Trak Machine Tools Lathes Offer Compact, Heavy Duty Performance | Modern Machine Shop

IMTS 2024: The Trak TC2 and the Trak TC820si are compact lathes designed for production applications.

Trak Machine Tools showcases two new turning products: the Trak TC2 and the Trak TC820si for production applications.

The TC2 is a compact slant-bed lathe featuring the ProtoTrak RLX CNC made for low-volume/high-mix production applications. The Trak TC2 joins its counterpart, the Trak VMC2 in a family of products characterized by portability as well as small size.

The lathe occupies 80" × 37" of floor space, while still delivering cutting capacities of up to 8" in diameter and 11" in length. The 3,100 lbs. of weight and 7.5-hp motor enable it to take cuts even after being placed into a new position without re-leveling or lag bolting.

The Trak TC820si is a production turning center that features the powerful Sinumerik One CNC by Siemens. The live tooling version is on display in the booth. The lathe can handle workpieces up to 8" in diameter and 20" in length. It has a 3" spindle bore and the spindle rpm runs from 10 to 4,000 rpm. The hardened box ways deliver higher rigidity, better damping and less vibration, making the machine well suited for all-purpose, heavy duty cutting.

Finish machining additively manufactured implants requires different pacing and workflow than cutting parts from stock — different enough for an experienced manufacturer to warrant a dedicated machine shop.

Almost any shop can automate at least some of its production, even in low-volume, high-mix applications. The key to getting started is finding the simplest solutions that fit your requirements. It helps to work with an automation partner that understands your needs.

To meet the extreme tolerance of the telescope’s beryllium mirrors, the manufacturer had to rely on stable horizontal machining centers with a high degree of consistency volumetric accuracy.