So Garage Journal wants a first post hmmm?

[Toolmaker51]

Where I work; long established, small, family run. That can mean the depth of experience is limited. Most common phrase, "always did it this way."
Yikes.

Hard to find a manual machine more efficient profiling work pieces than a bandsaw. I say, IMNSHO there isn't.
But free handing straight cuts requires bluing and scribing a layout, that many people can get .020 positive [.50mm] said layout.
I have order for 16 swing bolts 2" diameter, 18" long. I've made these twice before. They've freehanded them for decades. That'd be 48' [feet!] of sawing. My second piece, umm no thanks. I'll clamp a bar of CRS to table. OK, but tedious setup. Later the first op center drilled each end carefully, only way to get decent 2" threads in 2" thick stock, supported by centers, dog driven.

Pic 1All remnant and drop material. Aluminum rescued from waterjetted plate of unrelated levers. Cold rolled rail and face.

Pic 2Sliding along front rail, position secures very well via knob clamp screws. This view has cap screws in key slots and strip washer. That allows easy removal, whereas
blade obstructs each side.

Pic 3Parallel sides make setups far easier to machine. Ultimately will saw big radius off to natural, space saving angle. Interior wedges sawn by drilling, passing band blade through and rewelding. Done, just recut blade.

Pic 4Commercial hardware; cap & set screws, all thread, hand knobs, jam nuts. Clamps are slightly less spread than set screws. The set screws, fine threaded, adjust squareness.

Bare sketch of idea. No other plans needed beside tape measure.
Motivation? Factory version just under $1000.00 USD.

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Cool, I look forward to seeing more of your work.

 

[Toolmaker51]

Bigblue&Goldie and any subsequent readers I appreciate that, truly.
My Garage Journal entries will proceed differently than usual posts, my mechanical interests are overrun with how can I make that? Like our hero Tim Allen said decades ago "I've got tools to MAKE tools!".
So, I do. I'll offer to the members assistance and recommendations on similar projects. My specialty is not blueprinting. Not for reasons like intimidation or scope, that work and related machines have ready built fixtures that would take quite some time to replicate. But could I make billet con-rods, brackets, adapter plates etc?
You betcha. For starters, can turn up to 22" x 54", mill a 48"³ cube and cut all kind of internal profiles.

 

[Outwest]

Nice work. I wish I was equipped to handle that kind of machining.

 

[Toolmaker51]

My sentence "Later the first op center drilled each end carefully, only way to get decent 2" threads in 2" thick stock, supported by centers, dog driven." points to something different than just efficiency.
For example, sawing accurate layouts saves material. Using center-drilled holes as a target lessens wear on tools knocking corners off 4130 bar stock. Swingbolts start out rectangular, so a good center sets up faster in your 4 jaw. Recall, I mentioned we turn 2"Ø threads on 2" thick material. A little loss of major diameter a small issue. Therefore carefully centered stock looks more professional.

At a corporate level, process engineers do that thinking for you under guise of "Design for Manufacturing".
It is also lowering the preeminent status Machinists once had, when experience and creativity had more weight than a mere certificate.