The Impractical Machinists
by Practical Machinist
Latest episode
The Most Expensive Cutting Tool Isn't Always the Best Choice | 61
The Most Expensive Cutting Tool Isn't Always the Best Choice | 61
About this podcast
Welcome to The Impractical Machinists, a podcast for machinists’ who are creative, innovative and a cut above the rest. Join hosts Bradley, Cameron, and Patrick as they discuss everything from CNC machining, tool innovations, shop floor challenges, business strategies, and the latest trends and techniques shaping the industry.
Our episodes provide valuable insight and actionable tips from real machinists that you can apply in your own shops. Whether you’re a veteran machinist or just starting out, tune in and turn up the productivity on your machining operations.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 62 episodes
- The Most Expensive Cutting Tool Isn't Always the Best Choice | 61 · 1 h 29 min · Season 3 Episode 61This podcast is brought to you by WIDIA. Are you really getting your money’s worth out of your cutting tools? This week on The Impractical Machinists, we're joined by Clay Platt…
- I Bought Everyone in the Shop a Phone. It Actually Helped | 60 · 1 h 19 min · Season 3 Episode 60Taking over the family machine shop means figuring out what to keep, what to change, and how to get everyone on board. Especially when your dad has been running it for 50 years…
- Things Are Changing in Our Shops… Fast | 59 · 1 h 27 min · Season 3 Episode 59The guys are back from IMTS, and it’s time to get back to reality. In this episode of The Impractical Machinists, Patrick, Cameron, and Bradley look back at their week together…
- We Took The Impractical Machinists to IMTS… Here’s What Happened | 58 · 54 min · Season 2 Episode 58What happens when you get The Impractical Machinists together at IMTS for their first-ever live, in-person episode? A lot of shop talk, a little chaos, and more machines than…
- My First IMTS… What Am I Getting Myself Into? · 24 min · Season 2Learn more about The Machinists' Hub here! IMTS is almost here, and the guys are getting ready for a very busy week in Chicago. Patrick, Cameron, and Bradley sit down before the…
- He Built His Shop With Tormachs. Would He Do It Again? | 57 · 1 h 19 min · Season 2 Episode 57What makes a “real” machine shop anyway? Justin Webb didn’t come up through the traditional machining route. He dropped out of high school, eventually went back to earn an…
- We’ve All Blamed the End Mill. But Was It Really the Tool? | 56 · 1 h 8 min · Season 2 Episode 56When an end mill starts misbehaving, the cutter usually gets blamed first. But Scott Walrath says the real problem may be the toolholder, the runout, or the way the whole setup…
- 92 Hours Between 2 Jobs?! The First Week Nobody Prepares You For | 55 · 1 h 11 min · Season 2 Episode 55Planning to attend IMTS? This year, IMTS is celebrating manufacturing with a 6-week giveaway. Through August 14, they're releasing a new limited-edition hat patch every week. The…
- Machinists Sent Us Their Worst Shop Stories, These Were Brutal | 54 · 1 h 19 min · Season 2 Episode 54Brad Jacob from Maple Lane Machine and Tool joins Patrick and Cameron as guest host for this episode. They catch up on what has changed at Brad’s shop, how the VF-2 is working…
- How Do We Train the Next Generation of Machinists? | 53 · 1 h 31 min · Season 2 Episode 53Every machine shop runs into the same challenges sooner or later. Cash flow gets tight, tooling costs keep climbing, and deciding when to invest in new equipment is never easy…
- How a Drone Racing Kid Ended Up Running a One Man Machine Shop | 52 · 1 h 32 min · Season 2 Episode 52Taylor Jenkins didn't start out wanting to be a machinist. He wanted to fly planes. Then COVID hit, his plans changed, and he ended up in a composites program working with carbon…
- How He Turned One EDM Machine Into a 20-Person Shop | 51 · 1 h 17 min · Season 2 Episode 51Ron Gobbels, CEO of Kam Wire EDM Technologies located in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, joins the guys for a conversation that covers a lot more than just wire EDM. From growing up…
- The Australian One-Man Shop That Chose to Downsize | 50 · 1 h 56 min · Season 2 Episode 50Eddie Riddell runs Steele Co Engineering out of Perth, Australia — one of the most isolated cities on the planet, about 12 hours from the nearest place. He started with a…
- Big Shop Rules vs. Small Shop Freedom: Which One Destroys You Faster? | 49 · 1 h 45 min · Season 2 Episode 49What's actually killing machinists faster — big corporate shop rules or the chaos of running your own place? This week Pat jumps in as guest host and we go deep on all of it…
- Shop Owners Unfiltered: Finding Work, Quoting Jobs & Staying Profitable | 48 · 1 h 0 min · Season 2 Episode 48Owning a machine shop sounds great… until you’re chasing work, quoting jobs at midnight, dealing with problem customers, and trying to stay profitable while keeping the lights…
- How Much Work Do You Need Before Going Full-Time? | 47 · 1 h 18 min · Season 2 Episode 47Pat, Cameron, and Brad catch up on what’s been going on in their shops—from current projects and production challenges to the reality of keeping work on track. They also dive…
- When the Work Piles Up and the Programs Don't | 46 · 1 h 29 min · Season 2 Episode 46The guys kick things off talking about the realities of repair and walk-in work, then get into quoting strategy — specifically what to do when a customer hands you a massive…
- From a Union Aerospace Shop to Running His Own Machine Shop | 45 · 1 h 30 min · Season 2 Episode 45Hans Keisler from Motor Control Technology joins the podcast to talk about his path through the machining trade — from working at Lockheed to building his own aerospace-focused…
- How One Guy Built a Movement… and Triggered the Internet | 44 · 2 h 4 min · Season 2 Episode 44If you've spent any time in online machining communities, you know the name. Titan Gilroy has been one of the most talked-about — and most polarizing — figures in online…
- He Bought His First CNC at 17 — Now His Shop Is Booked Solid at 20 | 43 · 1 h 23 min · Season 2 Episode 43Michael is 20 years old and runs his own machine shop in Idaho. He bought his first CNC at 17 while still in high school, taught himself machining entirely through YouTube, and…
