South Carolina's  manufacturing sector is growing at a record pace that shows no signs of slowing, from global manufacturing headquarters to expanding advanced operations. Greenville County alone has averaged manufacturing employment growth of more than 17% over the last decade.
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That momentum makes Greenville the ideal hub for small and medium-sized manufacturers across the Southeast to come together, share ideas, and discover the latest technology that keeps shops competitive.
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We’re bringing a lineup of high-performance tooling and workholding partners that solve real problems on the shop floor:

• AB Tool – Home of the Shear Hog and AccuHold! Special carbide cutting tools delivered in 3–6 days.
• MAQ – Vibration-damped tool holders for internal turning operations from 3xD up to 15xD. 
• Microconic by Masa Tool – Subspindle workholding for Swiss & CNC lathes
• Pratt Burnerd America – Precision lathe chucks and workholding systems
• Soph Magnetics – Magnetic workholding and material handling solutions

While you’re at the show, make sure to stop by our other partners right in our aisle!

• AKKO - Booth 1934 –  A global leader in precision tooling since 1986, AKKO delivers high‑performance rotary toolholders, turning and milling toolholders, and a broad range of precision carbide inserts—tailored for minimal vibration, exceptional surface finish, and versatility across applications
• Blue Photon Technology & Workholding Systems LLC – Booth 1929 - They offer an innovative, patented adhesive workholding system—ideal for gripping complex or delicate parts without distortion, and enabling full 5- or 6-sided access, even in heavy milling of titanium and superalloys.
• EWS USA/ Command Tooling – Booth 1932 - EWS is a global expert in live and static toolholders and modular machining systems; in North America, they operate through the U.S.-based Command Tooling facility, offering precision solid and rotary toolholders under both brands.
• Jergens Workholding – Booth 1928 - A worldwide leader in custom CNC workholding—including vises, clamps, fixturing systems, and their patented Ball Lock® mounting and Fixture‑Pro® 5-Axis solutions—a go-to for boosting set‑up speed and machining productivity. You can also check out the workholdig in action just across the Aisle in the Innova Machine Tool Booth.  They are featuring Jergens workholding on their WSI WVM380 CNC machine.

(Click each name to add them directly to your show planner.
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When it comes to internal turning, one of the most overlooked—yet most critical—decisions a machinist can make is selecting the right boring bar for the job. Get it wrong, and you’re likely to face the age-old enemy of precision machining: chatter.

​Chatter: The Cost of Poor Setup
​Chatter isn’t just a nuisance—it’s a performance killer. It introduces erratic vibrations that compromise surface finish, reduce tool life, and wreak havoc on tolerances. Chatter most commonly occurs when a boring bar lacks the rigidity needed to withstand cutting forces.
Several factors can lead to chatter:

• Improper tool setup, including weak clamping or poor alignment
• Incorrect speeds and feeds, which generate unstable cutting conditions
• Material inconsistencies, such as varying hardness or density
• Tool wear or degradation over time
• Lack of machine or setup rigidity, especially in long overhang applications
• And most importantly—boring bar length-to-diameter ratio (L/D)

Perhaps MAQ said it best right on their homepage:
"The cutting process will become unstable due to vibration, usually in the form of forced vibrations in machining and regenerative tool chatter. That is often solved by trying to stabilize the process with a lower cutting speed, reduced depth of cut, or increased feed per revolution.
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The problem with these actions is that you either reduce production speed or that the surface finish is affected negatively. Usually, it means higher production costs as well. Vibration damping machine tools are necessary to expand the stable working zones of a metal cutting process." 

The longer the tool sticks out from the holder in relation to its diameter, the more flexible it becomes. That flexibility translates into vibration. Fortunately, choosing the right material and sticking within recommended L/D ratios can dramatically reduce the risk of chatter.
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The L/D ratio is a simple concept with major implications. It refers to how far the boring bar extends into the workpiece relative to its diameter. As this ratio increases, rigidity decreases—and that’s where different bar materials come into play.  Just remember 4-6-8-10 as a memory cue as you read this.

Here's how it breaks down:

Steel Boring Bars – Max L/D Ratio: 4:1
Steel boring bars are your go-to for short-reach, general-purpose applications. However, once you exceed 4x the bar diameter, rigidity starts to drop off fast. That can lead to deflection and chatter. Stick to 4:1 or less when using steel.

Heavy Metal Boring Bars – Max L/D Ratio: 6:1
Made from tungsten-based alloys, heavy metal boring bars provide better vibration damping than steel. This allows you to safely push the L/D ratio up to 6:1, giving you extra reach while maintaining acceptable rigidity and precision.

Carbide Boring Bars – Max L/D Ratio: 8:1
Carbide boring bars bring serious stiffness and heat resistance to the table. With an L/D ratio up to 8:1, they’re ideal for deep boring applications that demand both reach and accuracy. Carbide’s high modulus of elasticity helps minimize deflection under load.

Devibe Boring Bars – Max L/D Ratio: 10:1 or More
When you need even more reach—and can't afford to compromise on surface finish—a Devibe or vibration-damped boring bar is the best tool for the job. With L/D ratios of 10:1 and beyond, these bars are engineered with internal damping mechanisms (like tuned mass dampers or viscoelastic inserts) to absorb and counteract vibrations.

The Bottom Line
Choosing the correct boring bar isn't just about length or diameter—it's about achieving the right balance of rigidity, reach, and vibration control to meet your production goals.

Whether you're dealing with standard steel bars or pushing the limits with long-reach internal turning, matching the correct L/D ratio to the right bar material is essential to avoid chatter, maintain precision, and extend tool life.

Remember 4 - 6 - 8 -10!

• 4 = Steel
• 6 = Heavy Metal
• 8 =- Carbide
• 10 = Device bar

If you're facing challenging boring applications, the JMI CNC Tooling & Automation team is here to help. From common setups to extreme overhangs, we can provide proven solutions—including the advanced MAQ DeVibe Bars, engineered to dampen vibration and perform reliably even at 10:1 L/D ratios or more.

​Reach out to us today to discuss your specific application—we’ll help you eliminate chatter and improve performance, no matter how demanding the cut.

Despite operating at elevated rotational speeds, the MAQ devibe holder effectively minimizes vibration, thanks to its integrated self-balancing mechanism and advanced STMD (Self-Tuning Mass Damper) technology.

This is particularly significant because it highlights how MAQ's tools overcome common challenges associated with extended length-to-diameter ratios (L/D), delivering superior surface finishes and achieving micron-level tolerances.

For manufacturing sectors requiring extreme precision, such as aerospace and automotive, this performance represents a major leap forward in efficiency and reliability, reducing rework and eliminating the need for secondary operations.

by ​Mariah Hellman

In an industry where precision and efficiency is paramount, MAQ has positioned themselves at the forefront of machining technology. Ahmed Bousmina, Mechanical Engineer at MAQ, sheds light on how the company is revolutionizing the machining process with its innovative tooling solutions, particularly focusing on turning tool holders equipped with proprietary dampening technology to combat harmful vibrations during machining.

Innovating for efficiency and flexibility
At the heart of MAQ’s product line are the turning tool holders, designed to accommodate a range of operational lengths and diameters, ensuring versatility for various machining tasks. “Our tools are categorized to simplify selection for our customers, focusing on the diameter and operational length rather than the total length of the tool, which is often irrelevant to the buyer,” Ahmed explains. This user-centric approach underscores MAQ’s commitment to providing solutions that genuinely meet the needs of operators and manufacturing professionals.

Cutting-edge dampening technology
What truly sets MAQ apart is the integration of dampening technology within their tool holders. This innovation significantly reduces vibrations that can compromise machining quality, allowing for smoother operations and higher precision. “We’ve divided our products into four main sections based on the tool’s diameter and the stick-out length, offering unparalleled performance across a wide range of specifications,” Ahmed says.

Carbide reinforced and steel options
When going into detail on the distinction between carbide-reinforced (CR) and full steel tool holders, Ahmed highlights how material choice is pivotal when machining at various lengths. “For longer tools where bending moments become a concern, carbide reinforcement on the tool’s back end ensures rigidity and optimal performance,” he noted. This nuanced understanding of material properties and machining dynamics is a testament to MAQ’s expertise and innovation in tool design.

Modular and monoblock configurations
MAQ offers tools in both modular and monoblock configurations, catering to different machining requirements. The modular system provides flexibility, allowing for head changes to accommodate various machining processes without the need for multiple tools. On the other hand, monoblock tools offer a rigid, integrated solution for specific applications. “This versatility ensures that our customers can achieve the best results with minimal tool changeover time,” Ahmed adds.

Future directions and market expansion
Looking ahead, MMAQ is focused on expanding its product range to provide for even more specialized needs. Already today, MAQ offers the widest range of products on the market, with the smallest tool measuring 6mm, and the largest up to 80mm in the standard range, while the capabilities span up to 350 millimeters in diameter and 5,5 meters in length. The technology is scalable, which enables everything from medical components requiring miniature precision to large-scale parts in the oil and gas or defense sectors. This, ensuring that MAQ’s technology is versatile enough to meet a broad spectrum of industry demands. Looking to the future, the goal is to expand the product range even more, to meet an even wider number of industries. “Our aim is to simplify machining worldwide, making it more efficient, precise, and cost-effective for our clients,” Ahmed concluded.
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With a relentless pursuit of innovation and a keen eye on the evolving needs of the machining industry, MAQ is not just a tool manufacturer – but a partner in machining excellence, paving the way for future advancements in the field.

by ​Jerry McNealy, Owner, Indian Mountain Machine

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My name is Jerry McNealy – I’ve been in the machining industry for over thirty years, and I am the owner and operator of Indian Mountain Machine based out of Jellico, Tennessee. Here, we handle some highly complex and precision parts (most of which have just as high a value placed on their cosmetics as they do their function/tolerance).

Pair this with the fact that I started running a CNC lathe only a couple years into my early career, and I can definitely claim to know a thing or two about some of the problems you tend to come across with thin-wall parts in a lathe.

At our shop, we do several somewhat thin wall long parts, and we’ve bought other anti-vibe bars in the past that have usually resulted in having to turn the RPM down very low, as well as the feed rates, which results in these projects taking a considerable amount of time to achieve the finish we need – and it’s still not good enough.

One day, we were tooling up another machine to do some parts, and I spoke with Gary McNealy at Jones Marketing Inc., who suggested that we try out this new chatter-free anti-vibe bar made by MAQ. I hadn’t yet heard of MAQ, but it looked interesting, and I trusted his recommendation. Looking back on it now, I’m extremely glad we did – because I have never seen anything perform quite as well as these bars do.

We decided to start out with a 1” diameter bar, running some 6.5” long parts – which then progressed into some 8” long parts, and still only required a 1” diameter bar.

And as we continued to run parts, we kept increasing the speed and feed rate, before finally ending up around 1000 RPMs and a feed rate of .005 IPR.

We were completely surprised by the finish, not to mention the speed with which we could now produce these parts!

In fact, another incredible thing that the MAQ Bar’s performance has done is improve the product and its finish, allowing us to actually skip the dreaded sanding and polishing process. Some parts can even be cleaned and shipped straight to plating.

​We ended up going into some 9” long parts, which we were able to get the 1.25” bar for. To really illustrate how great the MAQ Bar is, though, when we first started running the parts, I went over to my toolbox and got the best 1.25” anti-vibe bar that we’d had previously, thinking that we might just try with it first and see how it goes. This bar has seen a lot of parts over the years, and it has a lot of character to show for it; rubber bands wrapped around it, bungee cords wrapped around the parts, the whole deal – anything to dampen vibration.

Using this bar, however, we only ended up with what I figured to be a low RPM, slow speed, and a very poor finish. This particular part we were working on was going to take up to an hour and 15 minutes to rough and finish the bore.

But once we switched over to the MAQ 1.25” Bar, it roughed and finished the part with the same bar in less than 15 minutes. The finished product was checking at under a 20 (micro), and was absolutely immaculate.

Like I said, I’ve been at this a long time – and I’ve definitely been around the block enough to recognize a game-changer when I see it.

MAQ Bars are, without a doubt, true standouts that have impressed me and the rest of the team here at Indian Mountain Machine. They are built to extremely high standards, save us valuable time, and are completely dependable, always resulting in final products that we are proud to ship out from our shop.

​I am personally a huge fan of MAQ, and I cannot recommend them highly enough. You will not be disappointed with what they have to offer.