Just In Machinist Buddy Android App

red5Apps · May 12, 2013

This is a calculator for machinist and industrial engineers alike. New from Red 5 Apps.The functions included in this calculator are:

Price: Free Lite Version

Download Here:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.busX.machinistcalclite

Speeds and Feeds*

Revolutions Per Minute(General)
Surface Feet Per Minute
Surface Meters Per Minute
Inches Per Minute Milling Feed rate
Feed Per Tooth Mill
Feed Per Revolution
Inches Per Minute Lathe
Metal Removal Rate
Advance Per Revolution(Inches)
RPM with Carbide Tool(Milling)
RPM with HSS Tool(Milling)
RPM with Carbide Tool(Turning)
RPM with HSS Tool(Turning)
Horse Power

Thread Calculations*

Mill Tapping Feed rate
Lathe Threading Feed rate(Thread Lead)
Tap Drill Size
Percent of Full Thread
Mill Tapping Feed rate(Metric)
Tap Drill Size(Metric)
Percent of Full Thread (Metric)

Circle Calculations*

Radius of Circle
Diameter of Circle
Circumference of Circle
Area of Circle

Conversions*

Inches to Millimeters
Feet to Millimeters
Mile to Kilometer
Millimeters to Inches
Meters to Inches
Kilometers to Miles
Cutting Time in Minutes(Mill)
Cutting Time in Seconds(Lathe)

G and M codes*

List of Standard G and M Codes

Oblique Triangle Calculations*

Side, Angle, Side
Angle, Angle, Side
Side, Side, Side

Sine Bar Stack Height*

Boris · May 12, 2013

Damn .. makes my little surface speed/rpm converter for android look positivity ancient :bawling:

Boris

'another software business idea dream cruelly stamped on before I could get any money out of it"

red5Apps · May 22, 2013

Yeah work in progress

Boris said:
Damn .. makes my little surface speed/rpm converter for android look positivity ancient

Boris

'another software business idea dream cruelly stamped on before I could get any money out of it"

Its a work in progress man, Im a software engineering student that just happens to do an internship at a machine shop lol.

David Utidjian · May 22, 2013

red5apps,

First:
Thanks for making a needed and useful app available for Android devices.

Second:
I just tried your 'Lite' version for a few things. I tried the Tap Drill Size function and the Sine Bar Stack Height function. I installed it direct from your link to my Motorola Droid RAZR MAX HD phone and to my Lenovo Thinkpad tablet. I love how the internets makes this so easy these days.

Third: Warning: This is going to be harsh criticism but also, hopefully, constructive.

The interface sucks... on your trial version the space between the ads at the top and the button for buying the full version is too small to easily get at the actual 'Main Page' which is then just a menu of other pages.... I can handle the ads because I understand this is a trial version... but please give a little more space for getting to the main application.

I chose 'Threads'. A nice graphic of a tap takes up 30% of the screen real estate but it is too small to read the text and it is not scaleable... therefore it is screen-junk. Please get rid of it or make it scaleable.
The first choice under 'Threads' is 'Mill Tapping Feedrate'... that would not be my first choice.
Next item is 'Lathe Threading Feedrate'... seriously?
Ah... there it is third one down 'Tap Drill Size'... Ok... 'Enter Major Diameter o' : I guess you mean the major nominal diameter of the bolt that the hole is being tapped for. OK so I enter 0.5, next, 'Enter % of Thread Heigl'. OK so I enter 75. Next, 'Enter TPI', OK I enter 13. Done.
Ooops not quite done. Now I have to press 'Send' (?!?) Where am I 'sending' it to?
The answer is then 'Tap Drill Size= 0.50', which is WRONG. The answer should have been 27/64 (0.4219") for a 1/2-13NC 75% thread. If I used your app I would ruin a lot of work.

Moving on I try the 'Sine Bar Stack Height' function... I have to use the back key to get back to the Main Page and then choose the function.
OK nice graphic of a sine-bar and stack taking up 40% of the screen. The text is readable but still not scaleable. I enter angle 25* and sine bar length 5 and then 'Send' again and I get 'Stack Height= 2.1131 Gage Block Stack Required'. The answer is correct.
The text 'Gage Block Stack Required' is totally redundant. More useful would be some units (inches, millimeters.)

Some suggestions:
Load it up on a phone and hand it over to a friend that knows nothing about machining... but is at least familiar with using smart phones. See if they can "discover" how to use your app even if they do not know what it does or what the answers mean. Ask them how comfortable they were just using it. Do this with as many people as you can. Consider that everything they say is valid and should be dealt with in some way.

Get rid of the screen-junk or make it scaleable and readable and actually useful.

Fix the thread calculation errors.
Add the ability to enter fractions directly... If I a user has to look up what 5/8 is in decimal (or 3/8) then they might as well look on the same chart what tap-drill size they need.
Get rid of the Lathe Threading Feedrate, it is useless. All modern lathes, since quick-change-gear-boxes became the norm (about 1930) have the TPI marked right on QCGB.
Get rid of the 'Send' button. Unless I am texting the result to someone that is very confusing and redundant. Instead... once I click 'Done' it should calculate the answer.
The answer should also appear as an entry in the screen along with the input data... not as a floating popup window that i have to close in order to see the other data.

There are lots of other little annoyances. Take a look at some other machinist apps out there.

If all the above is addressed in the full version... I am not sure how many people will even risk 99 cents after the trial version.

-DU-

Billtodd · May 22, 2013

while not wishing to be negative about what could be a very useful app, but...

On my nexus 7 the 'lite' app stops working after selecting a topic e.g. threading

I have to agree with DU above - the user interface needs more work.

Bill

traditional-tools · May 22, 2013

Any plans for an iPhone app?

Weirsdale George · May 22, 2013

Is there an app that turns a smart phone into a non-contact tachometer? Seems like every thing you need is right there in one package -- LED light, camera and some "smarts".

Billtodd · May 23, 2013

Weirsdale George said:
Is there an app that turns a smart phone into a non-contact tachometer? Seems like every thing you need is right there in one package -- LED light, camera and some "smarts".

Great idea for an app:-)
there are a few android apps using sound and/or camera to measure rpm of model aircraft blades etc. not sure how one could use them on a machine tool.

bill

David Utidjian · May 23, 2013

Billtodd said:
Great idea for an app:-)
there are a few android apps using sound and/or camera to measure rpm of model aircraft blades etc.

That is a cool idea.

not sure how one could use them on a machine tool.

I suppose one could use the old tried and true trick of clamping a playing card with a clothespin to the toolpost so that the card is flapped by the chuck jaws.

-DU-

L Vanice · May 23, 2013

What is an android?

I do recall reading about one (a humanform robot assistant to a police detective) in Isaac Asimov's Caves of Steel, but that does not seem right in the context of machinist calculations. Maybe the fact that I read that 1953 novel when it was new explains why I have to ask about this new use for a perfectly well known word. But give me credit for remembering a story I read 60 years ago. And give credit to Asimov for writing so many wonderful things and being appreciated for so long.

Larry

Billtodd · May 23, 2013

get with the programme, Larry

android is the name of an operating system (software) for mobile and tablet computers. It was developed by Google, from a version of Linux, to enslave mankind by ensuring every word typed spoken or thought is checked, cross referenced and monetised. :-) :-)

bill

L Vanice · May 23, 2013

Is android better than Windows 8? I bought a new laptop Tuesday and cannot figure out how to do tasks that took seconds on any of my older computers. On the other hand, I am pretty much against slavery.

Larry

Billtodd · May 23, 2013

I've not played with windows 8, so I cannot compare

(Win 8 seems to have been rushed out to provide MS with a tablet compatible OS). I've heard mixed reviews, some people love it :shrug:

Android seems better suited for 'consuming' (i.e. browsing the web, reading email, watching video etc. ) than 'creating' (writing, drawing etc.)

Apps (hate that word, but it seems to have stuck

) are relatively small and simple. I believe, each runs in its own memory space ( like a separate user in a virtual machine) with some shared file space.

I downloaded Google's software development kit with the intention of writing an App or two of my own (on an XP machine), but learning-curves all look like rock faces to me these days

Bill

RC99 · May 23, 2013

I tried it, but the interface is clunky (too many buttons to press to get something done) and when i tried to go back to the main page all it did was lock up and crash..

I will admit I bought the android app of Machinist calculator pro for $20 so am sort of used to it..

Of course the machinist buddy light app is free

red5Apps · May 24, 2013

Patch for the lite and full versions will be released next week

David Utidjian said:
red5apps,

First:
Thanks for making a needed and useful app available for Android devices.

Second:
I just tried your 'Lite' version for a few things. I tried the Tap Drill Size function and the Sine Bar Stack Height function. I installed it direct from your link to my Motorola Droid RAZR MAX HD phone and to my Lenovo Thinkpad tablet. I love how the internets makes this so easy these days.

Third: Warning: This is going to be harsh criticism but also, hopefully, constructive.

The interface sucks... on your trial version the space between the ads at the top and the button for buying the full version is too small to easily get at the actual 'Main Page' which is then just a menu of other pages.... I can handle the ads because I understand this is a trial version... but please give a little more space for getting to the main application.

I chose 'Threads'. A nice graphic of a tap takes up 30% of the screen real estate but it is too small to read the text and it is not scaleable... therefore it is screen-junk. Please get rid of it or make it scaleable.
The first choice under 'Threads' is 'Mill Tapping Feedrate'... that would not be my first choice.
Next item is 'Lathe Threading Feedrate'... seriously?
Ah... there it is third one down 'Tap Drill Size'... Ok... 'Enter Major Diameter o' : I guess you mean the major nominal diameter of the bolt that the hole is being tapped for. OK so I enter 0.5, next, 'Enter % of Thread Heigl'. OK so I enter 75. Next, 'Enter TPI', OK I enter 13. Done.
Ooops not quite done. Now I have to press 'Send' (?!?) Where am I 'sending' it to?
The answer is then 'Tap Drill Size= 0.50', which is WRONG. The answer should have been 27/64 (0.4219") for a 1/2-13NC 75% thread. If I used your app I would ruin a lot of work.

Moving on I try the 'Sine Bar Stack Height' function... I have to use the back key to get back to the Main Page and then choose the function.
OK nice graphic of a sine-bar and stack taking up 40% of the screen. The text is readable but still not scaleable. I enter angle 25* and sine bar length 5 and then 'Send' again and I get 'Stack Height= 2.1131 Gage Block Stack Required'. The answer is correct.
The text 'Gage Block Stack Required' is totally redundant. More useful would be some units (inches, millimeters.)

Some suggestions:
Load it up on a phone and hand it over to a friend that knows nothing about machining... but is at least familiar with using smart phones. See if they can "discover" how to use your app even if they do not know what it does or what the answers mean. Ask them how comfortable they were just using it. Do this with as many people as you can. Consider that everything they say is valid and should be dealt with in some way.

Get rid of the screen-junk or make it scaleable and readable and actually useful.

Fix the thread calculation errors.
Add the ability to enter fractions directly... If I a user has to look up what 5/8 is in decimal (or 3/8) then they might as well look on the same chart what tap-drill size they need.
Get rid of the Lathe Threading Feedrate, it is useless. All modern lathes, since quick-change-gear-boxes became the norm (about 1930) have the TPI marked right on QCGB.
Get rid of the 'Send' button. Unless I am texting the result to someone that is very confusing and redundant. Instead... once I click 'Done' it should calculate the answer.
The answer should also appear as an entry in the screen along with the input data... not as a floating popup window that i have to close in order to see the other data.

There are lots of other little annoyances. Take a look at some other machinist apps out there.

If all the above is addressed in the full version... I am not sure how many people will even risk 99 cents after the trial version.

-DU-

Ok,
First off, thanks DU for the feedback. Patch for the lite and full versions will be released next week. The interface has been completely revamped. A new Metric tool will be placed on every page, along with every modification you have suggested. As I said before, this is a work in progress. It will not be perfect the first few months but I intend to get it there. Unfortunately its just me, I don't have a team to work on this with me. I do greatly appreciate your comments though. As too the question another made about moving the app to Iphone as well. This is a good possibility once I get it all right on Android.

Thanks,
Thomas

red5Apps · May 24, 2013

traditional-tools said:
Any plans for an iPhone app?

It is a possibility in the near future.

Thomas

red5Apps · May 24, 2013

Also, as you folks are the demographic for this app, are there any other functions you would like to see added to this app. i.e. This would be very helpful to better serve you guys.

Thanks,
Thomas

David Utidjian · May 24, 2013

Thomas,

Thanks for listening. I look forward to the upgrade

-DU-

munruh · May 24, 2013

machinist journeyman is a very popular and very good iphone app. Unfortunatly it is not available for Androids and I have contacted the developer and there are no plans for it to be. If you could develop something on this level a lot of us would pay 5-10 bucks for it.

red5Apps · Jun 7, 2013

New Version of Machinist Buddy Out Now

i have released an update to the machinist buddy app addressing many of the problems I have encountered as well as others. I will continue to add updates to better the app. Please check it out and leave feedback.

Here's the link

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.busX.machinistcalclite

Thanks,
Thomas

Just In Machinist Buddy Android App

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