What They Don’t Tell You About Heat Treat, Retirement or Robots (PMTS RECAP) | 21

Patrick, Cameron, and Bradley are diving deep into shop life this week — the kind of stuff you don’t always hear talked about out loud.

Bradley just got back from PMTS and saw a robot setup that legit blew his mind — we’re talking about loading vises, inspecting parts with lasers, updating offsets… all automated. Could that kind of tech actually work in a one-man job shop?

Patrick walks through how he’s heat treating tool steel in-house, and why it’s not some mysterious black magic — just the right temp, some foil, and knowing your steel. Meanwhile, Cameron chimes in on the chaos of custom work, making things efficient, and why retirement plans in this trade aren’t as straightforward as they should be.

Oh — and they all swap stories on the messiest, worst, and weirdest jobs they’ve ever had to machine. Spoiler: there are some gems.

If you’re into real shop talk, no fluff — just machining, learning, laughing, and trying to keep the lights on — you’re in the right place.

👇 Jump in the comments:
 Do you heat treat your own parts? Ever tried shop automation? What’s the worst job you’ve had to run?

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Connect with the hosts on Instagram:
Patrick Mcclintock: IG: https://www.instagram.com/job_shopper_tn/ or PM@Job Shopper TN
Cameron Graves: IG: https://www.instagram.com/machiningiscool/ or PM@Machiningiscool
Bradley Thomas: IG: https://www.instagram.com/marvelmachining/ or PM@Marvel

Thanks for listening!!!