Australia Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice


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Thread: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

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    Member Bleek's Avatar
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    Default Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Hello all.

    Firstly I want to be upfront that at this stage I have next to no idea about machining or CNC lathes etc. I am doing a basic feasibility study for a friend and I who are both professional trombone/trumpet players, he also has a background in architecture and CAD, into making custom mouthpieces for trombone and trumpet in Sydney.

    In other parts of the world small boutique operations have been set up using; https://tormach.com/machines/lathes/8l-lathe.html
    And here is a small article detailing a small boutique company's manufacturing process in New York; https://blog.tormach.com/instrument-...d-his-business

    Here is a YouTube video showing a quick idea of the process required;

    The equipment required is to design by CAD and mill from a brass blank to take to a point of sending off for silver plating.

    Thank you for providing an Australian perspective from enthusiasts

    Ben

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    Member peteeng's Avatar
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    Default Re: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Hi Bleek - I'm from northern NSW and design machinery for customers and have a lot of contract machining done. I would not consider getting your own lathe to do this. In Sydney there would be 100's of machinists that can do this very easily on very fast, expensive lathes for a reasonable price. I'd get good manufacturing drawings and a step file of what you want and send out to machinists for quotes. Find someone close and keen and then you only have to deal with the customer and the CAD work. Manufacturing, especially a start up (of which I've done a few times over the years, is not easy) Paying off a lathe that's not working 10 hrs a day won't happen. Down the track if you end up doing 100's and have a few months of work on the horizon then consider bringing it in house if needed (but then you will need to learn to be a machinist which is a trade and takes years to get right & you will stress out absolutely when things go wrong, been there etc ). But I think contracting is the go short and long term IMHO

    I have found that many people who are not familiar or trained with manufacturing and manufacturing quality drawings & processes get the wrong deal from shops because they are too much trouble to deal with, get someone who knows what a manufacturing drawing should have on it and look like, to review your drawings so it is presented in a professional manner. Plus know exactly what material you want it made from and that's on the dwg. If the info is clear the machinist will easily be able to quote, even for one unit. If you wander in and don't know the material, the surface finishes (off the lathe, polished to whatever micron etc the plater will probably be able to polish to spec before plating vs the machinist but the part has to be finished to a suitable roughness for polish and this affects machining cost), the correct geometric tolerances etc your job will be put in the too hard basket. For instance the finish on the taper will be important too rough and it may not seal too smooth and it may jam and never come out...

    These days with CAD its straight forward to give a shop a solid model but that's only 25% of the info needed to quote the job and then get it done, more research on manufacturing you need Bleek . Peter



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    Default Re: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Hi Bleek - Just a thought, does anyone make mouthpieces from stainless steel then have them electropolished? (did some research and yes SS is out there) This will be an easier pathway then silver plate... even titanium has its benefits. But maybe its out of field for your potential clients. I did a quick read about energy projection and clarity and sorry that's marketing hype. Its the shape that's important... not the material...Peter



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    Default Re: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Thank you for your honest responses. Is really very helpful. Peter I think you are absolutely right about finding a local machinist to at least dip our toe in this enterprise. Because we are investigating producing items that will sell for around $250 I was unsure whether outsourcing the machining and plating would be a worthwhile prospect.

    In a way I was investigating if the technology was at a point where if you can feed in good CAD information if it takes care of the rest. I don’t really have an interest in putting my 10,000 hours into being a machinist. My passion is the creation of tools for musicians.

    Also, yes some companies are making mouthpieces using stainless steel and titanium. I have played a titanium mouthpiece, it was very light. Maybe I’m too far down the rabbit hole but I have played the same mouthpiece for example in standard brass and bronze and musically it responded noticeably differently!



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    Default Re: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Hi Bleek - Were the Ti and Brass identical in geometry? CAD information is fine but the machinist needs to know what surface finish to achieve and what tolerances to achieve and this is not captured in the geometry file.. The lower the specs the cheaper the part will be. Find a keen local machinist and work thru the issues with them... also decide on your margins you may need to make it for $50 to be able to make a profit and sell it for $250. Or maybe $100 will work. Depending on the lathe type available will also determine the cost. Good luck - Peter



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    Default Re: Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

    Thanks again Peter. Very quickly here is a mouthpiece I have that is in silver plated bronze. Very heavy, from my impression the note starts very quickly and plays loudly easily Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice




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Brass Trumpet/Trombone mouthpiece CNC lathe advice

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