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Redmond High Panther Tech students proudly display their Titans of CNC projects, created with the help of Mastercam CAD/CAM software.
“Being in the guitar industry for so long, my garage is full of exotic wood,” he said. “I give it to the students if they have a project to do.”
In addition to receiving support for the SkillsUSA competitions, the Panther Tech program receives donations and grants. In May, it received a $15,000 Gene Haas Foundation scholarship that will help eligible students with college tuition expenses. Like many other institutions, Redmond High School Panther Tech took a hit during 2020 when coronavirus shut down the school. Hands-on learning came to an abrupt halt.
“We had done the Haas certification,” Kernion recalled. “I had the kids all the way through the entire program and a representative from our Haas Factory Outlet was to come out and give the final exam. And then COVID happened. So, I had kids waiting to take the final exam.”
Before the pandemic, Kernion would start his classes with the basics, introducing students to the interface
and tools. Over the last eight years, he has approached introductory classes with the assumption that his students do not know much about manufacturing. He soon discovered that assigning projects that appeal to his young proteges is key in building—and keeping—their interest. Class projects for beginners include creating dominoes and dice which require students to machine six sides of a part, quite an advanced process for a budding machinist. Kernion described how one student made a tricky-triangle peg game.
“She drew and programmed it in Mastercam, and machined it on our Haas Mini Mill,” he said. “It was made of 6061 aluminum alloy. The student used OptiRough to rough out the triangle and eliminate the surrounding material and cleaned it up with a couple of contour passes to get the deflection out because we went full depth - maybe 1 1/8-inch in depth.”
The Dynamic OptiRough toolpath is ideal for any
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