Magma Engineering stops taking orders

[HATCH]

Called to see what the current lead time.
Spoke to the owner.
They stopped taking orders as they couldn’t keep up and the back order was beyond 2 years.
5 of the 6 people there had been out with Covid.
The head foreman who has been with him for over 40 years fell and broke a him. It’s just been a nightmare.

They are looking for a machinist. Old school manual machine. So if you know anyone please send them their way.

This explains why I haven’t had a lot of new panel orders.
I do expect a call from a guy in Fla as I was told his machine shipped yesterday.



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[Murphy]

The insanity just gets worse. A company can only produce so much without a major expansion, and it's a gamble when they do. I would wager that a good percentage of those who have ordered that far out (2 years), will grow impatient and cancel their order.
Magma has been around a good while now and I hope the best for them.

Murphy

[bedbugbilly]

I have talked with several "small smaller shops: (small operations not employing large numbers) and most seem to be in the same boat. While it is nice to have orders - not so good when you have to have backorders stacking up and all the time you are working long hours just to try and get production up and out. Add on the uncertainty of what is going to happen with taxes, capital investments in machinery,. etc. - i.e. the Biden kill business instead of the Trump build business attitude . . . it "ain't a pretty picture". I feel for these businesses and what they are going through and truly hope that it all works out for each of them.

[StuBach]

I really hope they make it through this. They do great work but I know they were having staffing issues before Covid as the lack of skilled workers is getting worse. When I had them repair my original star sized owner was super accommodating but he was having trouble with a quality trained welder that could do the work. Hope they are able to fill their needs and get back on track, they’re good people.

[dverna]

It would be a huge loss if they do not make it.

[HATCH]

They aren’t gonna close up shop
It’s just that they are overwhelmed with orders and short staffed


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[dverna]

Hatch,

Good to hear they are not closing. A small operation that has not overinvested will always make it if the owner is interested in staying in business. It is the operations that get into debt that are vulnerable.

BTW, this is one example where trained immigrants can help American businesses. Hard to believe Magma was hit that hard by Covid but it was.

I was planning to order a 9mm and .38 mold from them for my Master Caster. Need to rethink that. I have a couple of good Mi-Hec molds for the .38/.357 so I am not desperate but I can no longer cast for long periods of time manually.

[John Wayne]

Magma is doing fine and not going anywhere. Imagine having everything you produce already sold and people waiting in long lines for your products. They stopped taking orders on the Master Caster February 1st. Finding machinists is tough. The young men that apply at our shop can't read a tape measure. I finally trained one to do that but he couldn't hack it, no work ethic. Most think they can stand around with their cell phone texting or take a smoke break every 20 minutes or spit tobacco in every trash can and yep we're gonna drug test you too.

[country gent]

remember when the computer was the do all save all of the future? Were paying for that now. Young people didnt want to get in the trades they wanted to be in the computer industry programming and such.Now the old timers are retiring and dying off creating a big glut in the shops. I have seen local job shops and tool and die shops advertising for machinists welders tool and die makers berma shave style along the road.

The local vocational school has dropped the Machine trades, machine repair, building, and welding courses for security, programming, and other classes.

[waksupi]

It's getting harder to find real machinists. Man of the businesses have gone to CNC, where all you need to do is know how to push buttons.

[Alstep]

Every small shop or trades business owner that I know of is in the same boat. Can't find help, much less skilled help. Nobody wants to show up on time or get their hands dirty. Most can't pass a drug test. And now they've got to deal with more gov't regulations & taxes. This country is in real big trouble.
Glad I'm retired.

[lightman]

I called them and ordered a heated base for my Star sizer just a few minutes before I got on here. They said that they were out of the thermostats but expected some by the end of the month. They accepted my order. Not the same as a piece of equipment like a casting machine but still encouraging.

Skilled labor is getting harder and harder to find. Everybody thinks their degree in under water basket weaving or political science qualifies them to be a boss. What we really need is more Indians and less Chiefs! Me and probably a bunch of other guys on here made a decent living doing skilled manual labor!

[lablover]

Ordered mine a year ago to the date. Got a calls Friday and it showed up at my door today. Thrilled beyond belief.

[John Wayne]

As of a week ago a nice young lady said they are still not taking orders on Master Caster's as they have several hundred on the waiting list.

[Wayne Smith]

Where are they located? The shipyards around here are training welders, pipefitters, machinists, and other trades all the time. Newport News Shipyard has it's own college, and it is competitive to get into. You spend half the day in class and half the day on the job - and get a full education and practical application at the same time.

[RydForLyf]

Where are they located? The shipyards around here are training welders, pipefitters, machinists, and other trades all the time. Newport News Shipyard has it's own college, and it is competitive to get into. You spend half the day in class and half the day on the job - and get a full education and practical application at the same time.

They're out in the desert, Queen Creek, AZ.

[tinsnips]

I am calling my brother in law he is a retired machinist . The best part he just moved to Queen Creek last fall.

[HATCH]

Just to update ya, a customer of mine just got his master caster in after a year wait.

[waksupi]

It's better to stop taking orders, than to give false expectations. The sales staff at Serengeti were giving people a six month window for delivery. I was doing the scheduling in the shop, and it was easy to see we were at least three years out on new order delivery. We (the builders) went to the company president, and put our foot down. He made sales call all the customers, and give them a legitimate delivery date. Sales were afraid they would get cancellations, thus cutting into their commissions. Well, there were no cancellations, customers continued to order in spite of the long lead time. I hate dealing with companies that lie to you about delivery dates when they know darned well they can't perform at that level. There are more than a few companies that do the same thing.