Top 10 Modern Machine Shop Articles of 2021

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It’s December, which means the time has come to take a look back at the most popular Modern Machine Shop articles of the year. Much like 2020, 2021 was an atypical year, but our editors still found time for shop visits to tell the stories of those in our industry. With the help of each shop we’ve covered, MMS was able to tell stories with compelling content and imagery, whether interviews were done remotely or in person.

Here are the 10 most popular Modern Machine Shop articles of 2021

When Handing Down the Family Machine Shop Is as Complex as a Swiss-Turned Part: The transition into Swiss-type machining at Deking Screw Products required more than just a shift in production operations. It also required a new mindset and a new way of running the family-owned business.
Why Binderless CBN Inserts Turn Titanium Faster: A new formulation of cubic boron nitride could provide a more solid alternative to cemented carbide as finish-machining becomes more demanding.
Starting With the End in Mind: An Exit Strategy for Machine Shops: John Shegda and Eric Wilhelm each had different ideas about how they wanted to phase into retirement. The exit strategies for the three successful manufacturing businesses the two men operated included a mix of seeking equity groups, selling the business and transitioning into an employee stock ownership plan. All it took was a friendly suggestion from a mutual friend to set them on a different path.
Clamping Solution Facilitates Large-Part Vertical Machining: Mitee-Bite Products’ fixtures demonstrated their powerful clamping support in a project with Akron Gear & Engineering to vertically hold a one-ton ring during machining.
An Introduction to Superfinishing: Learn what superfinishing is, what applications it should be used for and why you should take care when specifying surface finish parameters.
When Organic Growth in Your Machine Shop Isn’t Enough: Princeton Tool wanted to expand its portfolio, increase its West Coast presence and become a stronger overall supplier. To accomplish all three goals at once, acquiring another machine shop became its best option.
How to Modify Feed Rate for Circular Motion Commands: Mike Lynch discusses how maintaining a constant feed rate between linear and circular milling easily leads to chatter. For most applications, users should increase feed rate on external arcs and decrease it for internal.
Probing Feedback Keeps CNC Machining On Track: Senior editor Matt Danford talks about how CNC machine tools that operate like self-contained, automated smart factories can be an introduction or an addition to digital manufacturing workflows.
Improving Workflows in Small Shops with Custom ERP: Small shops might not be ready for all of the functionality of an off-the-shelf ERP system, but modular, custom ERP programs can help improve workflow while providing the flexibility to change as shops grow.
No Such Thing as Luck: A One-Person Shop Owner’s Success Story: You could say he’s a lucky Guy. He has the ideal setup for a moonlighting at-home-machinist: The perfect location, the perfect day job and a double-threat skill set that allows him to hire himself for prototyping and low-volume production work. But Guy Driscoll’s biggest talent might be creating his own luck.