2012 Chevalier FBL-530C CNC Lathe with Big Bore

The Chevalier FBL-530C is a heavy-duty big bore CNC slant bed lathe whose simple, rugged design has made it a dependable choice for oilfield, energy, and heavy-shaft turning shops. This 2012 model is a 2-axis CNC lathe built around a 12.5" spindle bore, with a 40" maximum swing over the bed, a 37" maximum turning diameter, and a 118.1" maximum turning length. X / Z axis travels are 19.3" x 118.1". Power comes from a 60 HP AC servo spindle motor driving a three-stage gear headstock rated for 4,135 Nm of torque, giving the low-speed grunt needed for large-diameter work pieces and tough materials. The 45-degree slant bed is a single-piece Meehanite cast iron casting with a wide-span ribbed box structure, hardened and stress relieved, and rides on four oversized box ways for stability under heavy cuts. A 12-station turret with a 7.8" thick disk and hydraulic curvic-coupling clamping holds 1-1/4" turning tools for rough and finish turning. This unit is equipped with a 3-jaw front chuck and a Schunk ROTA TB 630-325 rear chuck for dual-chuck support of long tubular parts such as casing and drill pipe, a hydraulic steady rest, and a tailstock with an MT-6 rotary quill. The machine runs on a Fanuc CNC control.

The FBL-530C is the big bore evolution of Chevalier's standard FBL-530 and FBL-520 slant bed lathes. Those standard models are built with a 7.5" spindle hole and a 6.0" maximum bar capacity, which limits them to solid bar and smaller tubulars. The FBL-530C opens the spindle to 12.5", letting pipe, couplings, and tubular stock pass through the headstock for end work that the standard machines cannot accept. It pairs that larger bore with a 60 HP three-stage geared headstock and 4,135 Nm of torque for heavy cuts on large-diameter parts, and keeps the FBL-530 bed length with 118.1" of Z travel. Chevalier's optional dual-chuck capability adds support for long parts such as oil-drilling shafts. For a shop moving up from a standard-bore lathe, the FBL-530C is a meaningful capability upgrade - not just a different machine - that brings oil country and large-tube work in house.