10
Showerthought: Those tool presetters we swore were overkill actually save my neck on repeat jobs
I fought buying a tool presetter for like two years. Figured it was just another gadget for shops with too much money. Then we got a rush order for 500 identical aluminum parts at my shop in Denver. Setup time was killing me, like 45 minutes each time swapping tools. The owner finally bought a used one for $800, a basic model. First job I used it on, I cut my setup time down to maybe 10 minutes. And I stopped having to scrap the first part because my offset was off by .001. Still not sure I'd drop the cash for a new one, but for repeat runs it's a no-brainer. Has anyone else had a piece of equipment they were dead wrong about?
4 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In4 Comments
tessaperry14d ago
800 bucks for a used one is the move, I paid 1200 for mine and it paid for itself in a week on a single repeat job. Just make sure you check the calibration before every use or you'll be chasing ghosts.
9
young.michael14d ago
Had a buddy who ran a small job shop and swore his eyes were good enough to eyeball tool heights. First time he used a borrowed presetter on a 200 piece run he called me and said "I've been doing this wrong for fifteen years." He bought one the next week and now keeps it on a pedestal like it's a religious artifact.
3
blair7014d ago
...and the first time I used mine I spent twenty minutes trying to figure out why it was telling me my tool was half an inch shorter than I set it. Turns out I forgot to take the plastic cap off the end of the probe. So yeah, I'm real smart with technology. But once I got past my own stupidity, I felt like the biggest idiot for waiting that long. Now I won't run a job without it, even simple stuff. My previous method was basically "vibes and prayers" for setting tools.
1