Available from Wokingham-based SGS Carbide Tool (UK) Ltd
(www.sgstool.com), the new MST Corporation Slimline Z-Chuck is a new shrink-fit tool-holder that offers a number of key performance benefits when applied to difficult-to-machine materials, or when using aggressive cutting strategies.
The design incorporates two independent features that eliminate the risk of the cutting tool pulling out of the holder (due to chatter or sudden loads) and rotational slipping of the cutter in the holder.
SGS’s EU managing director, Alan Pearce, says: “With the Z Shank standards, the new holder offers twice the gripping strength of existing shrink-fit holders; and because the Z shank standards are ‘open’, cutting tools can be modified to suit or purchased with the necessary forms. These include a 2mm radius groove and a pair of flat surfaces that vary in size, depending on the diameter of the cutting tool. The flats are used to stop the cutter slipping or twisting around the centre-line of the holder, as they engage with dogs inside the Slimline Z-Chuck. Cutting tools are loaded and unloaded in much the same way as any standard shrink-fit tool holding system, with the added turning of the tool to lock it into place.”
Available with most popular spindle interfaces, the Slimline Z-Chuck can be specified with HSK-A63, HSK-A100 and HSK-A125, as well as BT, CAT and DIN 40 and 50. Moreover, the curved nose of the tool-holder provides maximum clearance when accessing the workpiece — a vital consideration when using simultaneous five-axis machining strategies.