Tsugami grinder products help Weldon stand out from the competition

When customers need CNC grinders but can’t wait for them to be built to order from the ground up, Weldon has the solution: our Tsugami line of CNC grinders.

The Tsugami Corporation is a leading Japanese manufacturer of CNC machine tools which are used in numerous manufacturing industries and Weldon is the sole provider of Tsugami grinders in North America.

In the 1990s, Weldon was owned by the Tsugami Corporation. That kickstarted the importation of some Tsugami grinder products – the AGN3, precursor to the AGN4, and AGN5, precursor to the G300 – to add to Weldon’s product offerings. That made Weldon the primary provider of the Japanese company’s grinders.

After Weldon was reacquired as an employee-owned company in 2000, while ownership changed, the relationship with Tsugami continued and remains today. In fact, Weldon has expanded the range of models which are brought in to be tooled up, deployed and serviced for the North American market. They include:

• AGN4 – A small-capacity OD grinder with straight and angular approach heads, a 180mm swing and 250mm between centers. The AGN4 is Weldon’s most popular model for integrated automation.
• UGC – A small-capacity ID grinder with multiple ID spindle configurations to choose from as well as an OD spindle option.
• G300 – A medium-capacity OD grinder with straight, angular, and numerous turret-based wheel head configurations and a 300mm swing. Models are available with 500mm and 1,000mm between centers.

There are two sub-models of the AGN4 and 10 sub-models of the G300 to choose from.

A Tsugami base but a Weldon final product

Weldon tools-up the Tsugami grinders for the North American market, so when they leave the facility, they are essentially Weldon grinders. All service and support comes from our office in York, PA. When the grinders arrive at Weldon’s facility, our technicians install many of our own motors and drives into them, and any additional equipment is fitted by the Weldon team.

In the case of the OD grinders, we receive a base machine with a FANUC 0i-TF control, a workhead, tailstock and wheel spindle – but everything else comes from Weldon. We wire them and build and integrate the remainder of the machine’s components. The signature grey color of the Tsugami enclosure is then branded with the Weldon logo.

The AGN4 is the model most often automated of all of Weldon’s products. It’s a small parts grinder that can cycle more than 100 parts per hour, application dependent, which makes the need for automation inherent. A human operator would need to unload and load a part every 30 seconds and could never keep up with such a rate.

The most common applications for the AGN4 are in automotive, aerospace, hydraulics, power transmission, medical, firearms and special materials. It has a small footprint, is economical, highly customizable, robust and long lasting, making it a customer favorite.

“It’s a major advantage to have these various models sitting on Weldon’s floor ready to customize for the application,” said Ben Cornbower, Weldon’s Manager of Grinder Sales. “It cuts down significantly on time we would otherwise spend building the machines from the base up, which saves our customers valuable time and money.”

When your operations require a top-tier grinder and don’t have time to wait for one to be built to order, Weldon has a full complement of machines to get you up and running. Contact us today to find out more: https://www.weldonsolutions.com/contact-us/.