Add new machine equals work less, right?

While my two spindles are chewing away on some Ti, I'm dreaming of adding another spindle. Currently I'm working 70+ hours a week, I've been thinking that by adding one more spindle, I could work less hours per week. Sounds like a good idea. Has anyone done something like this?

A little dirt on me, I'm a one man shop. Shop is located on my property. Not interested at this time in increasing my work load. Just want to get back to 40 hours or so per week.

The theory sounds good. It all depends on the specifics.

Seems it should go that way, and is why I've been dreaming of a turning center instead of all this handle cranking on the lathes. Spend 4 days on something a cnc would do in 1 or less.

But then I also think of all the extra work that would be required to pay for the darn thing.

Well, it's like this;-

That's the textbook theory, IME practice is ''always'' different.

X2 on SND's comments about feeding the beast.

I wasn't thinking of adding a new 100 thousand dollar beast. Although I might dream about that.

More along the lines of a 80's Matsuura VMC or such. Something around 20 g's.

Another spindle for 3rd/4th ops or just roughing out stainless and ti.

Currently my mills are Haas VF2 and VF4, which I own one and will the other in 7 months.

Just thinking that a 20 g investment might give some of my life back.

Also thought of another Haas since everything would be interchangable.

How fun it is to dream.

Hears how it really works.

1. Need another machine to keep up.
2. Oops now I have more spindles to feed, need to find more work
3. Crap cant run these machines myself, I need help.
4. Now I have an employee to feed, need to find even more work.
5. Man I am out of space, time to move the shop.

& So on

Welcome to the viscous circle of self employment.

toolmaker96 said:

How fun it is to dream.

Hears how it really works.

1. Need another machine to keep up.
2. Oops now I have more spindles to feed, need to find more work
3. Crap cant run these machines myself, I need help.
4. Now I have an employee to feed, need to find even more work.
5. Man I am out of space, time to move the shop.

& So on

Welcome to the viscous circle of self employment.

Click to expand...

Can be true, but not necessarily. What it takes is self-control and not being greedy. If his current work and cash flow would support the extra machine, all he needs to do is avoid the trap of taking in more work.

rj newbould said:

Can be true, but not necessarily. What it takes is self-control and not being greedy. If his current work and cash flow would support the extra machine, all he needs to do is avoid the trap of taking in more work.

Click to expand...

Good point and very well put.

Add new machine equals work less, right?

Click to expand...

Only in the kitchen.

Men buy machines so they can do more work.

toolmaker96 said:

How fun it is to dream.

Hears how it really works.

1. Need another machine to keep up.
2. Oops now I have more spindles to feed, need to find more work
3. Crap cant run these machines myself, I need help.
4. Now I have an employee to feed, need to find even more work.
5. Man I am out of space, time to move the shop.

& So on

Welcome to the viscous circle of self employment.

Click to expand...

What you just described is my reality....

I don't know....

2 man shop here, plus a cleaning guy on Saturday. When we brought in our 3rd VMC, we turned around and sold our first VMC. It sucked(the machine, watching it drive down the road, heading away from here, was FANTASTIC). Still have that CNC knee mill piled high with crap, but that doesn't count.

There are days I wish we had another spindle in here, then there are days where we just can't get back to them in time and it really doesn't matter.

If you have long running stuff on both of your mills, it sucks, frustrating, especially when you want to go home (which isn't a problem for you).

On the good side, long running stuff lets you get other stuff done, we do all kinds of other crap, coatings, assemblies, hand work and even drill press work (thought the customer will never know it only took a drill press), so there is usually something to do, brazing or welding even.

Barring that, there is always something else to do. Get your stock all nice and sawed up, cleaned and deburred for the next job. Get the next job programmmed, clean off that disaster you call a work bench.

Work on that stupid product idea you've had in your head for the past 10 years. Pull that old piece of crap car in from out back, and start actually working on it, there is a possibility that there is something that you need to make for it, and if you need it, so does somebody else(NEW PRODUCT).

A 3rd VMC, its not a bad idea, it really depends, are all of your jobs really going to be running that long that you'll be able to keep 3 spindles up and running, plus a lathe or 2 if you have them, keep the saws going, do all the paper work, deliver the parts, and keep your old lady from packing it up and heading back to her Mom?

If the price is right and the money is there, I don't see how it can hurt.

Be carefull I just doubled my gross sales from last year yet I only made 4 grand more. I did a ton more work and had to hire most of it out so I didnt make any more money.

I've heard that many times in different businesses. Grow grow grow and suddenly you realize you were making as much by yourself when you started out, and had less headaches and less to lose. Difference is hopefully you have something worth a fair bit more $ to sell when its time to cash out.

With the right price, I wouldn't necessary worry too much about keeping the spindle turning. If it saves me only 30 to 40 hours a month, it would be worth it.

I have several repeat jobs that have long cycle times, from 45 min to 2 1/2hours.

Right now I have no employees, I did hire my nephew several years ago and lets say it was interesting. Don't really want to hire anyone.

Don't want to grow bigger, friends of mine did and not worth the headache in my opinion. Don't want a partner either. If it is messy or missing, its my fault.

However, I do want to use my boat, use my travel trailer and quit working so many weekends.

Sounds like a good plan to me, knc.

If you stick with that and resist the temptation to add work, you can have a good, relatively stress-free, life.

I think it depends on what your situation is.

Situation 1:
Do you have short run times, that you don't even have time to leave the machine cause your changing parts. 3rd VMC won't help there, a robot will.

Situation 2:
Do you have long run times, that leave you standing around waiting to change parts, but not long enough to actually get work done in between. 3rd VMC will help.

With the 2nd Situation, you can program everything for all 3 VMC's and set them up, hit go and just go from 1 to 2 to 3 back to 1 rotating parts. Now you aren't standing around doing nothing, and will actually leave the shop earlier, because the time you will be running the 3rd part, will be mixed into the time your doing 1 and 2.

How much of the day are the machines you have now running? Is there a way to make your setups faster? Couple thousand on fixturing would be cheaper than another machine. Of couse another machine means the ones you have now should last longer.

x2 on the fixturing. Start getting as many on the table as possible with 2 fixtures... Especially the longer run ones. You can load up a fixture and go to bed. Come back in the morning and you just made 7-9 hours of free labor that you would have been baby sitting before.

If you have long cycle times, set up a cot in the shop. Take naps. Get a TV in there. Work 24 hour days, then you can have 3-4 day weekends.

It would be no different than having a baby. You got to get up every few hours to feed and change anyway.

Thats what I would do. I have a few friends who have done that also. Worked out great for them. Then when things slow down, you can switch back to normal hours.

Good luck,
Josh