Wexmar provides custom tooling components machining for manufacturers that need replacement and new tooling built to print: arbors, mandrels, collets, tool holders, punches, pilots, gripper fingers, cam followers, wear strips and other components that keep production equipment running. Our Canastota, New York shop combines CNC turning, horizontal milling, Swiss machining, grinding and a tool room on one floor.
What tooling components do and who buys them
Tooling components are the parts inside production equipment that touch the work or guide it: the arbor that holds a saw, the mandrel a part is turned on, the punch that pierces a hole, the finger that grips a part in an automation cell. They wear, break and need to be replaced to the original drawing, often quickly. Buyers include plant maintenance and manufacturing engineering teams, stamping and fabricating shops, packaging and automation OEMs, machinery builders, and contract manufacturers that need extra tool room capacity.
How we machine CNC tooling components
Round tooling such as arbors, mandrels, pilots, punches, shanks and bushings runs on our CNC lathes: Mazak Nexus QT200, Nexus 250, Nexus 450-II, Nexus 100-II, 200 MS and Multiplex 6300Y machines, plus Doosan Lynx 2100A and Boss 552 lathes. Live tooling and Y-axis add flats, drive slots, cross holes and keyways in the same setup. Small components up to 32 mm diameter run on our Maier MLK-32 Swiss machines. See CNC turning.
Prismatic components such as holders, gripper fingers, wear plates, cam plates and clamp jaws run on our Mazak horizontal machining centers with 4th-axis rotaries. After heat treat, our centerless grinder and surface grinder bring critical diameters and faces to final size, and our tool room handles fitting and finishing. See our machine list.
Tooling materials
- Tool steels: A2, D2, O1, S7, M2 and H13 for punches, dies, cutters and wear parts.
- Alloy steels: 4140, 4340 and 8620 for arbors, holders and shanks.
- Stainless: 17-4 PH, 440C and 420 for food, medical and corrosive environments.
- Bronze: aluminum bronze and bearing bronze for wear strips and guides.
- Others: aluminum for light holders, engineered plastics such as UHMW, acetal and PEEK for non-marring contact parts.
Critical features and how we hold them
- Arbor and mandrel runout: turned between centers or in one chucking, then ground after hardening to hold TIR.
- Tapers: Morse, Jacobs and custom tapers turned and checked with taper gages or on the comparator.
- Punch and pilot diameters: ground to size with controlled concentricity between shank and point.
- Flatness and parallelism: wear plates and jaws surface ground after heat treat.
- Hardness: specified by Rockwell range and verified by the heat treater's certification.
Typical tolerances and finishes
| Feature | Typical tolerance | Tighter on request |
|---|---|---|
| Ground diameter | ±0.0002 in | ±0.0001 in |
| Arbor runout (TIR) | 0.0005 in | 0.0002 in |
| Turned diameter (soft) | ±0.001 in | ±0.0005 in |
| Ground face flatness | 0.0005 in | 0.0002 in |
| Hole position (milled) | ±0.001 in | ±0.0005 in |
| Ground finish | 16 Ra | 8 Ra |
These are typical values. Final tolerance on hardened parts depends on heat treat distortion and grind stock, which we plan into the process.
Secondary operations
Heat treat, cryogenic treatment, nitriding, PVD coatings, black oxide and plating are performed through qualified outside processors. Wire EDM for punch profiles and die openings is also arranged through qualified outside processors when a component needs it. We sequence heat treat and grinding so finished parts arrive ready to install.
Quantity patterns
Tooling components are usually ordered in ones and twos for replacement, sets of 5 to 20 for spares, or recurring small lots for consumable wear parts. We keep programs on file so reorders move straight to production, and a second shift helps when a line is down.
Inspection
Ground diameters are measured with calibrated micrometers, runout with indicators between centers, tapers and profiles on our Mitsubishi optical comparator, and hole positions on our Brown & Sharpe CMMs. Heat treat certs, material certs and AS9102-format first articles are available. See inspection and quality.
Getting a quote
Send a drawing, or a worn sample with notes on material and hardness, plus quantity. You can upload a drawing for an instant estimate, and an estimator will confirm pricing. Or call (315) 400-2654. Related: die and mold components and fixtures and jigs.