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« on: December 28, 2010, 03:03:47 AM »
First, I would have to ask what level of accuracy your wanting. If their for "farmer Joe" to weld up on his tractor equipment, I would just hang 'em off the end of the vise, cut the profile as best I could, knock 'em up against the belt sander and send them on their way. Otherwise, I personally would not do them all in one big stretch like you have them laid out. If you think along the lines of "2 parts per setup" then you will still maximize the material usage, as indicated by the green vertical line in the pic. Like Ostie said, if it has holes, (more than one, preferably) that's really an advantage, and is going to be your easiest method. Just bolt it to a setup plate using the holes, and then you can cut around the entire profile. Sometimes, I have drilled the holes smaller than required, in order to make a closer fit around the bolt(s), or even ream them for shoulder bolts, and then after the profile is cut, go back and drill the holes to the required diameter. If it does not have holes, I would cut the plates along the vertical green line in the saw, leaving yourself a small bit of extra length for the next operation. Next, put one part in the vise, and square up one of the ends with an end mill. Flip part, square up the opposite end. Rinse and repeat for all the parts. Next, I would discard the vise, or move your operation to the side of the vise, and cut the profiling operation on the milling table. First, find a sacrificial plate, so you can cut the entire depth of the part, without ruining your table. Then square up the part along the table, by using the end you previously squared up as your guide, and hold down the part using a toe clamp or similar. Use an edge finder to get your X zero point. Looks like you have some extra meat in Y, so you might get by without the edge finding in Y, using a guesstimate. Cut along your blue and yellow lines. Flip part around, repeat.
Obviously, "the devil is in the details" as they say, and methods will vary greatly. Everybody has different tools and machinery at their disposal(or lack thereof), along with personal methods.
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