MASA’s range of Microconic work-holding systems for the sub-spindle clamping of small workpieces in sliding-head lathes such as those manufactured by Tornos, Citizen and Star, is now extended following product launches at the recent IMTS (Chicago) and AMB (Stuttgart) exhibitions.

Previously, the system was only available for F20 and F25 style collets. However, MASA has extended this line-up to add the F37 (1536E) cartridge for 32 mm diameter capacity machine tools, as well as the F20-201 (136E) system that is specific to Tornos machines. Availability in the UK is via Floyd Automatic Tooling.
Microconic work-holding systems consist of a cartridge and precision collet. The collet fits inside the cartridge and is adjusted before being fitted directly into the existing collet sleeve. No machine adaptations are required.
Featuring clamping diameters from 0.2 to 10 mm, the collets offer a concentricity level of 3 to 5 µm. The cartridge system incorporates a solid extended nose that is said to be rigid and robust. Of note, the device has the facility for micron-adjustment of the collet closure, ensuring that even the most fragile of components can be clamped. These hardened and ground cartridges can also be used as gauges to verify machine spindle accuracy.
The cartridge/collet combination can accommodate openings beyond 4 mm larger than the clamping diameter (depending on the application). This flexibility gives the production engineer the possibility to machine the part the other way around, which can often improve cycle times.
Microconic collets are available in 0.05 mm increments, from 0.22 up to 10 mm diameter. Each collet has a nominal clamping range from 0.05 to 0.1 mm, depending upon the chosen collet diameter.
For further information www.floydautomatic.co.uk

1st Machine Tool Accessories is advising that a quick-change chuck has the ability to eliminate a majority of the time wasted when changing jaws on a conventional chuck, decreasing the delay between the end of op 1 and the beginning of op 2 by as much as 90%.

Instead of wasting 20 minutes, changeover typically takes just two minutes. The company has produced a cost calculation based on the use of a Kitagawa QJR (Quick Jaw Release) chuck, in support of its claims.
The cost comparison generated by 1st MTA, which shows ROI in a very short time, is based on the use of a Kitagawa QJR chuck. Available in four sizes (7, 8, 10 and 12”), QJR chucks use the same jaws as standard chucks in the range.
1st MTA’s hypothetical illustration is based on the use of a QJR10, a 254 mm quick change, three-jaw, large through-hole power chuck with five sets of standard metric quick-change jaws plus soft jaws, which all costs £6124. This chuck interchanges directly with a Kitagawa BB 210 large bore chuck, priced at £2177 with five sets of jaws, with which the comparison is made.
The average time saved when exchanging the QJR chuck instead of the BB chuck is 15 minutes. Based on three set-ups per day and an estimated machining cost of £60 per hour, the daily cost saving for the three changeovers is £45. The difference in purchase price between the two chucks is £3947. At £45 saving per day, the time required to break even is slightly less than 88 days. On this basis, the total saving by the end of the first year is £12,478, after which the annual saving is £16,425.
For further information www.1mta.com

Working in the high-speed, high-pressure, environment of motorsport, West Sussex-based Nova Racing Transmissions is constantly working to tight deadlines.

With customers ranging from teams in the World and British Superbike championships, down to club-level racers, producing parts on-time is vital. For this reason, the company has turned to tooling partner Ceratizit UK & Ireland and its WNT brand to deliver improved performance across its machining activities, particularly in the manufacture of gear selector forks.
The most recent development was the introduction of WNT’s ZSG4 centric vices, along with its MNG zero-point location system (pictured), which is used on the bed of the company’s new XYZ 710 VMC HD and on the 4th-axis unit on the machine. As a result, an on-machine flowline has been created that delivers one complete selector fork every cycle from a raw billet. This new process delivers both time savings, with set-up times halved, as well as improved quality and consistency.
“Prior to the adoption of the MNG zero point and ZSG vices we used conventional vices to hold cumbersome fixtures,” says manager Daniel Vaughan. “However, we can now grip on just 3 mm of raw billet, machine one face completely, transfer the part to the 4th axis to machine a location pin, before finish machining the second face [gripped in aluminium jaws that match the shape of the selector fork],” says Daniel Vaughan, manager, Nova Racing Transmissions. “In addition, we are seeing improved surface finish and consistency of parts, with repeatability of between 2-3 µm from fork-to-fork.”
Nova Racing Transmissions’ partnership with Ceratizit is a two-way street, with Nova supplying gearboxes and gear ratios to Sam Burman and her WNT Burman Racing MOTO 3 GP team, which she races in the British Motostar Championship.
For further information www.ceratizit.com