Machinist Apprentice | Aluminum Parts | Day 42

Today I worked on getting out all the kinks of the first operation for these parts.

I got through the majority of the toolpaths with very few modifications. However I did have some issues with the wall finishes, there seemed to be some weird ridges as if the tool was jumping around. I'm thinking it may be some vibrations which there isn't a whole lot I can do about since the location features are very tall and thin and I need to get around the entire parameter.

I also got to try out engraving for the first time using an off-center flat edge chamfer endmill. I spent over an hour yesterday trying to get it to work properly and finally got it to work. I'm honestly shocked by how good it turned out and will definitely be using this again in the future for my own projects!

Overall nothing too exciting today, ran through the first set of parts with +-0.001" tolerance. I'll be continuing on Monday and getting the next three sets of parts all finished up and ready to go on the 4th axis.

Thankfully all the parts are very similar and so I can copy and paste the same toolpaths over, I'm also able to use the same stock setup. I set up some guide markers on the Minimill for where the stock fits in place and so I'm able to swap out parts very quickly.