I got NIMS certified in manual machining, CNC machine operating, working on CNC programming, and took a CPT course while I was at it for funsies So That's where I've been Three 8-week courses, 40 hours a week plus online work and homework, equivalent to a year-long course each, back to back to back, to finally end in late October/early November (due to heavy covid absences it might get extended if needed) ((the CPT was a separate thing I took simultaneously because I'm a hyperfixated nerd)) ... I don't have a lot of spare thoughts because I am TIRED af all the time but I love it and it seems like a thing i will want a thingy thing threadblog for in my ~ADVENTURES~ So like... machining... is really cool... 's pretty neat... yep Thanks for coming to my tedtalk everyone
Eyyy fellow machinist, I got my vocational degree last spring in a nine-month course (that, uh, for school aged people would usually take three years, I was dead tired the entire time from cramming) and yes, it is a very neat job. I wish I could have gone into manual machining but atm I'm working as setup machinist for a small-parts mill instead. Maybe in three years, we'll see What's your favourite *thing* with machining? Mine is probably doing finish turning on cast/cut parts by hand. (Also what's CPT?, for some reason that acronym brings up nothing metal-related in my brain =_=) )
Honestly my absolute favourite thing is manually making a part and then measuring it and seeing the caliper's be *dead on* it's so satisfying CPT is not tech metal, it's manufacturing, sorry! Certified Production Technician! A crash course in OSHA, electrical, hydraulics, production ideologies, maintenance, etc
My least favourite thing is end milling manually and creating needles instead of chips. I will go out of my way to face mill just to avoid that
oh man machining sounds so cool - I follow the subreddit for it despite having 0 clue about anything but the most general concepts because it just looks Neat. if I ever get sick of welding I might try my hand at that instead. though it honestly sounds like it's a lot more work to learn than welding was lol
Welding is infinitely more Magic than machining, tbh. I could never get the hang of it, and I probably never will.
I love welding because it's like. you have two pieces of metal and then you do a thing and then you have one solid piece of metal. it's really cool to watch a handful of different sizes of metal sheets come together to become a bridge girder :D the actual technique isn't that hard to get down, though, at least the basics. it doesn't take too much time to become decently competent (though it does take time to be able to do consistently high quality beads, get familiar with the different processes and the variations in them, etc). the sheer amount of different things you can do with machining is a bit intimidating to me. with welding you have just a few different kinds of machine which all do the same basic thing in different ways. it seems from here like machinists have a dizzying array of tools, each of which does something very specific, and you need to learn how to use all of them to do the job well. and afaict there's a lot more math :P
IDK about Artemis but part of why I like machining is that a lot of times, it's just figuring out the correct settings for the right tool, then sitting back to supervise as the mill/lathe does its thing. It's a lot more thinking upfront, but less execution-dependent, whereas good welding, *proper* welding is like. *All* execution, plus all the thinking upfront xD It's very cool to watch and I like doing finish machining on welded components but I don't have the patience or coordination or fine motor skills necessary for it.
yeah, I think you've hit the nail on the head! I don't mind doing the bits of machining we do - lots of drilling, a little bit of milling - but that's mostly because I have headphones and a book to read. otherwise I much prefer the challenge and the more constant engagement that welding requires. now what I'd REALLY like to learn is blacksmithing. it's like all the cool parts of welding turned up to 11 :D unfortunately I think I'd have to hit the gym for a while before I could be any good at it, because afaict it requires an order of magnitude more upper body strength than the kind of fab shop work I do now :P
I love machining (both manual and CNC/coding) because it's a puzzle. Here, here is thing. Make thing! Ok, I think I have solved thing... oh no! Stuff went wrong! ok, I think I have solved stuff... oh no! Line go wonk! ok! I think I have solved line--! and then when you get it *right* it's like :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD AM SO SMART. AM SO SKILLED. I DID THAT. LOOK EVERYONE. I MADE THING! eta: also yeah, can confirm that when I started manual class it was... v overwhelming at first. but once you grok the basics it falls together quite neatly, at least for me it did.
dabs in i got a raise and work second shift mon-thurs from 3pm-2am with a nice shift differential and there's only 3 other people on shift and holy shit i fucking love it i unfortunately can't talk much in any real depth because of NDAs but it's going well it's going well for me and it's going well for the shop and i like it a lot
