Swarfcast

Swarfcast

Noah Graff, used machine tool dealer and editor of Today’s Machining World, interviews machining company owners, equipment gurus, and experts with insight to help and entertain people working in the machining field. We discuss topics such as how to find quality employees, customer acquisition, negotiation, and the best CNC equipment options for specific jobs.

Episodes

Should I Buy the Expensive or Cheaper CNC Machine? With Justin Tauber–Ep. 159

April 29, 2025 • 40 mins
When you’re shopping for machines do you find yourself wondering if the more expensive option for a machine is the better one? Does a taiwanese brand perform worse than a German brand? Will one machine last longer than another? Are some machines pretty similar between certain brands? The truth is, paying more money for a [...]
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How to Sell a Commodity with Soul, with Mike Pelham–EP 241

April 22, 2025 • 33 mins
I met today’s guest, Mike Pelham, completely by chance — over breakfast at the hotel bar during PMTS in Cleveland. He knew who I was from the podcast. But I didn’t know him. Kind of strange when that happens — but it’s really cool. After we talked for five minutes, I started thinking he could [...]
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Escaping Your Comfort Zone with Lean Manufacturing, Matthew Rassi-EP 216

April 15, 2025 • 56 mins
Working in the machining industry I hear the term “lean manufacturing” mentioned a lot. But what does the word “lean” really mean in this context? And how do you implement it in your company?  To help me clarify these questions, I interviewed Matthew Rassi, founder of Twenty Helping Hands. He’s a lean manufacturing consultant who [...]
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Tai Chi, Machine Tools, and ALS, with Greg Knight-EP 240

April 8, 2025 • 61 mins
Born with no intention of becoming a machinist, Greg Knight says he was drafted into “indentured servitude” at age 16 when his father started a Brown & Sharpe machine shop in their garage. Despite his initial distaste for manual labor, fate had other plans for the psychology, philosophy, religion, and sociology major. I ran into [...]
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Manufacturing Watches is Complicated and Spiritual, with Josh Hacko – EP 195

April 1, 2025 • 76 mins
Josh Hacko is a fourth generation watchmaker. He says he was born into his vocation, but in reality his work is truly his own.  Josh is Technical Director of two sister companies, NH Micro and Nicholas Hacko Watchmaker, which manufactures high-end wrist watches in Sydney, Australia, that can cost tens of thousands of dollars.  The [...]
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How to Sell to a Generation that Won’t Answer Your Calls, with Damon Pistulka-EP 239

March 25, 2025 • 49 mins
On today’s show I’m bringing back  one of my favorite past guests on the podcast—Damon Pistulka. The first time Damon was on the show he talked about his company Exit Your Way, which helps businesses level up for successful acquisitions. Today he is going to talk about his other venture, B2BTail, which advises small manufacturing [...]
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Supplying Medical Parts Directly to Hospitals, with Thadd Mellott-EP 213

March 17, 2025 • 44 mins
My guest on today’s show, Thadd Mellott, called us at Graff-Pinkert because he needed a Star SB20 CNC Swiss machine. His company, Circle M Spring, in Warsaw, Indiana, produces medical parts, including implantable orthopedic components. Circle M Spring is currently merging with a medical component design company that specializes in sports medicine. Thadd is incredibly [...]
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A 150-Year-Old Manufacturing Business Reinvented, Adria and Aaron Bagshaw–EP 200

March 11, 2025 • 47 mins
On today’s podcast episode, you’re going to hear the story of a thriving fifth-generation family manufacturing business that is constantly reinventing itself.  I interviewed Adria and Aaron Bagshaw, owners of W.H. Bagshaw, a machining company in Nashua, New Hampshire, that started over 150 years ago! For 135 years, W.H. Bagshaw produced the same type of [...]
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How I Engineer Getting Lucky in Business-EP 238

March 3, 2025 • 28 mins
Today we’re running a podcast that I guested on in September of 2024 called “Networking and Marketing Made Simple.” The show focuses on how LinkedIn can be used to grow your business. It’s hosted by Scott Aaron, who for the last seven months was my LinkedIn coach, an experience that is already paying dividends in [...]
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Becoming the Machining Doctor, with Erez Speiser- EP 208

February 25, 2025 • 49 mins
Have you ever dreamed about combining your expertise and passions to become an entrepreneur? My guess on today’s podcast did just that. Erez Speiser is the creator of machiningdoctor.com, a site for professionals in the machining industry to get technical information to simplify their work. The site offers resources such as a sophisticated feeds and [...]
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Panama, Tariffs, and Power, with Andrew R. Thomas-EP 237

February 18, 2025 • 53 mins
When Trump was elected President for a second term, I expected there would be a lot of talk about tariffs, but I didn’t anticipate all the attention on the Panama Canal and Greenland. So, it seemed like the perfect time for Lloyd and I to talk to one of our favorite geopolitics experts, Dr. Andrew [...]
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My STAR CNC Swiss Guru, with Dave Polito—EP 169

February 11, 2025 • 40 mins
Dave Polito is my Star CNC guru. He’s always been there when I’ve had questions, whether I was asking about a 1999 Star SA12, or a sweet SV38R located in Asia, or the ever flummoxing Siemens control on an ECAS-20. Dave is the owner of Quality Machine Tool Services, the Star distributor for Illinois and [...]
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Destined to make CNC Tool Holders in the US, with Anthony Davis-EP 236

February 4, 2025 • 35 mins
My guest on today’s podcast, Anthony Davis, told me that since age 10 he and his brother knew they wanted to join their family business, Global CNC, a tooling manufacturer for CNC lathes and mills. Today at age 23, Anthony runs the company alongside his 25-year-old brother, Alexander, and their 84-year-old grandfather who founded the [...]
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Getting Customers to Buy an Unfamiliar Brand, With Salim Awad–EP 186

January 27, 2025 • 51 mins
Spinner is a German CNC machine tool brand that’s been around for 73 years. The company sold 1,200 CNC mills turning centers, and automation systems in Europe last year, yet in the United States, a large amount of people in the machining industry have never even heard of them. At the 2023 Precision Machining Technology [...]
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What it Takes to Start a Multi-Spindle Shop–EP 235

January 18, 2025 • 37 mins
It takes tremendous balls to start a machining company from scratch. And, maybe a little extra chutzpa to start a shop that primarily runs cam screw machines making millions of parts for automotive. After 23 years working in job shops and running a small farm, Karl Drasgow cashed out his 401K to found Drasgow Inc., [...]
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Machining in Mexico, with Rogério Mezadri–EP 167

January 14, 2025 • 28 mins
Our guest on the podcast today is Rogério Mezadri, Director of SAMOT Mexico, a 200-employee automotive machining company in Guanajuato, Mexico. Rogério and I discussed the challenges running a machining company in Mexico. We talked about Mexican manufacturers upgrading technology. We also talked about the difficulty to find enough skilled manufacturing workers in Mexico. Yes, [...]
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What the Heck is Our Strategy for 2025?–EP 234

January 7, 2025 • 49 mins
Damn. It’s already 2025? I was just getting used to the idea that it was 2024. Today, Lloyd and I are reflecting on what worked and didn’t work in our used machinery business and our personal lives over the last year. We’re also discussing our intentions and predictions for the new year. Will we sell [...]
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How to Think Like an Entrepreneur—Not a Technician, with Steve Preda-EP 202

January 1, 2025 • 67 mins
Do you ever ask yourself why the majority of businesses out there are struggling to survive while an elite handful are crushing it? On today’s podcast we are discussing that question. Our guest is Steve Preda, founder of Steve Preda Business Growth. He is also an author of three books and the host of the [...]
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How Optimism Will Lead You to Luck in Business: Seeking Serendipity–EP 179

December 22, 2024 • 5 mins
One of my favorite machinery dealers we work with is from Brazil. He specializes in sending machine tools to South America.  A used machinery deal is usually a challenge to close—even if a customer says they need it. Even if it’s an excellent machine that’s rare on the used market, at a good price, it [...]
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Why Some People Build Companies and Others Don’t, Mike Payne (Part 2) EP 233

December 17, 2024 • 33 mins
I often ponder—why do some people own and build companies, while most people are destined to spend their careers as employees. In Part II of my interview with Mike Payne, owner of Hill Manufacturing & Fabrication, we explore this question. Mike comes from a family of six generations of teachers, not business managers or entrepreneurs, [...]
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