This topic was discussed in greater detail in Episode 184 of to The Amp Hour. This article is more about the personal feelings that have accompanied this (ongoing) transition.

Starting Friday, for the first time in my adult life I will be without a job; at least a job as I’ve always defined it. I have been employed as a full time electrical engineer (in various roles, the most relevant being analog ones) for 8 years straight. Prior to that I had been working as a co-op for 10-20 hours a week for another 2 years. All told, I would estimate I have worked roughly 17,000 hours up until this point (in an official capacity). While that would qualify me for the “expert” category if you listened to Malcolm Gladwell and the people he was quoting in that book, it feels like I’m just getting started. It feels like I have a TON to learn and the backlog of things I need to know in the future keeps growing. And you know what? That is one of the best parts of engineering! The real story here is that I have been working for the past 8 months on an electronics education program that is currently running. It’s called Contextual Electronics.

I’ve been sour on education lately. Given my entry into the field, I felt it prudent to explain myself.

In general, I’ve been well served by my own education. I went to a great public school system where I grew up and I went to Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) for my undergraduate degree in EE (I have neither a Master’s nor PhD). I had decent grades (solid B+ student throughout my tenure) and I had a good experience with my classmates. So what gives? Why do I complain about education?

I’m not really sure why I hadn’t posted about it here in the past, but it’s true: I’m part of the Google Glass Explorer Program. And last weekend, I went to New York City to go pick up my pair from Google.

I think part of it is I am a little embarrassed about it. I mean, they’re just a bit nerdy, don’t you think? Sure, there’s a slightly “hip” characteristic to them and by themselves they are a beautiful piece of technology; but it’s putting something on my face that automatically showcases that I’m different. Technology usually doesn’t do that. Usually, you need to at least reach into your pocket and show off your new gadget. In this case, not so much. Now you stick what amounts to being a smartphone on your face, the one thing that human brains are really good at recognizing and detecting differences on.

“But Chris, what happened to your milling videos?”

“Well, the same thing that happens to lots of projects, they got re-prioritized!”

I really enjoy working with my new mill! It’s awesome and I’ve learned a ton. I didn’t post it to this site as a separate blog post on this site, but I did post two new videos to my YouTube channel. Both were failures…but that’s ok! A large part of the decision to get the mill was the learning process. The first was figuring out problems in using a half inch cutter and the second in doing profile cuts. But since then, I took a break.

So I finally got my new end mills in the mail and got to the store to buy some 6061 aluminum (good prices on the clearance rack at The Metal Store!)

Anyway, here is my super simple first cut. As I said on Twitter, it feels much like the first time I made a PCB. Nothing even remotely special about this cut, just that I was the one to do it. Guess that’s the power of making.

This is the first time I try cutting anything on the new mill. It’s also the first time I have a full beard on camera (and last!).

The result was mediocre but acceptable for a first try. Stay tuned to see more cuts!

If it hasn’t already been painfully obvious, I’m trying to learn mechanical stuff. Odd for a site that’s supposed to be about electronics, but I’ll get back to that on here eventually. Hopefully you’ll stick around until then. I’ve found that working with the mill has me looking at mechanical problems in a completely different light and has made me a better system designer overall.

I’m pretty good at stressing myself out. Not for any particular reason; normally just because I find it’s more productive than watching TV. How, you ask?

Well, starting podcasts could be one. While they are exciting at the beginning, there is invariably some work that needs to be done. I’ll want to figure out how to get the recording setup to work or make the website more reliable or try and find some kind of funding for it. In the end, it’s driven by my desire to put my voice on the internet, but at the base of it all, there’s no reason I need to be doing this stuff.

I got the mill out of the box and bolted together. No calibration or leveling yet, but that will come in subsequent videos. Enjoy!

This video is showing all of the gear I purchased in preparation for getting my CNC mill up and running. This video shows just about everything except the mill, which will arrive tomorrow. Check out the links below to see all of the stuff I bought, in the event you’d like to purchase some or all of the same gear.

• Accessories and measurement devices
  • Vernier Calipers
  • Dial Indicator
  • Dial Indicator Magnetic Base
  • Feeler Gauges
  • Machinst Square Set
• Controller and Motors
  • Soigeneris STDR-4C Controller which contains:
    • Gecko G540
    • Warp9 USB Smooth Stepper
    • MeanWell power supplies
    • E-stop
  • 166 oz-in Stepper Motors
• Software
  • Mach3
  • CamBam
  • ViaCAD
• Mill
  • Taig 2019CR-ER bought from Carter Tools

Many thanks to everyone who helped me along so far! I really appreciate it, even though I can’t take everyone’s advice all at once. I hope things continue to get more exciting!