Keep It Symmetrical: Design parts with symmetry whenever possible. Symmetrical shapes reduce the complexity of machining, leading to improved accuracy and reduced production time.

Minimize Overhangs: Avoid long overhangs or unsupported features, as they may lead to vibration and deflection during machining. Keeping overhangs to a minimum improves machining stability.

Avoid Sharp Internal Corners: Internal sharp corners can be challenging to machine with standard turning tools. Use fillets or radii to ease machining and prevent tool breakage.

Choose Suitable Tolerances: Consult with your CNC turning service provider to determine appropriate tolerances for your design. Tight tolerances may increase production costs, so use them only where necessary.

Select Machinable Materials: Opt for materials that are easy to machine, like aluminum, brass, and mild steel. Avoid materials with excessive hardness or tough-to-machine properties unless necessary.

Design for Tool Accessibility: Ensure that cutting tools can access all required features of the part. Avoid deep cavities or complex features that may be difficult to reach with standard tooling.

Consider Material Wastage: Design parts to minimize material wastage during machining. Optimizing the stock material size and using efficient nesting can save costs and reduce material waste.

Provide Adequate Clearance: Ensure sufficient clearance between the rotating workpiece and the lathe’s chuck and tool holders to prevent collisions during machining.

Avoid Undercuts: Undercuts may require additional tool changes or special tooling, which can increase production time and costs. Minimize or eliminate undercuts in your design.

Use Standard Tool Sizes: Design features that can be machined with standard tool sizes. Custom tooling can increase production costs and lead times.

Add Chamfers and Radii: Include chamfers or radii on external edges to prevent sharp edges, reduce stress concentrations, and improve aesthetics.

Consider Part Orientation: Think about the best orientation for machining the part. Rotating the part to access different features can be time-consuming, so try to minimize the number of setups required.

Test Prototypes: Before proceeding with a large production run, create a prototype to test the design for functionality and identify potential issues in the manufacturing process.