Machine Tool Attachments & Accessories

Articles • January 1, 2016 • Matthew Jaster

A 5-axis wireless, indexing tombstone

KME CNC developed a 5-axis tombstone 8 years ago for horizontal machining centers that allows milling on five or more sides of a workpiece and on four different platters in a single setup. Recently, the company unveiled a version that requires no wires, cables or any type of connection, making it easier to move parts in and out of a machine.

Articles • January 1, 2016 • Christopher Tate

Rise of multitasking

The drive to reduce setup times and operator intervention has led to the proliferation of multitask machines. Multitask machines range in price and complexity from lathes capable of driving rotating tools to large machining centers that can effectively perform the turning and milling operations needed to complete complex parts in one setup.

Articles • January 1, 2016 • William Leventon

A Machine Tool for Industry 4.0

Are visitors to a bearing manufacturing facility in Hoechstadt, Germany, getting an early glimpse of what Industry 4.0 looks like? That's the hope of Schaeffler Group, which owns the facility. The plant houses a machine tool meant to show how digitalization works—not in a laboratory, but in an actual manufacturing environment.

Articles • January 1, 2016 • Kip Hanson

Hold tight, and right

Your shop just bought its first 5-axis machining center. Now what? Not only are there new and more complex programming techniques to learn—never mind the mind-boggling variety of part processing options to contend with—there's also the pesky problem of how to grip workpieces. With the ability to tilt, rotate and position parts in ways never before possible, machining five sides of a workpiece in a single setup is a challenging but straightforward exercise—provided clearance between the workpiece, machine table and spindle head is maintained.

Articles • January 1, 2016

Streamlining work flow

CHALLENGE: Reduce setup and cycle times while meeting customers' demands for high-quality parts. SOLUTION: Two horizontal machining centers. END USER: Reinhold Industries Ltd., (780) 434-8552, www.rilflo.com. SOLUTION PROVIDER: Methods Machine Tools Inc., (877) MMT-4CNC, www.methodsmachine.com.

Videos • December 30, 2015

Angle Head Insights: BIG Kaiser

BIG Kaiser Precision Toolng Inc. provides a series of angle head demonstrations in this 3-minute report posted as a video sidebar to the "What's your angle?" feature article in the January 2016 issue of Cutting Tool Engineering magazine.

Videos • December 29, 2015

LinX – The Evolution of the Linear Motor

Looking for a way to reduce grinding cycle times and improve cutting tool quality in order to satisfy customer requirements, Myles most recently invested in an ANCA MX7 Linear CNC tool grinder with linear motors. The LinX Linear Motor consists of a shaft containing magnets and a forcer containing wound copper coils. The symmetric design results in zero attractive forces between the forcer and shaft, greatly reducing the loading requirement on support bearings.

Videos • December 29, 2015

Dot peening in a 3D world

With an amplitude of 16mm, the 3D stylus tip extends and retracts automatically as it follows the shape of various parts in this video from Gravotech Marking SAS. The 3D stylus is a very high amplitude stylus capable of following the relief of every part to be marked.

Videos • December 29, 2015

Hand scraping

While many call hand scraping a lost art, Okuma begs to differ, the company report in a July 2013 video. "While it might be rare to find a craftsman skilled enough to hand scrape effectively, we never lost the art simply because we've always understood how critical hand scraping is to maintaining machining accuracy," according to the company's YouTube channel.

Products • December 29, 2015

TM series tool storage

"TM" series tool storage magazine assemblies are electro-mechanically driven and easy to install. They do not require any pneumatics or hydraulics, and, as such, are extremely reliable, repetitive and low maintenance. The bi-directional magazines are available in three standard frame sizes with or without a linear slide and designed to accommodate CAT 30, 40 and 50, plus the equivalent range of BT, ISO and HSK style toolholders, offered with standard storage capacities of 12, 20 or 30 tools with other capacities being available upon request.

News • December 16, 2015 • Dennis Spaeth

GTI expands into North Carolina

GTI Spindle Technology, Manchester, N.H., recently announced plans to open a new state-of-the-art spindle repair facility in Raleigh, N.C., this month. The new 5,000-square-foot facility will provide full-service spindle rebuild and repair services. The new facility also will provide on-site predictive maintenance services, including vibration analysis routes for customers who want to ensure maximum uptime and reliability for their shops.

Articles • December 1, 2015

Case Study: How a tool producer keeps its edge

Myles Tool Company, Sanborn, NY, since 1977 has specialized in producing standard and special carbide cutting tools for the aerospace, automotive and medical sectors. A one-stop shop for standard tools, regrinds, and special tools made to customer requirements, Myles has grown by investing in new machines and high quality equipment.