Disclaimer: As an Amazon affiliate, I may earn a small percentage from qualifying purchases. This is at no extra cost to you. Learn more here. Having a decent combination lathe or lathe mill combo in your shop opens up a lot of opportunities. Well, that’s if you’re well-trained in using the mach

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > Lathes 101: Everything You Need to Know  Finding the right lathe is an important step when building your business or hobby. Here at Summit Machine Tool, we are committed to helping you find the lathe that best fits your needs and your machine shop. Before

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > What is a Milling Machine? Even though every machine tool plays an essential role on the typical machine shop floor, the milling machine is the one that most owners would likely call “indispensable.”  From automotive parts and aerospace components to tooli

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > When to Choose a Big Swing Lathe vs a Standard Lathe Have you been looking for a lathe selection guide? At Summit, we’re here to help. Here is an industrial lathe comparison to help you make the best choice for your needs. When you’re looking for a lathe f

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > How to Choose the Right Big Lathe for Industrial Projects When looking for an industrial big lathe for your industrial-sized workpieces that you will be making, there are a few different types of industrial big lathes you can choose from. The experts here

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > Why Spindle Health Is Critical to Stable Machining Whether you are running a mill or a lathe, both have a spindle. The spindle is one of the main components of almost all CNC and manual machines in a metalworking shop. If one of your machines didn’t ha

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > Beginner’s Guide to Milling Operations on Vertical Bed Mills If you are just starting out in metalworking, you should definitely check out vertical bed mills. These machines are extremely rigid and offer precision and versatility for any job you throw at i

Home > Blog > Uncategorized > Machine Tools in Modern Manufacturing Modern manufacturing demands precision, efficiency, and repeatability. Machine tools deliver these results by turning raw materials into finished parts using milling, turning, grinding, and drilling. Whether for aerosp

Every month, we’re putting together a Technology Showcase to highlight new product information that PM has received from supplier companies. For the latest new products across the broad spectrum of precision machining, check out Production Machining’s New Products online. If you would like to le

Could your manufacturing operation benefit by taking a more “full service” approach? A while back, I visited to learn about the how’s and why’s of contract machine shop Hirsh Precision in Frederick, Colorado, dedicating personnel to perform assembly work and inventory management to produce subas

Studer is part of United Machining Solutions, a conglomerate that encompasses 15 brands with over 50 locations globally. The group also includes United Grinding North America, which Jacob Baldwin, director of corporate marketing, says maintains over 40 field service technicians and $5 million

Heat-resistant super alloys (HRSAs) such as Inconel 718 are designed to maintain strength and stability under extreme heat and mechanical stress. These materials are commonly used in aerospace, medical, power generation, and oil and gas industries in which extreme temperatures are encountered an

Organizations rarely fail at transformation because they lack ambition and vision. More often, they fail because they hold onto a few stubborn beliefs about how change actually works. These beliefs feel logical, especially to leaders who have spent their careers marketing ideas and persuading

Amorphology, a NASA spinoff company, is a leader in the application of advanced materials and manufacturing technologies for the improvement of non-lubricated micro-gears for robotics and other industrial applications using “amorphous” metals such as bulk metallic glasses. These materials have a

With Unique Device Identification (UDI) requirements under U.S. FDA regulations and EU Medical Device Regulation (MDR), direct part marking has become mandatory for many medical devices, including surgical instruments and implants. In practice, these requirements become challenging manufacturing

Weingärtner paired a turn-peeling head on its Vario+ 700 machine tool with nine roughing inserts and one finishing insert, all using Kennametal’s KCU25B carbide grade. As tool failures or large drops in tool life can damage both the workpiece and the head, machining needed to be completed with

The Gardner Business Index (GBI): Precision Machining measures the current state of precision machining activity through survey responses covering new orders, production, backlog, employment, exports and supplier deliveries. A reading above 50 indicates expansion; below 50 indicates contraction.

In our shop, we manufacture a lot of parts in either carbon or stainless steel. They are among the two most popular metal options on the market, and there are great reasons to use either of these materials.  While they might sound like two options of the same material, steel, their benefits and draw

Aluminum fabrication is widely used in engineering because it offers a rare combination of strength, low weight, corrosion resistance, and manufacturing flexibility. From CNC-machined components to formed aluminum sheet assemblies, aluminum supports applications across aerospace, autom

Choosing among the best CNC machining companies in 2026 requires more than fast quotes or big machine counts. Engineering teams need precision, consistency, and clear communication, especially when moving from prototype CNC machining into production.  This list highlights six CNC machi