Explore past newsletters, podcast episodes, and shop-floor insights from the CNC Underground community.

Latest from the Underground

The newest stories and conversations from CNC Underground.

#20 – Make or Break Decisions with Tyler Stilson

This week, Tyler Stilson joins Jessica for a real conversation about what it actually takes to grow a manufacturing business in today’s market. From automation and acquisitions to cash flow, customer loss, and AI, the episode breaks down the risks, lessons, and decisions that come with scaling a machine shop.

#47 – The Handoff That Can Wreck A Spindle

This week’s issue covers the realities behind precision machining, from part-off & pickup programming strategies to the shop-floor lessons that shape programmers. We also dive into a new CNC Underground: Afterhours episode focused on scaling machine shops through automation & smart leadership.

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The Underground Archive

Inconel Punishes Programmers

The M-code mistake shops make

Riskiest Moment in a Turning Cycle

Engineering/CAM Communication

7 Ways to Program 5-Axis

One Small Miss, One Big Crash

Finish Tips, Rush Jobs, Terafab

A Near Career-Ending Mistake

7 Ways to Automate CAM Busywork

End Tool Chaos, Smarter Inspection

Rebuilding US Manufacturing

Smarter Roughing, Shorter Cycles

CAM Trends & Tribal Knowledge

That One Button No One Touches

Machine Thin Features w/o Chatter

Everyone Saw It. Nobody Stopped It.

Rough Faster w/o Breaking Tools

Machine Orders Up, 2026 Outlook

MIT’s New Program & Deburring Tips

Tool Life, Safety Tech, Ransomware

Boeing, Mitotec & a Killer CAM Tip

Real-Time CNCs & Smart Toolpaths

Hybrid Mfg & Laser Lathes

Cybercabs, CAM tricks, & CNC Jobs

Microsoft’s Warning 2 Manufacturing

Fixe Bad Finishes

Turning Point for U.S. Manufacturing

Toolpath Fighting Your Machine?

The $6.5B Bet Reshaping U.S. Mfg

Confidence, Auto, & STEM

AI, Gen Z Recruiting, the Utah Boom

Manufacturing Can’t Shake It

The U.S. Just Bought 10% of Intel

MIT’s $500K Manufacturing Club

Billion-Dollar Manufacturing Shift

Automation, Labor, & Reshoring

Made in the USA

Fix Multi-Turret Bottlenecks in CAM

What Most CNC Pros Miss

Will AI Replace Your CAM Job?

Mistake Shops Make With Old Files

One CAM Tip Could Save Your Part

CNC Putter Wins the U.S. Open

U.S. Manufacturing Isn’t Back Yet

AI Knows What….

The people behind the machines

Voices from the underground

Catch every episode of CNC Underground: Afterhours on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

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