• Home
  • About
  • Cartridges
    • F20M10 Cartridge
    • F201M10 Cartridge
    • F25M10 Cartridge
    • F37M10 Cartridge
    • 5CM10 Cartridge
  • Collets
    • Regular Collets
    • W - Overgrip Collets
    • T - Overgrip Collets
    • Accessories >
      • Micrgrad Dial
      • Microguide EGS
  • Installation
  • News
  • Applications
  • Contact
    • Where to Buy
Masa Tool

breaking news

Production Machining: Collet System Replaces Extended-Nose Collets on Swiss-Type Lathes

11/9/2022

0 Comments

 
Matt Saccomanno at Masa Tool describes how the Microconic workholding system functions without the need for an extended nose. He says the accuracy and rigidity greatly improve with the diameter clearance already built into the system.
0 Comments

NEW Video!!! Masa Introduces New Microconic Products for 2022 - 2023

10/10/2022

0 Comments

 
OCEANSIDE, CA.  - At IMTS 2022 we where visited by the great folks at GIE Media, Inc. who publish Today's Medical Developments, Aerospace Manufacturing and Design and Today’s eMobility. They asked Matt Saccomanno, the inventor of the Microconic system to give them an on-camera overview of our products and how they work.
 
As you probably already know, Masa’s Microconic Cartridge and Collet assembly is designed to vector the chucking force directly over the holding surface in your Swiss type CNC screw machine. This means that the chucking force can be reduced while at the same time the holding power is increased. This opens up the possibility of shifting part operations from the main to the sub-spindle and dramatically reducing cycle time. 20% ~ 40% cycle time reduction is commonly achieved.​

At IMTS 2022, we expanded our Microconic line of swiss type CNC machine workholding. The new push type F15M5 and F16M5 cartridges replace the standard TF15 and TF16 collets in your CNC spindle. This enables you to use the newly introduced Microconic UM5 collet series with the Micrograd Dial Wrench to achieve superior stability with precise, calibrated, repeatable setting of collet closure. The off-the-shelf Microconic system concentricity of the cartridge and collet system combination is guaranteed to be within 5µm (0.0002") in production use.

Both the F15M5 and F16M5 cartridges are a micro-workholding system for use in high precision, small diameter CNC turning applications which enables you to move more work to the sub spindle operations and reduce cycle time. ​

The F15M5 cartridge is compatible with spindles that accept Schaublin F15 76-580, E120, Southwick & Meister TF15 and Hardinge TF15 / 4607 collets, while the F16M5 cartridge is compatible with spindles that accept Schaublin F16 76-1076, E1212, Southwick & Meister TF16 and Hardinge TF16 / 4609 collets.

Along with the new smaller cartridges comes a comprehensive series of UM5 collets that are ideally suited for small diameter part sizes ranging from 0.2mm/.008" to 5.5mm/.217" in diameter. These are available in regular type UM5 collets as well as all three types of Microconic's T, V and W type Over-Grip collets. Masa Tool offers the most unique variety of over-grip collets in the industry.

And yes, if you listened closely to the video, you heard correctly, Matt spilled the beans on the new product that we'll be releasing  next: The F13M5 Cartridge.  And after that, we're going to heed that advise of "go big or go home.  Yea, that was a spoiler alert. 
Masa Tool Microconic TF20 TF15 TF13 TF16 Cartridge  Micrograd Dial Wrench
The things that seems to excite Swiss machinists the most is our Micrograd™ wrench. The Micrograd Dial Wrenches provides a method of precisely setting clamping pressure on both the regular Microconic collets and on all series of Microconic over-grip collets. It can be adjusted in an infinite number of increments between the metric graduations of 0,02mm and inch/imperial graduations of .001" With the Micrograd Dial you can document the micrometer-adjust collet closure in your set up plan so it's done the same every time, regardless of operator skill and without relying on "feel".
0 Comments

IMTS 2022 Show in Review: More to come!

9/21/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Matt Saccomanno conducted a seminar "Boosting Profits from Swiss-type Machines by Better Use of the Sub-Spindle" at IMTS 2022
CHICAGO, IL. - The 2022 IMTS show was truly a great success for our team at Masa Tool! It was great to be back in Chicago and seeing our supply chain partners, customers and media in -person again!

Our CEO and chief executive innovator,  Matt Saccomanno held a seminar entitled "​Boosting Profits from Swiss-type Machines by Better Use of the Sub-Spindle."  It was a presentation "of new and advanced techniques for gaining productivity from Swiss-type CNC machines, with an emphasis on maximizing utilization of the machine’s counter-spindle (“sub-spindle”)."  Well, that's quite a mouthful!  Matt explained that essentially the sub-spindle is rarely used at more than 20% efficiency, which is a huge waste of productive capacity! "You've got a fully capable machine within a machine that you're not maximizing the use of!"

Chip Prescott and David Atkinson manned our booth with the help of many of our great manufacturers agents.  It was terrific that our reps brought so many of our customers over so we could finally meet them in person! 

GIE Media, Inc. who publish Today's Medical Developments, Aerospace Manufacturing and Design and Today’s eMobility spent some time in our booth getting a video overview of our products one day. A really special thank you to Lori Beckham, the editor of Today's Medical Developments and Austin DiPaolo for stopping by to say hello.  Lori, in conjunction with Bernie Martin, wrote the "Improving small medical part manufacturing" article that appeared last May in Today's Medical Developments. 

The next day the Lori Beckman, the editor of Production Magazine stopped by with our friend Rachel Wallis and then brought a video crew by to do an interview and overview.  Lori wrote the an article "Swiss Shop’s Choice of Collets Facilitates Backworking" this past June. Production magazine is owned by Gardner Publications and we will be at their PMTS show next April. So if you didn't;t make it to IMTS get us on your calendar for the spring of 2023!

We're looking forward to seeinghow the videos turned out because we wanted to answer some of the commonly asked questions that we get when talking to Swiss machinists.  

We shared our booth with the guys from Swiss tooling producer, Dunner They are one of our best European distributors and they where featuring their DunnAir self adjusting high precision guide bushing.  

At the end of the show, everyone was exhausted but really super excited to meet some many of our customers.  Thanks so much for visiting us at the IMTS 2022. Our next show is in April at PMTS.  If you missed us in Chicago, be sure and meet us in Cleveland!
0 Comments

Masa Tool Introduces NEW smaller size Microconic F15  & F16 Cartridges and UM5 Collet Series for Swiss Workholding

8/2/2022

0 Comments

 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Masa Tool New Products IMTS 2022 TF15 TF16 UM5 Overgrip collet micrograd dial
Masa Tool's NEW products being introduced at IMTS 2022: The F15M5 & F16M5 cartridges and accompanying NEW UM5 collet series which includes over-grip collets and Micrograd Dial Wrench to achieve superior stability with precise, calibrated, repeatable setting of collet closure. CLICK THIS IMAGE TO ADD MASA TOOL'S IMTS BOOTH TO YOUR SHOW PLANNER
OCEANSIDE, CA - Masa Tool has expanded their Microconic line of swiss machine workholding. The new push type F15M5 and F16M5 cartridges replace the standard TF15 and TF16 collets in your CNC spindle. This enables you to use the newly introduced Microconic UM5 collet series with the Micrograd Dial Wrench to achieve superior stability with precise, calibrated, repeatable setting of collet closure.  The off-the-shelf Microconic system concentricity of the cartridge and collet system combination is guaranteed to be within 5µm (0.0002") in production use. 

F15M5 and F16M5 Cartridges

Picture
The F15M5 and F16M5 Cartridges are the latest addition to the Microconic Cartridge product line that already included the F20M10, F25M10 and F37M10. The New Cartridges use the NEW UM5 collet series.

Both the F15M5 and F16M5 cartridges are a micro-workholding system for use in high precision, small diameter CNC turning applications which enables you to move more work to the sub spindle operations and reduce cycle time.

​The F15M5 cartridge is compatible with spindles that accept Schaublin F15 76-580, E120,  Southwick & Meister TF15 and Hardinge TF15 / 4607 collets, while the F16M5 cartridge is compatible with spindles that accept Schaublin F16 76-1076, E1212, Southwick & Meister TF16 and Hardinge TF16 / 4609 collets.

UM5 Microconic Collets

Masa Tool UM5 collet series
Pictured here are the UM10 (back row) and UM5 collets in the forground. In addition to the regular style collets the NEW UM5 collet series also includes a complete series of T, V and W Type Over-grip collets.
Along with the new smaller cartridges comes a comprehensive series  of UM5 collets  that are ideally suited for small diameter part sizes ranging from 0.2mm/.008" to 5.5mm/.217" in diameter. These are available in regular type UM5 collets as well as all three types of Microconic's T, V and W type Over-Grip collets.  Masa Tool offers the most unique variety of over-grip collets in the industry.  

Micrograd UM5 Dial Wrench

A full set of UM5 accessory products has also been introduced including a a UM5 series of Microguide EGS™ ejection guide sleeves and a new UM5 Micrograd™ Dial Wrench which is included with the purchase of any of the Microconic Cartridges. Mircrograd Dial Wrenches for the UM5 collets are now available in both metric, CW5-M, and imperial increments CW5-E.
Mircrograd Dial Wrench CW5-E
CW5-E Microguide Dial Wrench in imperial (inch) increments
Mircrograd Dial Wrench CW5- M
CW5-M Microguide Dial Wrench in metric increments
The Micrograd™ Dial Wrenches provides a method of precisely setting clamping pressure on both the regular Microconic collets and on all series of Microconic over-grip collets. It can be adjusted in an infinite number of increments between the metric graduations of 0,02mm and inch/imperial graduations of .001" With the Micrograd Dial you can document the micrometer-adjust collet closure in your set up plan so it's done the same every time, regardless of operator skill and without relying on "feel".

Microconic: Game Changing Technology for Small Parts

Masa’s Cartridge and Collet assembly is designed to vector the chucking force directly over the holding surface.  This means that the chucking force can be reduced while at the same time the holding power is increased. This opens up the possibility of shifting part operations from the main to the sub-spindle and dramatically reducing cycle time.  20% ~ 40% cycle time reduction is commonly achieved.​
​​These new cartridges, collets and accessories will be demonstrated for the first time at IMTS 2022 in the West Building, Level 3 — 432163 — Tooling & Workholding Systems


IMTS Press Briefing 

​Join Masa Tool at
Booth 432163
West Building, Level 3
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13 AT 3:30PM central time
We will introduce our NEW Microconic products for Swiss-type CNC Workholding!
IMTS Press Briefing Masa Tool Microconic Sept 13 2022 West Bulding Workholding
Featuring Masa Tool's expands its Microconic system at IMTS 2022: The F15M5 & F16M5 cartridges and accompanying NEW UM5 collet series which includes over-grip collets and Micrograd Dial Wrench to achieve superior stability with precise, calibrated, repeatable setting of collet closure
0 Comments

Boosting Profits from Swiss-type Machines by Better Use of the Sub-Spindle

7/13/2022

0 Comments

 
Be sure to join Matt Saccomanno, President of Masa Tool, presentation on boosting profitability by taking advantage of improvements in sub spindle workholding on Swiss-style CNC Machines. 
IMTS 2022 Boosting Profits from Swiss-type Machines by Better Use of the Sub-Spindle
IMTS Conference: Boosting Profits from Swiss-type Machines by Better Use of the Sub-Spindle
 ​Wednesday, September 14 • 10:00 AM - 10:55 AM Central
Add to My Show Planner
This is a presentation of new and advanced techniques for gaining productivity from Swiss-type CNC machines, with emphasis on maximizing utilization of the machine’s counter-spindle (“sub-spindle”). Essentially a fully capable machine within a machine, the sub-spindle is rarely used at more than 20% efficiency, which is a huge waste of productive capacity.

Most of the roadblocks to increased usage stem from the limitations of traditional workholding. The presentation is loaded with real-life examples and practical do-right-now techniques.
Swiss-type CNC turning centers are gaining in popularity as the parts they produce trend toward higher precision and micro-sized features. To be competitive, smart use of the machine’s full capabilities is a big advantage. Achieving “lights out” production and minimizing machine cycle times are key tactical objectives.

Join Matt Saccomanno, co-founder and CEO of Masa Tool, as he explains advanced work holding techniques that fundamentally change the scope of what is possible on a Swiss-type machine (also known as “sliding head” or guide bushing machine). Balancing the main and sub-spindle cycle times, achieving reliable untended , lights out production, and reducing scrap and down time will be the focus of this informative and interactive presentation.

Much of this material is also applicable to other types of machining centers, especially when making small parts. Bring your real-world “problem parts” to the session for a strategy discussion with Mr. Saccomanno. This session is beneficial for machinists, CNC programmers, manufacturing engineers, tool crib personnel, and hands-on managers.

About the Speaker

Matthew Saccoman no Masa Tool Founder CEO IMTS Conference Speaker
Matt Saccomanno has over 4 decades experience in Swiss-type machining and related fields of product design and engineering.

​Working as production operator, set-up machinist, manufacturing engineer, product design consultant, inventor, and company founder, he has met challenges from every direction in the vital and amazing field of precision manufacturing.

Matt co-founded Masa Tool Inc. and invented the Microconic system.

About Masa Tool Inc.

With deep roots in the Swiss-type screw machine industry, Masa Tool Inc. was founded in Oceanside California with the mission of bringing the Microconic System to the world. This revolutionary workholding system consists of the Microconic “cartridge” and “collet”. It was invented to solve the problems created by traditional long nose collets commonly used in the sub-spindle of screw machines for over 100 years.

As screw machines evolved from mechanical cams in the late 1900’s to today’s CNC controls, the complexity of parts being made increased dramatically. Making these modern micro precision parts complete on the machine without additional secondary operations became critical to remain competitive. Using the machine’s sub-spindle to complete the part is a must.

As the demands for precision and complexity increase, the traditional long-nose collet has many limitations that can frustrate the machinist trying to get the most out of the machine.

We created the Microconic system to overcome these limitations of conventional collets. The result is superior rigidity, accuracy, over-grip capability, clamping force control, and long-run stability.

We at Masa built our company from the ground up to ensure that everything in our catalog is available to ship within 2 days. Every size, every type. We currently offer any size from 0.2mm – 10mm diameter (.008” - .394”).
0 Comments

Swiss Shop’s Choice of Collets Facilitates Backworking

6/15/2022

0 Comments

 
This Swiss shop discovered workholding collets that satisfy the needs of its very small, delicate and complex medical parts production on the subspindle, making once impossible processes not only doable but more efficient and esthetically pleasing.
Picture
LORI BECKMAN 
Senior Editor
Production Machining
Workholding, particularly for backworking operations, can be tricky when machining very small parts in a CNC Swiss-type lathe. Depending on their design, pickoff collets can produce a variety of problems, including poor concentricity and runout as well as poor control of clamping force, causing part damage. That is why when Dan Fifer, owner of Lane4 Precision (Santa Rosa, California) discovered collets that worked well for his applications, he became a dedicated customer of the manufacturer and trusted the company’s workholding system with his most delicate and complex parts.
Very small medical workpieces that contain thin walls and require short pickoff lands are often run on Fifer’s five Swiss-type lathes. This complex work requires milling on the subspindle and backworking that is close to the collet.

​When he originally tried to apply traditional extended-nose collets, the extensions were too long and gaps in the collet were too big to effectively produce his customer’s parts. But then he was introduced to 
Masa Tool’s Microconic workholding system, which includes collets that are designed without the need for an extended nose because the diameter clearance is already built into the system.
Production Machining Feature-Masa Tool MIcrograd Dial Wrench
Microconic collets enable Lane4 Precision to finely adjust collet tension for machining complex parts. In fact, these collets enable the shop to do jobs it was not able to complete prior to implementing this collet system. Photo Credits: Lane4 Precision
In addition, Fifer says the Microconic collets enable fine adjustment of the collet tension on complex parts. These collets enabled the shop to machine parts it was formerly unable to create with other collets, as well as frequently and effectively perform backworking operations.

From Designer to Job Shop in 1 Month

Although he quickly learned about the workholding necessary to machine his customers’ parts most efficiently, Fifer did not initially have experience with CNC Swiss-type machining. In fact, when he opened Lane4 Precision in 2017, he had never stood in front of a CNC machine control panel before, let alone a CNC Swiss-type lathe. His background was rooted in design/product development for the medical device industry. After working for several startups for over 20 years, he says he was anxious to be the one to create the parts instead of designing them.
Production Machining Magazine Feaature Masa Tool Lane4 Precision
Lane4 Precision’s name was inspired by the Olympics and the qualifying lanes for swimming and track. The name represents moving fast, says Dan Fifer, founder.
So, he took his passion for innovation and rented a warehouse space where he decided to do all the machining processes in-house. He says someone told him he needed a screw machine to do the work he wanted to accomplish. The timing was good for him to attend IMTS 2016 to shop for a machine tool, and that’s where he met Spinetti Machinery, a distributor that sells Marubeni Citizen-Cincom Swiss-types. He was impressed with the machines’ predictability, and he was confident that the Spinetti team would support him and help him learn how to operate his first Swiss-type, a Citizen L20.

Once this sophisticated machine was set up, an industry colleague asked Fifer if he thought he could make a part that had already been designed. His colleague said no one could build it for him, not because it was not able to be done, but because the colleague did not want to wait 12 weeks to have the order complete.

“I said, well, I have nothing else to do, so I will figure it out,” Fifer says. “So, basically, within a month I was absolutely swamped from a team of about six engineers feeding me more parts that I was able to do.”
​
With Spinetti’s assistance, he has since selected four more of the Citizen Swiss lathes with different work envelopes and capabilities such as a live B-axis, automatic toolchanger and the machine tool builder’s low frequency vibration technology that helps create small, easily evacuated chips. The distributor was also responsible for introducing Fifer to the Microconic workholding system. A very small part on an L12 was the first job he ran with the workholding system.

Extended Nose Without Extension

Three-quarters of the machining done at Lane4 Precision, which is mostly a prototype shop, is for the medical industry, and the rest are premium parts for the semiconductor, defense, aerospace and consumer products industries, according to Fifer. Parts range in size from fitting within a work envelope of a grain of rice (length or diameter of a half a millimeter or so) to long slender parts over two feet long.
Microconic Lane 4 Production machining magazine swiss machine workholding
Quickly moving from a designer to a job shop, Fifer never has put his eye for design on the back burner. He considers his niche to be that of helping his customers with design when appropriate. For instance, if he understands a more efficient way to machine something, he volunteers his expertise. “If I can see their design intent, I might say, ‘By the way, you can chamfer this edge, and it won’t cost you anything because I already have the tool’,” he explains. “They might have had two parts I was making that they were welding together.”
Because some parts produced by the shop contain thin walls and have short pickoff lands, it was critical that the workholding system installed offer acceptable tool clearances and fine adjustability for subspindle backworking. The shop also needed compact and reliable over-grip collets for the most complex applications (more about that later). Fifer found his expectations met and then some after installing the Microconic workholding system. In fact, he was so pleased that he eventually added it to all five of his Swiss-types.

Masa Tool, which only specializes in subspindle collet workholding, has designed the Microconic workholding system which consists of cartridges that are installed in a machine like a standard collet. The cartridge, which offers 0.0002-inch TIR, can be used as a gage to verify machine spindle accuracy. Also, the adjustment dial wrench offers precise and repeatable control of the clamping force, according to the company. Because the cartridge is built with an extended nose, extended nose collets are not necessary, making this system well-suited for Lane4 Precision considering most of its applications require an extended nose pickoff collet. Fifer explains that the Masa collet closure mechanism has been moved right up to the collet nose, improving rigidity relative to standard extended nose collets.
​
All Masa collets fit into the machine’s cartridge or an adaptor sleeve from the company, making it easy for Fifer to change back and forth between collet styles on all his lathes.
Produciton Machining magazine Lane 4 Citizen L20 Microconic
Fifer started his company with one Citizen L20 Swiss-type lathe in a warehouse. He eventually purchased four more of the same machine tool and integrated the Masa Microconic collet system in all of them.
With the ability to easily make fine adjustments to the collet tension, Lane4 can confidently make parts with extremely thin walls without worrying about breaking or distorting parts. Prior to installing the Microconic system, a traditional collet could grip the part too tight and crush it, ruining the part. But making fine adjustments in a controlled, predictable way from the nose of the collet with the provided Masa tool (instead of taking the cover off the subspindle to access the tension adjustment collar) gives the setup machinist easy, precise tension control.
He also points out that it usually takes only 5 minutes when changing over his lathes from machining “large” parts (which for Lane4 are those that are a half-inch diameter and larger) to machining smaller parts when using the Microconic collets. According to Masa, the changeover from a 16C to a 5C collet usually results in a tolerance accumulation and can sometimes take more than 15 minutes to change the collets. But, with the Masa system, once the cartridge is in place, collets can be quickly installed and clamping pressure set right at the spindle nose without tolerance stackup in less than a minute.

Compact Over-Grip

Fifer also appreciates Masa’s over-grip collets for parts that require those. He explains that, although these collets are compact, they offer a large opening and rigid holding. He says they outperform any alternatives he has tried in the past. “My cycle times, rigidity, tooling, everything is better,” he says. “They took away the fear of doing over-grip parts.”
On over-grip collets, extra spread is required to open the collet wide enough to clear the part’s larger diameter. Traditional pickoff collets do not hold to the needed tolerances because they grip short part lengths that only occupy the front section of the collet bore.

​All the clamping force is on the collet angle, which is a considerable distance from the part being held. As a result, the collet can collapse under the angle.
Picture
Lane4 Precision has a vast collection of Microconic workholding collets for any job on its Swiss-type lathes.
However, the over-grip collets open up to 0.156-inch diameter larger than the holding diameter. According to Masa, these collets are still capable of 0.0002 inch of TIR. With such reliable gripping, Lane4 Precision has been able to expand its capabilities, even machining some intricate parts “backward,” providing higher quality parts, with fewer defects and a lower scrap rate, enabling operation without interruption.
Picture
This part was made on one of Lane4 Precision’s Citizen L20 Swiss-types using a Masa Tool Microconic over-grip collet. The over-grip collet clamped the head of the part to make the milling and threading processes on the machine much easier.
An uninterrupted operation also enables lights-out machining, which is how the machine shop runs several of its jobs using the over-grip collets on Ti 6Al-4V titanium and 316 stainless.

​He says they have never failed or chipped a tool. “The over-grip collet is a really predictable, consistent run in a production environment.”

Some Surprises

While learning the ins and outs of the Microconic system, Fifer says he realized how much confidence the workholding system’s design has given him to complete high-quality and miniature parts for his customers.For example, he appreciates that the collet nose is not chamfered. This design leaves more room for pickoff, he explains. “I used to have to face the collet before I could use it, so I could know what I was dealing with. But then it would alter the length of the collet.”
​
The advantages of excellent runout on the workholding system is another realization Fifer came to after he started putting it to use. It is possible to put very fine features on the backside of a part and maintain concentricity while also producing a “pretty” part. “If you have a 0.005-inch wall and you are trying to put 0.001-inch edge break on it, and you’ve got 0.001 inch of runout, the result is a really ugly part,” Fifer explains. “Using a Masa Microconic collet is like firm footing from the subspindle. At least you know you are starting in a good place for the most critical applications.”
0 Comments

Improving Small Medical Part Manufacturing

5/18/2022

0 Comments

 
To avoid crushing and ruining parts, Swiss precision manufacturer Micro-Matics turned to Masa Tool’s Microconic collet and cartridge system.
by Elizabeth Engler Modic & Bernard Martin,  Today's Medical Developments  May 2022
Micro-Matics Team
Micro-Matics employees outside the facility. All photos courtesy of Micro-Matics
Since 1973, Micro-Matics of Fridley, MN, has been manufacturing CNC Swiss precision screw machine products including many kinds of contacts & pins, ground shafts, hardened bushings, rivets, screws, spacers and other custom parts for the medical, dental, aerospace, commercial, defense, computer, telecommunications and automotive industries.

According to Jason Wobig, Operations Manager, "Micro-Matics is primarily an aerospace and medical components, Swiss machining job shop. We make components that are thousandths of an inch up to an 1-1/4" in diameter. We started out with the old manual style, Cam driven Swiss machines and we're one of the largest Escomatic shops in the Midwest.  And as the company's grown and evolved, we've turned into Swiss job shop, mostly Citizen machines like the M16,  a L12, and a M32, as well as a few Star and Tsugami machines that give us a wide variety of capabilities."


Medical part challenges

A while back Micro-Matics was running a small medical part, a catheter part, that they were struggling with.  

They had some custom collets made for pickoff and, according to Dave Thayer, Department Manager,

"It was a constant struggle. This particular catheter part has very thin walls, it got crushed  with a standard M16 collet system because you have very little accuracy in how much tension you're putting on your collet.  If you put too much force on it, my parts started turning to collapse into triangles. If you don't have enough tension on it, the part pushes back into the pickoff and you get varying part lengths and varying chamfer diameters. The parts would be out round and they wouldn't be on-center."

​Wobig had heard about Masa Tool's Microconic™ sytems through Todd Pakiz, President of High Tech Representation Inc., New Prague, Minnesota. "Todd had told me about this system a couple years back. And we had been struggling with these parts. So I reached out to Todd and see if he's still selling that system."
Picture
Dave Karlson, department manager at Micro-Matics standing in front of one of the many Citizen Swiss-type lathes the company has.
High Tech Industrial Representation, Inc, or "High Tech"  is a manufacturer's representative agency managing the territories of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, as well as Iowa & Nebraska. They represent industrial manufacturers whose products are focused on the machining industry and provide a high level of technical sales support. Todd brought in Masa's F20M10 Cartidge and the specific off-the-shelf Micorconic collet for the catheter part.
Masa Tools’ Microconic used on a Citizen Swiss-type lathe at Micro-Matics.
Masa Tools’ Microconic used on a Citizen Swiss-type lathe at Micro-Matics.
Wobig continues, "I wanted to try this system for the catheter part which is a small thin-walled part approximately 0.040" in diameter and another 0.040" in length and with a wall thickness of 0.010".  So I wanted something that wasn't crushing the part. It was really hard to adjust the machines pickoff spindle itself to any degree of accuracy without crushing a part."

What Wobig found with the Masa Microconic system  was that they could set up the clamping with a gage pin and set the clamping tension with the Micrograd™ Dial Wrench which has little indicators to set an actual tension. 
The Micrograd wrench allows you to set your collet clamping force so even the most fragile parts can be held safely and firmly according to Matt Saccomanno, CEO of Masa Tool.


Cartridge and collet solution

In 1996, Matt Saccomanno, CEO of Masa Tool, was frustrated with the limitations of conventional collets and workholding systems when performing secondary machining operations so his solution was to develop a high-precision, collet-type workholding device for small parts machining.

The Microconic system consists of a cartridge and collet, with the cartridge fitting in the machine just like a standard legacy collet. The cartridge is a self-contained precision mechanism using the machine’s standard collet closing function, which means that the Microconic system can be used on any machine utilizing 5C, TF20, TF25 or TF37 collets. 

According to Saccomanno "Since a collet system for any given machine must be made large enough to fit the maximum workpiece diameter capacity of the machine, the result is the standard collet mechanism is designed to handle the largest workpieces, which means it is excessively forceful and bulky when used for the smaller workpieces. Smaller parts get sacrificed, because they typically require a higher degree of accuracy and the workholding is more critical."

The Microconic system consists of the cartridge, which fits into your machine like a standard collet, and the Microconic collets which fit into Masa's unique cartridge.  Every Microconic cartridge comes standard with extended nose for unsurpassed rigidity because of it's single piece construction.

"In fact, the cartridge is so accurate that it can be used as a gauge to verify machine spindle accuracy," said Pakiz.

Thayer explained how the Microconic system has worked for Micro-Matics "With the Masa system we're able to dial in a nice specific tension to hold that catheter part without crushing it or deforming it at all and having it on center.  In a nutshell, we get better quality parts consistently with tighter tolerances. It's lead to a really significant improvement, it's increased throughput, so we have more parts at the end of the day."

"As a result of the implementation, the scrap rate on this part dropped dramatically once we added the new Masa system by at least 30%." added Wobig. 

According to Masa Tool, the Microconic cartridge  concentricity is guaranteed to be within 5µm (.0002") runnout and the collets are hardened and precision ground to the highest quality standards. The regular, UM10,  10mm collets, that  Micro-Matics is using in their F20M10 Cartidge are available from Ø0.2mm (.008") to 10mm (.394").  In additon to the TF 20 spindles, the same collets can be used in TF25, TF37 and 5C sub spindles.


Applying technology to other applications

Micro Matics F20M10 Cartridege Todays Medical Developments
According to David Thayer at Micro-Matics, ""The extended nose pieces on the Microconic cartridge helps on the catheter tips because you can get closer up to where I actually have a supporting back end." Masa Tool's Microconic Cartidge is designed with an extended nose. Photo Courtesy Micro-Matics
As time has gone on Masa's Microconic system has propagated to other machines and other jobs.

​Micro-Matics has been running one of the collets for a couple of months straight now on a distal coupler.

Thayer explains,  "The distal coupler part has a unique shape. It's not perfectly round. It has some small flats milled on either side of the part. It's like a cylindrical pill, like a capsule except with two sides of the long length milled in so there's flats on it.  The part is 0.080" in length 0.040" in a cylindrical diameter. We then mill the cylindrical diameter 180 degrees from each other to a thickness of 0.030", so you're taking 0.10" off then drilling and centering two holes on each end of that through the flats."

​"Our customer is extremely concerned about any collet indication marks or chip marks on the outside of that cylindrical diameter. The previous collets we were using were custom made collets that actually had the profile of the part basically machined into it" says Wobig.
Thayer picks it up, "It was a straight cylinder round collet it but it was split in half so it was like two halves of a collet so we were trying to keep the flats in the spaces and then the round cylinder on the collet part that's round. The holding portion it would move and we didn't have them pinned at all. And then we had the same issue as on the catheter part:  If you squeeze it too tight you're starting to push the diameter into the flat so it would deform the OD into the flat and make deformed flats.  If you squeezed it too hard, it would make the flat bump up.  If it didn't sit perfectly right in the custom collet you'd have the split marks of the collet that start interfering with the transition between the flat to the diameter and it would make lines on the diameter."  
So what happened when they started using the Microconic system?   "It fixed all that!" said Thayer.

Remedying the issues

"With the Microconic system, we didn't need to buy any special collets for any specific profile, we just got the actual diameter for the OD of the part and we're running it with that. The spaces in between on that collet is small enough that it's not distorting the round to flat portion if it even gets into there at all. So there's no timing issues at set-up. We just put it in there, set our tension, and start picking them off." added Wobig

Thayer continued "The extended nose pieces on the Microconic cartridge helps on the catheter tips because  you can get closer up to where I actually have a supporting back end.   Because if I'm too far away from that supporting back and you have more of a tendency to crush the front of that part. The Microconic gives me a better tension on the part.  On the distal coupler, we have to use a boring bar, or a facing tool to create the back face, which is round. We'd have a lot of trouble trying to hold without nibs or anything on there. And this holds it so that the part stays a little more square, and we're able to turn it better."

When dealing with very small parts and setting with small gage pins, accidents do sometimes happen.  "The only problem I've had with it was when somebody was trying to set the collet tension with a pin. They put the pin into the slot and not the hole and wrecked the collet. Because the pin was able to fit inside the slot so when they started tightening it up, and the pins started deforming the collet was wrecked because it wasn't in the hole in the center." said Thayer.

Masa has indicated that they will release a new TF 15 and TF16 Cartridge with an entire series of smaller 5mm capacity collets at IMTS 2022.

Specificationz

Over-grip 10mm collets from 0.5mm to 7.2mm diameter (0.020" to 0.283") open to 4mm (0.157") diameter larger than the clamping diameter. Some restrictions apply to larger sizes approaching the 7.2mm (0.283") max diameter.

Microconic over-grip collets have unmatched rigidity and concentricity compared to other manufacturers. The same collets can be used in TF20, TF25, and 5C sub spindles. Microconic collets permit interchangeability between machines, and the collets fit in any Microconic cartridge, no matter which collet system is in the machine.

New release

Masa Tool plans to release a new TF15 and TF16 cartridge with an entire series of smaller 5mm capacity collets at IMTS 2022. See them at BOOTH #432163.
0 Comments

SIAMS 2022: Update From the Swiss Machining Show in Switzerland

4/9/2022

0 Comments

 
by Matt Saccomanno
Check out this optometrist office in Moutier-- displaying an antique screw machine in between the eyeglass bunnies
Check out this optometrist office in Moutier— displaying an antique screw machine in between the eyeglass bunnies
Hi everybody!

It’s been a fantastic trip and an amazing closing day to the SIAMS 2022 exhibition! A hectic schedule and more talking and trying to decipher French than I’m built for, but super worthwhile. 

SIAMS is in the village of Moutier, in the heart of the “Jura” region, which spans a distinct area in the lower mountains overlapping the border of Switzerland and France. It is the historic center of the Swiss watch industry, but also is a dense cluster of high precision manufacturing like probably no other in the world.

​For our customer base of “Swiss-type” machining (“décolletage” in French), you literally can find the best of everything, including the awesome products of a particular company in Oceanside California. 
​
​We are represented here by Dunner SA, based about a half mile from the exhibition hall in Moutier.

The Swiss approach to selling is amazingly low key. They didn’t even have any actual product displayed at the Dunner booth!

When I asked Daniel Dünner about this, he said “If we show the product, everyone will immediately recognize it as a collet (“pince” in French, pronounced pin-seh), and then they will assume they already know what it is and keep walking.

​Instead, we show only the video and brochure, so they must stop and ask about it.” I was skeptical at first, but his method works!
Sébastien Dünner SIAMS 2022 Microconic
Sébastien Dünner, passionately explaining the Microconic system
Unlike in the past, Masa is now known and very much respected. I was often introduced almost like visiting royalty as “Mr. Masa”. Several people even commented “You cut your hair” (in French of course), having seen the early video Bernie took of me describing the product at IMTS 2016.

We are still the new kids on the block, but known and perhaps even admired. 
Daniel Dünner SIAMS Award 2022 Exhibitor Masa Tool Microconic
Daniel Dünner (center) receives the plaque for continuous exhibiting at every SIAMS
Dunner SA, founded in Moutier for 4 generations, is very respected. Daniel and his son Sébastien Dünner, now transitioning into being the managing director of the company, basically know everybody who’s anybody.

They received a plaque and bottle of champagne to celebrate that they are one of only 14 companies that have exhibited continuously at every SIAMS (photo attached).

​Later today, I was introduced to the mayor of Moutier, who graciously tried to converse with me (he speaks French and German). 
​
I can’t say this without tears in my eyes how so very proud and grateful I am for the integrity and effort everyone puts into making Masa the literal BEST in the world at what we do!

With joy and gratitude,

Matt

About SIAMS - 

The trade fair for microtechnology production tools located in the center of the regional Jura industry, SIAMS unites every two years the players of the industry and presents the means of production of microtechnology. This fair created to respond to the specific concerns of precision-industry entrepreneurs presents an ideal technology platform with more than 450 specialized exhibitors.
Even today, however, SIAMS still focuses and shall continue to focus on its core competencies: the means of production of microtechnology, establishing contacts between visitors and exhibitors, and the industrial pragmatism that characterize it since 1989.

​As a trade fair for the entire production chain of microtechnology for a total of 15 events, SIAMS has always been a pioneer in the development of synergies between exhibitors.
Picture
At SIAMS, the entire microcosm or "ecosystem” of microtechnology is represented:
Machinery equipment, assembly measurement, control, and quality assurance automation tools, accessories, mechanics raw materials semi-finished products metalworking – suppliers plastics processing installation service companies organizations.
0 Comments

Microconic holds a Firm Grip without Damaging the Threads on Bone Screws

3/16/2022

0 Comments

 
Microconic UM10 Collets regular, over-grip
Microconic standard collets on the left and over-grip collets on the right are ideal for machining bone screws in Swiss Style CNC Machines (UM10 Collet series shown here)
The  standard Microconic collets will  help with bone screws and other bone implants by allowing a firm grip on the threaded exterior without causing damage, and yet holding it so much more rigidly that they will be able to do heavy operations in the sub spindle. This includes operations like blind hole broaching. 

Set ups are quicker and more repeatable with Microconic. With the Microgram Dial Wrench You can document the micrometer-adjust collet closure in your set up plan so it's done the same every time, regardless of operator skill and without relying on "feel".
​Calibrate spindle accuracy with the Microconic cartridge as a precision cylinder gauge. When that is good, EVERY Microconic collet will run within .0002" TIR -- no fiddling and swapping collet after collet looking for a "good" one. Set ups go smoothly and predictably.

Included with each cartridge, the MicrogradTM Dial Wrench is a dual-purpose tool used to install and adjust the collet in the cartridge. With dial graduations in either .02mm or .001-inch increments, the closure of the Microconic collet can be set with calibrated precision using a common pin gage the diameter of the work piece.​
Micrograd Face Dial Wrench inch metric swiss machine clamping pressure
Micrograd Dial Wrench with dial graduations in either .02mm or .001-inch increments. Shown here are the Dial Wrenches for UM10 and the UM5 collet series.
0 Comments

Shop improves Dental Surgical Tool Production with Microconic Over-Grip Collets

1/12/2022

2 Comments

 
A Swiss CNC machine shop presented us with several problems related to long cycle times and poor tool life  with a high-volume group of  Dental Surgical Drills, Taps, and Counterbore Drills with standard ISO shank configuration.  
​These surgical components are made from 465 SS, 17-4PH, and Titanium.  The shop makes them complete with cutting edges on a Swiss-type CNC turning center. 

Due to the complexity of the cutting edge configurations, they are machined entirely on the main spindle, with the cutting edges out first. In all cases the cutting edges are larger in diameter than the shank.  
Picture

Before Microconic: The Workholding Problems

Before implementing the Microconic solution there were a number of problems:
  • The cutting edges would be damaged by contact with the pick-off collet.
  • All operations had to be performed in the main spindle because the part could not be held rigidly enough in the sub-spindle. This made for a very long cycle time.
  • The milled flat and groove operations on the shank end had to be finished in the main spindle because of the lack of rigidity & lack of concentricity in the sub spindle
  • The cut off tool took a beating due to the interrupted cut at the milled flat.  The cut off tool had to be sharpened or replaced every 60 pieces.
  • Due to high tool maintenance and frequent adjustments, these jobs required a skilled setup person to run this product with little time to spend elsewhere. 

Read More
2 Comments
<<Previous

    Author

    Here you will find the latest press releases, news coverage and technical information about our Microconic™ system

    Archives

    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    January 2022
    October 2021
    May 2021
    July 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    August 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    July 1999

    Categories

    All
    5C Cartridge
    5C Collet
    Advanced Manufacturing
    Advertisement
    Agent Profile
    AMTS
    APT Machine Tools
    Avinger
    Bell Mouthing
    Bone Screws
    Case Study
    Catalog
    CEO CFO
    Chip Wrapping
    Cincom
    Cincom L12
    Cincom L20
    Cincom M16
    Cincom M32
    CNC West
    Collet
    Concentricity
    Dental Implants
    Dragan Marjanovic
    Dunner SA
    Eastec
    Ejection Guide Sleeve
    Emergency Collet
    F13M5
    F15M5
    F16M5
    F201M10
    F20M10
    F37M10
    Floyd Automatic
    Ganesh
    High Tech Industrial
    IMTS
    ISwiss
    Jones Marketing
    Lane 4
    Machinery Trade International
    Magazine Article
    Mann Sales
    Marubeni Citizen
    Material: 6Al4V
    MAV Innovations
    Metal Cutting Corp
    Microconic
    Micrograd Wrench
    Microguide Sleeve
    Micromachining
    Micro-Matics
    Modern Machine Shop
    Morris South
    NETC
    Next Generation Tooling
    Oceanside Facility
    Oktoberfest
    Open House
    Overgrip Collet
    Part: Counterbore Drills
    Part: Dental Drills
    Part: Dental Impant
    Part: Medical Device
    Part: Surgical Drills
    Part: Surgical Taps
    PMTS
    Press Release
    Production Machining
    Productivity Inc.
    Ram Sales & Marketing
    Schlenker
    SIAMS
    South Tec
    South- Tec
    Star CNC
    Star SR20
    STEM
    Tech Tip
    TF15
    TF16
    TF20
    TF25
    TF37
    Todays Medical Developments
    Tool Marketing Service
    Trade Show
    Trade Shows
    Tsugami
    UM10
    UM10T
    UM10W
    UM5
    UM5T
    UM5V
    UM5W
    Videos
    Workpiece Deflection

    RSS Feed

Microconic Advantages
FAQ

Warranty
​Return Authorization
Shipping Policy
​Sales Policy
​MSDS
D
ownloads
Masa Tool Inc.
2575 Jason Court
Oceanside, CA 92056-3592

tel: 760.732.1422     
Picture
© 2023 Masa Tool Inc.
Microconic™, Micrograd™​ and  Microguide™​
​
are trademarks of Masa Tool.   
​
All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • About
  • Cartridges
    • F20M10 Cartridge
    • F201M10 Cartridge
    • F25M10 Cartridge
    • F37M10 Cartridge
    • 5CM10 Cartridge
  • Collets
    • Regular Collets
    • W - Overgrip Collets
    • T - Overgrip Collets
    • Accessories >
      • Micrgrad Dial
      • Microguide EGS
  • Installation
  • News
  • Applications
  • Contact
    • Where to Buy