Hit 10,000 parts without a single reject and it kinda blew my mind

I've been running this Haas VF-2 for about 3 years now, mostly aluminum housings for a local aerospace shop. Last week I hit 10,000 parts and realized I haven't had a single reject since I dialed in that one tricky operation on the third fixture. It was just this quiet Tuesday morning, nothing special, but I looked at the counter and had to double check. I remember when I started and could barely hold +/- .005 without scrapping stuff left and right. Now I'm holding .0005 on critical bores and it feels almost automatic. But honestly I think it's more about the little things like checking your coolant concentration and not rushing tool changes. Has anyone else hit a number like that and realized how far you've come without noticing?

3 comments

3 Comments

seanjohnson28d agoMost Upvoted

The coolant thing is something people overlook until it bites them. I started checking mine every morning after a bad batch of 6061 where the concentration drifted and I got gummy chips all over the place. That one habit probably saved me more rejects than any fancy toolpath or toolholder upgrade. It's funny how the boring maintenance stuff ends up being what makes the numbers work.

seanjohnson28d agoMost Upvoted

The 6061 gummy chip nightmare is exactly what got me too. I swear people think coolant is just for keeping things wet but it does all the heavy lifting on that alloy. Now I check my refractometer first thing, before I even turn on the spindle. If the concentration is off by even half a point, I see it in the finish before the part is done.

noah88026d ago

Boring maintenance stuff ends up being what makes the numbers work" hit me hard man. I had the exact same thing happen on a production run of 5,000 parts, started checking my coolant mix daily after a bad batch of 7075, and suddenly my reject rate dropped to zero.