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.
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"? :bluewink:
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.
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.
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.
Fully understood...the difference between perhaps 98.7% & 100%, with the satisfaction of providing the ultimate, and personal, finishing touch.
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