Broaching On A CNC Lathe
One operation seen on many turned parts today is broaching. Traditionally
broaching has been regarded as a secondary operation that was typically performed
on a broaching machine with special broaching tools. Depending on the industry,
much of this type of broaching is still being done in this manner. For instance, in the
automotive sector, almost all broaching is done by large expensive automatic
broaching machines with specially designed broaching tools that can produce the
broaching at very high speed and short cycles.
Of course the fact that they are doing over a million parts per year has much to do
with their method of manufacturing the parts. But today, even in the automotive
sector, the need for JIS and reduced inventory, can justify doing parts complete on a
single piece of equipment such as the multi-axis turn/mill center. With this
equipment, a new job can be easily modified and reconfigured for revision and
design changes. This is where flexibility wins out over speed.
Types Of Broaching.
There are a few different types of broaching that can be performed on the
CNC lathe.
#1. Single slot broaching on the inside or outside diameter of a part.
#2. Multiple shapes such as hexagons or squares.
#3. Timed broaching or broached slots that require an angular position to
another feature on the part.
#4. Free position broaching that does not require an angular position to
another feature n the part.
#5. Rotary Broaching
#6. Reciprocating Broaching
The type of broaching you need to do, will determine your tooling choice and
method.
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