An Interview with John Saunders

Welcome John Saunders of Saunders Machine Works and NYCCNC!

• Chris met John when he was doing a tour of mHub
• John was an early member of NYC Resistor
• Former guest Robert Feranec runs Fedevel academy
• Training on site (prices as stated in podcast, obviously subject to change)
  • 2 day introduction $300
  • 3 day hands-on $1175
  • 2 day advanced
• They cover things like
  • CAD (using Fusion360)
  • CAM (using Fusion360)
  • Workholding
• Wednesday widgets is a regular segment on NYCCNC
• Guerrilla guide to machining
• Pocket NC
• Daishin Seiki helmet video
• David2 mcad solidworks video comparison
• Clickspring
• OnShape
• Injection molding
• Morgan press
• Lego brick drafts
• eMachineShop
• Project Dreamcatcher by Autodesk
• Online tools for getting mechanical things made (by machining)
  • xometry
  • protolabs
  • plethora
• John says a good starter project is: a vice handle
• NYCCNC has an Excel file feeds and speeds
• Former guest Claire (nee Clifford) Wolf started the OpenSCAD
• Scraping - precision surfaces
• They do electronics as well! This is a vibe bowl screw feeder controlled by an Arduino.
• John does a podcast along with John Grimsmo, called The Business of Machining
• Other mechanical podcasts
  • Making It
  • Making Chips
• Other YouTube channels that John follows for machining (aside from Clickspring, linked above)
  • Ox Tool with Tom Lipton
  • Robin Renzetti
• Want to try out Fusion360? Check out John's getting started page.
• Want to meet up with John when he's in Australia? He'll be doing a Sydney meetup Tues March 13th
• Not announced at the time of recording, but John will be doing an "open house" at mHub in Chicago on September 9th. This will be the night before IMTS, also in Chicago.

It was great having John on to tell us about machining and mechanical concerns. While we normally focus on electronics on this show, it's increasingly important to have a broad view of the product development cycle and the various processes required to get something created for the market. We think NYCCNC helps beginners get a footing in the field. Be sure to subscribe!