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Rob Ellis

@rad_rob

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I like to make cool stuff.
Director of R&D Mfg @maztech_industries

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Well if you thought drifting RC cars was nerdy, wait until you see what’s next on the list. My son has been asking to build a train so we can join the @ocme_trains club and as a dad I’ve been waiting for the day for my boys to ask to get into a hobby that we can do together! It’s also my duty to teach my son how to responsibly dabble in hobbies, and not let it consume every waking thought. And since that’s never going to happen, I came across the perfect place to start thanks to @jtengineeringmodels who designed the perfect starter train that won’t cost a billion dollars to get going. I spent some time in Fusion this weekend and took all the files that come with the design for laser cut and decided to make parametric 3d models of them so I could build the full assembly on the computer so I can not only make sure I weld everything in the right locations, but I can also make whatever changes I want to it now depending on where the build goes. This will just make it easier to configure where to mount the motor, chain lengths, and machine some upgrades for it. I still have a ways to go with the model, I’ll add in the trucks, wheels, batteries, motor, etc as I go, this was just getting the main cab modeled. I can already see this is going to be a hobby that will quickly spiral out of control, but if it means spending time with my family doing something cool, I’ll take that over anything on this planet. I had to talk myself out of going with a much bigger engine for the first build, but we gotta start somewhere. I promised myself I would never force my hobbies on my boys. I wanted them to organically find whatever makes them happy and be able to support them whatever that ended up being. I’ve built some cool stuff in my years, but the fact that my son will think this is easily my coolest build to date, I’ve already won. by @rad_rob

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2 days ago

You ever hop in a really slow car, and beat the absolute piss out of it? I’m talking just bounce it off the limiter, bang shift it into 2nd without the clutch, and just scream all the way the up to 30? You know that absolute rush of adrenaline? That’s the exact same feeling when you get a good surface finish using a cheap tool. Thin walls, deep pockets, and cheap tools and it still came out pretty alright. I’ll take it. Sometimes cheap tools come in clutch, this is one of those times! by @rad_rob

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21 days ago

It’s been a busy week in the shop, and we’ve officially started development a new product, and I’ve begun what is arguably my favorite part of what I do. Bringing a new product to life is so rewarding, and the process of doing that is what keeps me on my toes. All new parts means all new programs, all new fixtures, all new everything. It’s an absolute monster of a workload, but it’s what makes my day exciting. It also means a lot of trial and error not just from a manufacturing perspective, but also for our engineers. Which of course means reworks, and lots of them. We rarely get it right on the first shot, but even when we do, we massage and finesse until we’re all happy with it. When we started this venture years ago into this space, we knew it was going to be a pretty tall task to not only compete in this industry, but do our best to stay at the top. My role here is to bring our engineers visions to life, and whatever challenge that presents I get to solve. Thankfully I’ve got @thekubz here in the shop with me to crank all this stuff out. We’re gonna enjoy a nice long weekend for a change, and then get right back to it next week. We’ve got some cool products coming, and I’ve got a lot of programs to write. 🤘🤘 by @rad_rob

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a month ago

Just over here makin’ some freakin’ lasers! This automated station is humming right along! So many hours into this but it’s what we do! This is one teeny tiny part of the process that goes into building our LRF’s and unlike seeing how the sausage is made, this isn’t disgusting. Seeing this bad mamajama in action feels pretty darned good. Once these are finished up here in our California R&D lab, they get shipped up to our Montana factory where the rest of the magic happens. Now that this station (for the most part) is done and dusted, I can finally get to our next order of business. I will share more when the time is right on what exactly that is, but I can promise you it will be worth the wait. We’re just getting warmed up! @maztech_industries #maztechindustries #cnc #automation by @rad_rob

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a month ago

I know I’m biased, but I think these came out kinda cool. #cnc #machining #bronco #customwheels #billet by @rad_rob

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a month ago

Finally had a quick minute to wrap up these center caps. The shop is the busiest it’s been in a while, so this one has been an off and on project for the past couple weeks. I really wanted to make some cool center caps for these wheels that looked pretty cool, but I also never installed hub rings on this and it always kinda bugged me. There’s been a debate on whether wheels being bolted in lug centric is sufficient for strength, and whether hub-centric rings are necessary. Well, I’m not here to argue one way or the other, but I always lean into better safe than sorry. Either way, these look cool as heck, and I’m pretty proud of the outcome. Super simple part, but makes a huge difference in how cool these wheels look! Now it’s time to start brain storming my next project. by @rad_rob

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a month ago

Trying to make new family traditions, and we wanted to book-end the summer with some family trips. We started the summer off in Vegas, and ended it down in San Diego to spend some family time together to celebrate my wife’s birthday, and have one last fun trip before the boys go back to school next week. Had such a great time just hanging out and making memories. Life is good! by @rad_rob

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a month ago

Fantastic time with this crew for the Baseball at Angle Stadium! by @rad_rob

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4 months ago

Got the wheel all wrapped up today. I’ll start working on the tire next, but pretty stoked! This design was a little trickier than it appears at first glance, but it’s always good to tackle a challenge. The tire will be a fun one. #3dscan #rays #toyo #bronco by @rad_rob

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4 months ago

It was a nice Friday night, the Angels were doing what they do best, losing, and I decided these wheels need a nice set of center caps. My initial thought was I should just grab my calipers and take a couple quick measurements and go to town. However, the more reasonable side of me decided it would be a much more efficient to 3d scan the whole wheel and tire, then make a cad model of the whole assembly, then finally design some caps. I’m getting more efficient at the scanning side of things, and this is just an excuse for me to bust the scanner out and remind myself why I need to do it way more often. 😂 One of these days, I’ll pick a project and edit a video from start to finish of the entire process. My ADHD has a hard time with that, but I’ll definitely be posting more about this project as I go through the process of converting this scan into a fully detailed CAD model. Then maybe I can see how big of a brake caliper I can fit in there while I’m at it… by @rad_rob

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4 months ago

Decided with the new plates it was only proper to take the spare back off and throw the delete plate back on. I just need to get an additional backup camera to make the changeover plug and play, but this project is pretty much wrapped up now. It’s time to move onto another project, and that’s going to be some custom center caps for the wheels. More on that soon! #ford #bronco #cnc #machining #billet by @rad_rob

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4 months ago

I've always been a fan of F10 BMWs and when I saw the guys at @drift.hq building the #2jz F30 I had to do it. I just had to do it my way, all from the couch like @jon_volk_ With all the CAD data, anyone wanting to this can reach out to purchase any parts I've designed! @rad_rob got these parts done in record time. We've got more parts to get through soon enough!
Ps. Yes, buying an M5 like @chelseadenofa would have been cheaper.🥲 by @rad_rob

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4 months ago