Just ran the numbers on my tooling costs last quarter

I added up what I spent on end mills and inserts from January to March and it came to $1,247. Definitely more than I expected for a small shop. Anyone else track this stuff or am I just bad at budgeting?

3 comments

3 Comments

jade_singh1mo ago

$1,247 for three months sounds about right for a small shop, but you might be lumping things together wrong. End mills and inserts are totally different categories that wear out at different rates, so mixing them up can make the number look scarier than it is. Inserts usually need replacing more often than end mills do, especially if you're cutting harder materials. You should track each one separate for a quarter and see where the real money is going. That way you can figure out if you're actually overbuying on inserts or just running them too hard.

troyreed1mo ago

Tracking separate? @jade_singh, now you want me to do math AND shop work.

lily_singh216d ago

@jade_singh makes a good point about splitting those categories up. I track end mills and inserts separate too, and it really shows you where the money is bleeding out. For me, inserts are always the bigger cost because I'm running a lot of hardened steel jobs, so I started buying in bulk packs from a local supplier instead of individual packs online. Another thing that helped was keeping a quick spreadsheet with tool life tracked by hours. If you notice an insert is only lasting half as long as another brand, switch it up. That $1,247 could drop by a couple hundred bucks easy once you find the right combo for your material.