Whats going on with the machine shop?

[Greg]

@RealCarlRaymond @brian.adams @cafwood

Im very excited to see that we have finally pushed forward the agenda to install electrical for the machines.

I would just like to ask, What plans were put forward for the layout of the machine shop? Im sorry if I missed the talk site post where it was already shared but as far as I’m aware I was main person driving forward these changes to get the machine shop up and running ASAP.

I have asked multiple people multiple times what I can do to help, nobody ever got back to me. So I just started to help wherever I could.

Some of the initiatives I’ve taken include taking down the old wood shelving along the north wall, general cleaning the area like scrubbing the north window, sweeping the floors, and moving out some of the leftovers to the back or to the dumpster after cliff had moved the bigger items in early fall.
Another big thing I did recently was moving all the machine shop equipment, shelves, tables and misc. parts from new jewelry expansion.

Here are some points that I believe need to be brought up and openly discussed about the future of the machine shop.

First, we have no idea whether the surface grinder actually works or not, but if anything I do not think that placing it infront of the window of blacksmithing is the ideal permanent place for it, as seems to be the plan with the new electrical conduit under the window.

It is not a good idea to block this view to the blacksmith area, it makes the space feel more crowded and would be distracting while using the machine.

I know its not ideal that on the right side, there is a garage door. But the guide rails are bent on it, so in my opinion its not opening anytime soon if OSHA has anything to say about it.

My vision for the future layout is that we can open up this wall with the window to be a door, and close off the woodshop so we can keep all the sounds of sanding, saws, and blowers on the woodshop side, and not give it anymore space to bleed into and make the maker space feel more crowded than it is with acoustics.

I propose we keep a space for a machine on the right side in front of the green door and place a second electrical outlet so we can plug into for 3 phase power as illustrated below.

In the machine shop area, not every square foot of it can have tools and measurement equipment an arms reach away. It seems to me that most of the tools will be hovering around the north half of the machine shop, near that green garage door.

From the perspective of someone who will work on the mill, and then need to go to the shelves nearby to get for example, some parallels, it would be more time efficient if the more intricate and tool demanding machines were placed closer to the north side, like I illustrated here, red arrows to swap the tools theyre pointing to.

Also while the electricians are here, could someone please tell them to take a look at this switch over by the vertical bandsaw and get it secured to the wall.

[RealCarlRaymond]

Greg,

I very much appreciate the help you’ve been providing around the shop! And I understand and share your frustration with things not moving faster – I want to make some chips myself!
The big obstacle of course has been getting power to the tools. Now that we have an electrical contractor lined up, things are moving forward.

One of LMN’s unfortunate realities is that we can’t do all things at once. The areas had to be set up in stages, with priorities dictated by member needs and money. I’m a machine shop guy, and you are, too, but we’re a niche interest, compared to the wood shop, blacksmithing, and jewelry. Those areas get a lot of member use, and they run classes. A machine shop class with six or eight people isn’t really practical with one lathe and one mill.

As for layout, I’m keeping the overhead door area clear. I don’t plan on opening that door often, but I don’t want to preclude it. We may want to shift things a bit, especially if we get another machine in the future, but for now let’s not crowd the area around the door. And we can put lathe and mill tooling in the rolling cabinets, and then you can roll it wherever you like it for the job at hand.

And please keep in mind that heavy machines on narrow pallet jacks are a hazard. That drill press especially is top-heavy and just itching to topple. Let’s only move them around with help.

A task coming soon will be re-wiring the motors for 440v. The grinder is already set for 440v, but the others need to be converted. If you want to help me do that, I’d appreciate it. It should be pretty straightforward.

[Clifford_Bohm]

Carl, I think what Greg is asking is relevant to the current situation. In particular, since power is being put in now, it seems that the placement of machines should be considered now as well. This is not an issue of priorities, or “things we can’t get to right now” he’s asking a question that applies to the current situation.

In terms of the garage door. I have no plans to ever open that door. Since outside access on the north side of the building has a step, I think that the south side door will always be a better option for moving stuff around. In fact, in the long run, I think we should soundproof the door. At any rate, I don’t plan to leave access to the garage door from the west side, so I don’t see any benefit from you leaving the space in front of it open.

@Greg, please let me know if I’m misrepresenting you. @RealCarlRaymond, let me know if I’m being dumb.

[BrianBaldwin]

@RealCarlRaymond if you need a hand rewiring the motors for the machines I’m available to help if needed. I worked in industrial machine repair for many years and have rewired machines before.