Mouthpiece CAD/CAM and Machining videos

**mfry** · 01-20-2012, 06:26 PM

I've put a few videos up on youtube of the new mouthpieces. Some of the CNC machining, but also a bit of the CAD/CAM stuff.

enjoy!

**hartt97** · 01-20-2012, 06:52 PM

Awesome!

**swansong** · 01-20-2012, 09:22 PM

Thanks for sharing! Obviously you have invested a lot in this amazing mechanical setup- but what are your thoughts on the new 3D printing technology to make the complex shapes of various mouthpieces? Do you think an additive process would have any more control or benefits compared to CNC "subtraction" and experimenting with revolutionary designs? Would you experiment with any other materials to make mouthpieces from exotic materials, instead of the limitations of working with a solid blank? Very fascinating stuff, the nexus between technology and musical expression... Love it!

**mfry** · 01-20-2012, 11:10 PM

Originally Posted by swansong

Thanks for sharing! Obviously you have invested a lot in this amazing mechanical setup- but what are your thoughts on the new 3D printing technology to make the complex shapes of various mouthpieces? Do you think an additive process would have any more control or benefits compared to CNC "subtraction" and experimenting with revolutionary designs? Would you experiment with any other materials to make mouthpieces from exotic materials, instead of the limitations of working with a solid blank? Very fascinating stuff, the nexus between technology and musical expression... Love it!

3D printing is perfect for shapes like this. I had some prototypes printed last year, in fact. Worked fine, played right but ugly and I'm not sure the plastic in that case was fit for long term use. Printing with the necessary precision in the right materials is still prohibitively expensive (especially in metal -- the machines for that can cost about 100 times what my machine did), but I do think it's the future of manufacturing for a host of products, including these. Still quite a ways off, though.

**domo** · 01-21-2012, 04:00 AM

cool!

**Koen88** · 01-21-2012, 01:05 PM

Very nice videos Mr.Fry! that`s some real engineering work done there.

**Captain Beeflat** · 01-21-2012, 04:35 PM

Morgan. That must be the way to make consistent mouthpieces.
Presumably, when set up correctly, you work to tolerances of + or- the square root of sod all.
Unless a customer requires a different design there will never be a need for refacers.
Makes one wonder why Otto-Link & Berg-Larsen, and others, continue to get away with unacceptable variation.
Work out the perfect design & you (and SR Tech) will have the market to yourself.
Why should a CAD/CAM mouthpiece ever require "hand finishing"?

**mfry** · 01-21-2012, 11:14 PM

Originally Posted by Captain Beeflat

Morgan. That must be the way to make consistent mouthpieces.
Presumably, when set up correctly, you work to tolerances of + or- the square root of sod all.
Unless a customer requires a different design there will never be a need for refacers.

Might not be the only way but it's the only way I know.

Why should a CAD/CAM mouthpiece ever require "hand finishing"?

Some things are just more efficient to do by hand unless you have a lot more machine than I have (e.g. with a simpler design and the right lathe you could probably run lights out). Depending on how you're doing it, some features can be the difference between say 10 minutes by hand or 2 hours by machine. And I still prefer to finish the really important bits (facing, baffle, tip) by hand. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I have yet to see a piece come out of a machine that I couldn't make play better.

**jlima** · 01-22-2012, 12:23 AM

Fascinating, Morgan. I wish you great success!

**Captain Beeflat** · 01-22-2012, 11:40 AM

Originally Posted by mfry

And I still prefer to finish the really important bits (facing, baffle, tip) by hand. Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I have yet to see a piece come out of a machine that I couldn't make play better.

Is it not therefore possible to programme your final hand detailing into the CAD/CAM programme?
Or, is the hand finishing simply de-burring?

**mfry** · 01-22-2012, 02:23 PM

Originally Posted by Captain Beeflat

Is it not therefore possible to programme your final hand detailing into the CAD/CAM programme?
Or, is the hand finishing simply de-burring?

It is possible. It would mean scanning a finished piece, then pushing that data to the model, for every size. And it would add a significant amount of time and cost to every piece -- machining a mirror finish, an extra setup, a process much less tolerant of variance. And it would take away the best part of my job.

I don't know, I like to think of what we do as art (or at least in the service of art) and I'm uncomfortable with fully automating the process. Maybe it's irrational but that's how I feel.