The J&L TNC lathe really revolutionized the industry; you cannot find an NC lathe today that does not have many of the characteristics that the TNC had. They were a big hit at the Chicago Machine Tool Shows. We were kept very busy engineering all the various models and options. But the biggest sensation was the “Production Center” model, which was basically a combi configuration with powered end turret tools. On a standard lathe, the cutting tools are basically static; the cutting action is caused by rotating the workpiece past the cutting edge; on the production center model, not only could we rotate the workpiece at normal RPM for O.D. turning with the side turret (like the combi), we could also closely control the work rotation axis when doing machining from the end turret. With the ability to rotate various cutters on the eight sided (octagonal) end turret, we could do very complex contouring type machining, using the attached end turret servomotor to power milling cutters. Thus the customer could quite often do their turning, drilling, tapping and milling on one machine. I think these were only offered in the 4-1/2″ B size envelope, and not too many were made (with all the extra servo-controlled axes, they were quite expensive).

One of the many options that J&L offered with their lathes was a barfeed attachment. This unit was floor mounted to the left of the machine, and its purpose was to cradle the long pieces of barstock that was the raw material for the final machined workpiece. (the barstock is feed into the machine, thru the rear of the spindle, thru the chuck, to a specific distance; the bar stock is then gripped by the work spindle chuck, the machining takes place, the finished piece is cut off into a catcher, and the cycle continues until the barstock is used up). Sometimes it was more economical to use a barfeed instead of machining parts individually. I use the word “cradle” only to clarify that these bars are contained somewhat. Being around a lathe with a barfeed unit can be a very unnerving experience; it really is quite impossible to contain the “whiplash” that a rotating steel bar creates (especially in the larger sizes). J&L had a big cast iron unit that dated back to their earlier machines, and it did an admirable job with the smaller O.D. bars. Plus, it totally enclosed said bar, lessening the “scare factor”. But there were other barfeed manufacturers that we got involved with. I remember specifically a unit that was built for 6″ O.D. bars, I think the company name was “Pilot”(the owner was a pilot, maybe WW2).  We had sold one of these with a lathe order, and I went down to their plant (I think it was in Connecticut), to see it. Their design consisted of several shaft and roller assemblies that surrounded the barstock. When we finally got it set up on our lathe, with 6” heavy-walled steel tubing, out in the open and visible, it was pretty scarey. I believe this machine was sold to a bearing manufacturer (Fafnir?), who planned on making bearing races. A lot of our work on barfeed units led us to create a “straightness specification” so that the customer knew they couldn’t run just ordinary barstock (which was way too crooked).