Sierra "Makin' Chips" video series.

[ljs]

Another great video and a little extra trip and look around the farm. These videos really provide a good look at what it takes to build a pedal steel guitar. Thanks again Ross. Keep 'em coming.
LaVern

[azureskys]

cool vids Ross , you are a one man factory

[Ross Shafer]

Thanks Y'all! Have a great weekend.

Happy Hot Dang Holidays!!

[larry]

Awesome videos Russ! Thanks for posting!!

[dragonworks]

I was wondering why you didn't make a fixture, pop a couple of holes in the body, screw it down, pop the rest of the holes in then go around the whole thing all the way through, eliminating the need to take it to the table saw etc.?
Maybe the cutter won't make it all the way through?
Then again I am used to using full blown CNCs for metalworking, never used a router.

[Ross Shafer]

These were the very first parts I made on the router and I haven't completely dialed in my methods. Lot's of ways to skin the cat. As I gain more experience with the router I'm sure I'll do things differently. Thanks for watching the vids.

[dragonworks]

I have been machining metal for 45 years. Mainly mills, lathes, grinders. I would hazard to guess the same production methods used on a mill would be used on a router?
You could use a larger piece of wood as a fixture under the body. Put three alignment pins in it to push your body up against, two in the long axis, one in the shorter axis. Put two holes in it with threaded inserts where you are going to tie the body down. Route the outside contour and any I.D. contours in the fixture about .06, .120 deep. Put a quick operated clamp at either end. Mount the fixture to the router. Put the body on the fixture, push it up against the the alignment pins and clamp it down on the ends. Come in with the router and put the two holes in directly above the inserts. Bring it home and screw the body down. If you have enough clearance you can leave it clamped. Come back in and put the rest of the holes in and then cut the outside contour all the way through. If you have enough clearance you can stack two bodies.
If you find a way to locate the fixture on the router in the same place every time you no longer need to set any zeros, you can just mount the body, locate the fixture and go for it if the fixtures' sides are square and surfaces flat. The sides of the fixture should be square and straight to the hole pattern and contour in the fixture.
Put a location hole in the fixture that would lie somewhere outside the body contour, that you can get to,and set zero there to machine the fixture; use that location point to set your zero for you body program (you can always move the zero work offset from that reference point). This way you will be picking up the same reference point in the fixture every time, not some arbitrary corner or center point. and the drills and router bits will follow the same path on the fixture every time.

As I said, I have never used a router, so all that typing maybe for nothing.
I hope some of this may help. I have CADCAM software and could draw any of this if you like, and write G code programs etc. I could make an aluminum fixture.
I did enjoy the video, chips are cool, some are hot and very dangerous.

[Ross Shafer]

You've pretty much described the fixture (a temp one to try things out) I use in the neck vids...that fixture was also to be used for the top and necks, but I changed my mind for some reason or other. There's a lot of ways to skin all these cats and I've no doubt lots are better than the way I do it. There's a big 'ol pile of different pars that get made for these steels and I've yet to make any of them the same way twice.

I've no doubt that I'll probably end up cutting these parts all the way through as I develop my ideas and skills. Either way it's not a big deal time savings wise....that'd be a different story if I were producing large quantities for sure.

I've only jumped into cnc machining and programming in the last 5 years or so, but that's after 30+ years of designing stuff to be cnc'd and working closely with cnc shops during and after owning and operating a bicycle manufacturing biz which I sold 20 years ago.

Right now I'm struggling a bit to learn to use the Fanuc control on my Hardinge cnc lathe, so I can ween myself from making my turned parts manually. I'll get there, but learning the controls and software parts of things is the hardest for me.

Thanks for the tips!

[dragonworks]

I have been writing CNC production programs and running CNC equipment in job shops since 1989 and conventional equipment since 1969. Getting ready to retire, I don't have much to do, just trying to feel useful and wondering what I am going to do.

[Ross Shafer]

Where do you live? You're welcome to come help me anytime!

Just posted another vid, this time I'm making some thin aluminum parts on the router....probably won't do it that way again, but had to check it out. https://youtu.be/2ohNiY6laNA

Have a great weekend and Happy Holidays!!