Wexmar provides CNC machining for aerospace programs from one production floor in Canastota, New York. We machine build-to-print aerospace hardware for OEMs, tier suppliers, MRO shops and ground support equipment builders: turned fittings, bushings, spacers, housings, brackets and pins in aluminum, stainless, titanium and nickel alloys. As an aerospace machine shop working to an ISO 9001:2015-aligned quality system, we supply first article inspection in AS9102 format, CMM reports, material certs and heat-lot traceability whenever the purchase order calls for them.
What aerospace buyers order from a machine shop
Most aerospace work that reaches a job shop is small to mid-size precision hardware that sits inside larger assemblies. Typical part families include:
- Fluid system fittings and adapters for hydraulic, fuel and pneumatic lines, often with straight-thread O-ring ports.
- Bushings, sleeves and spacers for hinges, linkages and actuator mounts, frequently in bronze, stainless or titanium.
- Actuator components such as pistons, rod ends, end caps and glands.
- Housings and covers for gearboxes, sensors and valve bodies machined from plate or bar.
- Brackets and mounting blocks with multiple datum faces and hole patterns.
- Pins, shafts and threaded inserts under 32 mm diameter, well suited to Swiss-type turning.
- Ground support and test fixtures used to build, inspect and service aircraft components.
Materials common to aerospace parts
Aerospace drawings tend to call out a short list of proven alloys, each with a specific temper or heat treat condition. Aluminum 6061-T6, 7075-T651 and 2024-T351 cover most structural and housing work. Stainless grades include 303, 304 and 316 for general hardware and 17-4 PH and 15-5 PH where strength and corrosion resistance both matter. Alloy steels such as 4130 and 4340 appear on high-load pins and shafts. Titanium Ti-6Al-4V is common for weight-sensitive fittings, and high-nickel alloys such as Inconel 625 and 718 show up on hot-section and exhaust-adjacent hardware. We also machine bronze bearing alloys and engineered plastics for liners and insulators. When a contract carries DFARS specialty metals clauses, we can source bar compliant with DFARS 252.225-7009. See our materials page for grade-by-grade notes.
Tolerances, finishes and documentation
Aerospace tolerances are tighter on the features that matter and looser elsewhere. Typical callouts we see are ±.0005 in. on bearing bores and pin diameters, ±.001 in. on turned diameters and hole locations, and ±.005 in. on non-critical profile dimensions, with surface finish of 32 to 63 Ra on functional surfaces. Threads are commonly class 3A/3B UNJ or UNF, and position tolerances are called out with GD&T to datum schemes that must be respected in fixturing.
Secondary processes such as heat treat, anodizing (Type II and Type III), chemical conversion coating, passivation and plating are handled through qualified outside processors, and their certs are filed with the job. Documentation available on aerospace orders includes:
- First article inspection in AS9102 format (Forms 1, 2 and 3), ballooned to your drawing.
- CMM reports from our NIST-traceable Brown & Sharpe CMMs.
- Mill material certs with heat-lot traceability from bar to finished part.
- Certificate of conformance and outside processor certs.
Quantity patterns: prototype, spares and production
Aerospace demand comes in three shapes. Development programs need prototype lots of 1 to 10 pieces with full FAI. MRO and spares buyers order 5 to 50 pieces of a legacy part, often from an older drawing revision. Production programs typically run lots of 100 to 5,000 pieces released against a blanket order. Our floor is set up for all three, with second-shift capacity on production work and lights-out capable Swiss machines for high-count small parts.
How our floor handles CNC machining for aerospace
Turning with live tooling
Ten CNC lathes, including Mazak Nexus, Multiplex and Doosan Lynx models with live tooling and Y-axis, finish fittings and actuator parts complete with cross holes, flats and milled features, which limits handling and holds concentricity. More detail is on our CNC turning page.
Horizontal milling
Six horizontal machining centers with pallet changers, including Mazak FH4800 and Nexus 5000-II models, run 3- and 4-axis horizontal milling on housings and brackets. Indexing the part on a tombstone reaches four sides in one setup.
Swiss turning and inspection
Four Maier MLK-32 Swiss-type machines with FMB bar feeders produce pins, inserts and small fittings to 32 mm diameter. Centerless and surface grinding finish close-tolerance diameters and faces, and two CMMs plus a Mitsubishi optical comparator verify the result.
Typical aerospace parts, materials and tolerances
| Part | Common material | Typical tolerance | Primary process |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydraulic fitting | 17-4 PH, Ti-6Al-4V | ±.001 in., class 3 threads | Lathe with live tooling |
| Flanged bushing | Aluminum bronze, 4340 | ±.0005 in. bore | Lathe, centerless grind |
| Actuator housing | 7075-T651 | ±.0005 in. bores, .001 in. position | 4-axis horizontal milling |
| Mounting bracket | 6061-T6 | ±.005 in. profile, ±.001 in. holes | Horizontal milling |
| Precision pin | 15-5 PH, Inconel 718 | ±.0002 in. OD after grind | Swiss, centerless grind |
| Spacer or sleeve | Ti-6Al-4V | ±.001 in. | Swiss or lathe |
Getting a quote
Send your drawing, STEP model, quantity, revision and any quality clauses or flow-downs. You can upload a drawing for an instant estimate, and a human estimator reviews and confirms every quote before it goes out. To talk through an aerospace part, call (315) 400-2654, Monday through Friday, 7 to 4 Eastern, or email ron@backwell.com.