"It doesn't have to be an end to an era," said a Ternstrom & Company spokesperson. "Many precision toolrooms and prototype shops have benefited from the use and ownership of a Hardinge HLV toolroom lathe. For decades, end users each learned how invaluable this machine came to be. When the Hardinge toolroom lathe was discontinued around 2008, it was apparent a void would remain.
"At the time, Ternstrom & Company (a division of Iverson & Company) had been rebuilding these machines for over 75 years. Unfortunately after the discontinuation, the parts cost continued to climb and as a result Ternstrom had to increase the price on the remanufactured offering as well. However, demand for the remanufactured machines had not diminished. Now, Ternstrom has been successfully offering remanufactured tool room lathes for the past eight decades. Even in today's CNC world, many machine shops depend on their old standby Hardinge manual lathes. Ternstrom has found customers want these machines to be rebuilt, and as a result, challenges them to trade in an existing machine and consider buying a remanufactured machine instead.
"A lot of changes have gone through the U.S., but the demand for a quality rebuilt Hardinge toolroom lathe has remained constant. The tolerances that need to be held are getting tighter; the skill set of the machinists are not getting any more advanced, and a very accurate Hardinge manual HLV is something that is still a need."
The technicians from the Ternstrom division have continued to perfect scraping, painting, alignment and testing techniques through several generations - at a time when finding this skill set in today's market is difficult at best. "What we do here should be called 'remanufacturing'," said Terry Iverson, Iverson & Company President & CEO. "I do not think the term rebuilding is adequate enough to describe what we do to these machines. Remanufacturing is hard to explain. It is much more effective to show."
Ternstrom strips the castings and sheet metal down to the bare surfaces, and then starts over. All components used are purchased directly from the Hardinge factory. They install new spindles and bearings, bringing the spindles back to .000025" total indicator runout maximum. The machine has to meet the original factory specifications. When the machines leave the shop, they must hold a tolerance +/-.0001 of an inch.
"Years ago we used to regrind the spindle taper after replacing the spindle bearings," said Iverson. "For the last 30 years, we have been installing brand new .000025" TIR spindles and bearings. This made a huge difference in not only the cutting results, but also the longevity our customers can expect of their machine."
Another difference to Ternstrom's rebuilding process is its knowledge of the product itself. "We have people that have been here working in Hardinge rebuilding ranging from 15-42 years with the next generation learning from them. We have three young men coming up in the ranks that are very talented and are catching on well. This will allow us to expand our rebuilding division business model," said Iverson.
Ternstrom can also upgrade Hardinge machine tools with attachments such as bedway covers, taper attachments, digital readouts, chip or coolant shield or other options. It ships rebuilt Hardinge machines to customers all over the U.S. and Canada with a limited warranty to guarantee customer satisfaction.
Iverson says many customers will fly into O'Hare to see the process at its shop in Des Plaines, IL. They will pick them up from the airport, show them around and even offer them to take a test cut on a machine.
Iverson describes the perfect customer for a remanufactured machine as one that would buy a new Hardinge if it was still available, not one looking for an inexpensive used machine. As far as what models Ternstrom has perfected it pretty much covers the gamut: HLV-H, HLV-EM, DV-59, HSL-59, DSM-59 and HC chuckers. Most of the HSL-59 speed lathes require a minor amount of work and Ternstrom sends them out used.
For more information contact:
Ternstrom / Iverson & Company
441 North Third Ave.
Des Plaines, IL 60016
847-299-2461
tiverson@iversonandco.com
www.iversonandco.com