to level your building:)
Will this machine fix broken wood stocks....just askin:cautious:
 
Would look great with my early 5 digit 700 receiver in there being clip slotted and blue printed......


When will we talk sending parts?

You must be tired of my whining.


605.490.2561 Shop line. Gimme 20m and call it. I'll be there. I've been up since 4, but just got off my ass to fire blackwater pot up. (mother awakens shortly and I am well trained.) :)

Call me. I'll have a solid hour before we light the fires.
 
605.490.2561 Shop line. Gimme 20m and call it. I'll be there. I've been up since 4, but just got off my ass to fire blackwater pot up. (mother awakens shortly and I am well trained.) :)

Call me. I'll have a solid hour before we light the fires.


My stalking you is getting embarrassing.

I would never interrupt a mans coffee making.

Time stamp when I opened this thread was 9 minutes ago.

Stand by for call in 11 minutes.
 
Moving and building big stuff is fun. That's what I do for a living. In a few days we have a Shredder weighing almost 100,000 pounds arriving at a customer facility, plus 17 containers of machines from 5k to 35k each stacked tight.
 
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