Get Better Small Lathe Parts with Swiss Turning Capabilities

Tired of machine shops no-quoting your small lathe parts or providing inconsistent parts for production runs? You need a shop that specializes in Swiss turning capabilities.  

Many shops avoid small lathe parts because they don’t have the right capabilities or the experience using small lathe tooling. Shops that do have those capabilities are often only interested in high-volume runs with a minimum of 500 parts or even thousands of parts per order. 

At Wagner Machine, we have been machining small lathe parts for decades and are happy to make any quantity you need—from prototypes to high-volume production. 

What Sets Swiss Turning Apart?

Swiss machines are ideal for machining parts with long length to diameter ratios, or parts with complex geometry and small features. They are also great options for less complexparts that need to be made fast. One common misconception is that you have to use expensive, ground material for swiss turning. That isn’t true in most cases and we regularly use common extruded and drawn material ranging from plastic and aluminum to tool steel and stainless steel. We use swiss lathes to efficiently machine micro lathe parts that have to be inspected optically, all the way up to 1.25” diameter parts.

Swiss machines are much more cost effective for machining small parts than larger, more generalized lathes because they are optimized for a small size range. These optimizations include the ability to use a guide bushing to support delicate parts, higher spindle RPM, gang tooling for tool changes of less than .25 seconds, fast spindle synchronization, and dedicated tooling for the sub spindle processes. We also have specialized capabilities to do deep hole drilling, long part ejection, and 5-axis milling. High pressure coolant for chip control and bar loaders enable automation for unattended, high-volume production.

Any shop can make small parts on a standard CNC lathe. But our Swiss turning process is optimized to produce small lathe parts with excellent surface finishes, tight tolerances, and the best consistency in the most efficient way possible. 

Why Come to Wagner Machine for Your Small Lathe Parts?

Benefits of leveraging our Swiss turning capabilities for your small lathe parts include: 

• Low cost. Our Swiss screw machines have the ability to machine the front and back of a part simultaneously. That means you can get up to half of the part features machined for free!
  
• Short lead time. With our Swiss turning capabilities, we can run parts faster and more consistently than an average lathe. Our Swiss CNC machines run unattended, which shortens lead times and further reduces cost for higher volume production. We also have a lot of machines, so we can scale production to meet your demand or fit in a prototype run when you need it.
  
• High quality. Quality should always be a given—and at Wagner Machine it certainly is. But the fact is that a Swiss CNC machine will always produce higher quality small lathe parts than a standard lathe. Swiss CNC machines also guarantee exceptional part consistency with minimal variation from one part to the next. The process completes every single feature in one step, so parts come off the machine ready to go without requiring manual or secondary finishing operations.

When you need a reliable supplier for high quality turned parts 1.25” diameter or under, you need Wagner Machine’s Swiss turning capabilities. 

Do you need to source small lathe parts? Request a quote and we’ll be in touch shortly to discuss your project.