Turning

A rigid machining system is the key to success when hard turning.

Companies share ideas about turning long, large and heavy workpieces.

Options for small shops looking to upgrade their turning equipment.

Manufacturers raise turning productivity by boosting feed rates.

Grades, geometries and a broader knowledge base make machinists less neurotic about turning exotics.

How one shop sifts through the ever-growing array of turning inserts.

Suggestions for turning long, thin parts.

A look at the advantages of plunge turning hardened parts.

Factors that complicate--and fixes that simplify--turning operations.

Turning-test results yield equations designed to maximize productivity.

A new turning tool emits an electric signal when its insert reaches a predetermined wear point or breaks. Called Sensor Tool, sections of the coated insert are ablated by a laser, thereby creating an electronic circuit.

A look at the various types of CNC lathes available to shops contemplating stepping up from a manual machine. The pros and cons of the following lathes are discussed: combination, cutoff, slant-bed, twin-spindle and turn/mill. The author also touches on available options.