Lathe

A map of the tooling a CNC lathe actually needs — chucks, live centres, static and driven holders, inserts and the accessories that make them fit.

The three lathe turret interfaces compared: VDI, BOT and BMT, what the size numbers mean, and why two turrets marked BMT60 will not take the same block.

A customer's Autostrong N212 died on a 30-year-old Okuma — and behind the spindle sat a drawtube assembly that appears in no manual. What it took to fit a modern chuck to it.

Live tooling refers to rotary-driven tools mounted on a CNC lathe that allow for milling, drilling, and tapping operations on a rotating or stationary workpiece. Unlike static tools, live tools enable multi-axis machining without additional setups, improving flexibility and cycle times.