Ecoca MT-310

The Ecoca MT-310 is a mid-size slant-bed lathe with a 10 in (254 mm) chuck, a 600 mm (23.6 in) swing over the bed and a maximum turning diameter of 450 mm (17.7 in). Ecoca's own summary is that the 600mm swing comes with Z travel up to 1 meter, providing flexibility in turning length, and the table backs that with three turning lengths: 480 / 730 / 980 mm (18.9 / 28.7 / 38.6 in).

Its spindle runs to 4,200 rpm on a 15/18.5 kW (20.1/24.8 hp) motor. That is a general-purpose rating. It is enough for steady roughing of steel in the diameters a 10 in chuck holds, and fast enough to finish smaller diameters at a sensible surface speed. Shops that turn mostly large rings and want a bigger grip should look at the MT-312, which is the same machine with a 12 in (305 mm) chuck and 3,200 rpm.

The turret is worth a question at ordering time. Ecoca offers a servo turret or a hydraulic turret as alternatives and fits a large disc for easy tool set up. A servo turret indexes faster and can take the shortest path between stations; a hydraulic one is simpler. All versions carry 12 stations.

Box ways, printed as HARD RAIL, guide both axes on a 30 degree slant bed. The net weight is 5,100 / 5,500 / 6,000 kg (11,243 / 12,125 / 13,228 lb) for the three lengths. Between the 380 mm (15.0 in) turning diameter of the MT-210 and the 510 mm (20.1 in) of the MT-412, this is the middle step of the range.