Fixtures to Reduce Large-Part Handling

Royal Machine and Tool Corp. (www.royalworkholding.com) says its innovative workholding ideas reduce parts handling while concentrating machining operations and contributing to efficiency and productivity.

Royal Machine and Tool built its Special "C" Frame Fixtures to reduce the number of operations required by clamping large valves on the parts' bodies, rather than on the flanges. Changing the clamping position allows valve body flanges and weld connections to be machined completely in one setup. The fixture uses interchangeable top clamps and nests to increase their versatility so they can accommodate a family of parts.

LMC Workholding (www.loganmmk.com) has developed another fixture designed for large parts and to reduce part handling . The company says its Neidlein FSB 75 face drivers quickly grip and turn a workpiece from its end, allowing the operator to machine the entire O.D. of workpieces in one operation.

The face driver is designed to make heavy cuts on large bar stock and forged workpieces to 12-ft long with diameters to 28 in. and weighing as much as 13,000 lb. With an infeed to 32 mm (1.259 in.) and a feedrate of approximately 1 mm (0.0394 in.) per rotation, the FSB 75 can be used in applications such as mining, heavy engineering industries and the manufacture of semi-finished parts, such as shafts and forged rolls.