The turning range from XYZ Machine Tools has been extended with the addition of the ProTURN RLX 780, a 3 m gap-bed lathe with a swing of 780 mm that has been engineered to use the latest ProtoTRAK control.

Previously, XYZ Machine Tools’ XL series of lathes had been restricted to the Siemens 828D ShopTurn control system, but with developments in drive technology, the first of these large-capacity lathes can now be married with the ProtoTRAK control, opening up opportunities for existing ProtoTRAK users who previously may have resisted the move to Siemens.
Nigel Atherton, managing director of XYZ Machine Tools, says: The ProTURN RLX 780 is the first of our large-capacity lathes to be given the option of the ProtoTRAK control, but it won’t be the last. With the development of the Delta drives and motors they are now fully compatible with the ProtoTRAK control, meaning we can scale up the range of machines available, which will be a very attractive proposition for existing ProtoTRAK users. With the option of an eight-station turret, along with the ProtoTRAK control, the RLX 780 is now a cost-effective competitor for any large capacity turning centre.”
XYZ’s ProTURN RLX 780 shares all the attributes of its sister machine, the XL 780, with a between-centre distance of 3 m, 160 mm diameter spindle bore and a 32 kW spindle coupled to a gearbox providing two speed ranges between 20 and 1300 rpm. A 500 mm diameter three-jaw chuck and four-station automatic indexing turret are also standard equipment.
Most notable among the changes is, of course, the ProtoTRAK control, with its 15.6” touchscreen control enhancing ease-of-use and programming.
For further information www.xyzmachinetools.com

Producing batches from 30 to 20,000, Hertfordshire-based Plastic Turned Parts (PTP) has invested more than £750,000 in four years to the end of 2019 in six new CNC turning centres, helping it double turnover. Five of the machines were delivered by Citizen Machinery, four Cincom sliding-head lathes and, most recently, a Miyano fixed-head model, bringing the total number of lathes on-site from this supplier to nine.

All except two of the Citizen lathes are fitted with the company’s default option bar magazines from Italian manufacturer Iemca, represented in the UK by 1st Machine Tool Accessories.
Managing director and owner Jonathan Newis says: “We particularly like the Elite model fitted to our smallest capacity, 12 mm sliding-head lathe, which has a big-bore kit to take 16 mm diameter bar. The magazine can be swapped over in a matter of seconds from gravity bar feed to walking-beam operation for advancing smaller stock below 6 mm diameter.”
Newis also singles out for praise an Iemca Boss 338-HD Superfast feeding a 20 mm capacity slider. Turning flexible plastic bar is an esoteric art, one of the problems being that, unlike metal bars, thinner stock sags under its own weight both within the magazine and in the space between it and the lathe. Through 1st MTA, the Italian manufacturer modified the barfeed to include solid panels, rather than standard cross struts, for supporting the plastic bars along the length of the magazine. Also produced were bespoke clamping blocks to ensure that small diameter bar remains horizontal in the gap between where it leaves the barfeed and enters the turning centre.
For further information www.1mta.com