Selling a used KAPP NILES machine, for example a generating or profile grinder of the KX, KNG, ZE, ZP or VX series, a rotor grinder of the RX series or a measuring machine? We buy your machine. Which route depends on machine, condition and market. Send the nameplate, build year, control and photos, and you get a first estimate. Below you find first the control support status and the other value factors, then how the sale works, and after that the company and series for reference. The overview of all processes and brands is on Sell gear cutting machines; the machine type is covered in Sell gear grinding machines.
Control and end of support: a real value factor
With used KAPP NILES machines the control often decides part of the valuation. Buyers care whether software updates, support and spare parts for control and drive technology are still available from the manufacturer or whether modernisation has to be planned. KAPP NILES has ended support for several control types in stages. The figures in the table come from the manufacturer’s discontinuation letter of 1 February 2025, published in the service section of kapp-niles.com.
| Control type | Affected machines according to the manufacturer | No software updates or adaptations | Limited support, service and spare parts for control/drive technology | No support, service or spare parts for control/drive technology |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Siemens 840D Powerline | The letter names no machine types | since 1 Jan 2023 | since 1 Jan 2024 | since 1 Jan 2025 |
| D300 / DIAX04 drive technology | Machine types built in 2012 and earlier | since 1 Jan 2021 | since 1 Jan 2022 | since 1 Jan 2025 |
| D107 / D140 / D145 / D150(B) / D200 | Machine types built in 2000 and earlier | since 1 Jan 2018 | since 1 Jan 2019 | since 1 Jan 2021 |
Where KAPP NILES can still procure control spare parts, the letter says they remain available through the manufacturer. According to the manufacturer the discontinuation also does not mean you have to give up the machine: the majority of machines are suitable for the modernisation solutions KN Retrofit and KN Recontrol.
In practice: for the Siemens 840D Powerline the letter names no machine types, so check the control directly on the machine. For D300 and for D107 to D200 the production year matters as well. Give us control type and build year and we place the support status in our estimate.
What decides the value of a used KAPP NILES machine
Besides the control, several points influence how a machine is assessed on the market. A complete self-check is in the guide What is my gear machine worth?.
- Series, diameter and module class: a KX for series production of small gears (tip circle up to 260 mm) is placed differently from a ZE for single parts and small batches or a ZP for large gears up to 8,000 mm. Workpiece length, face width and the option of internal grinding belong here.
- Equipment: dressing unit, integrated measuring unit, internal grinding unit, tailstock and loading systems such as pick-up or ring loader are available differently on the individual series. List what is actually fitted to your machine.
- Proof of accuracy: current test and measurement records show what gear quality the machine still grinds. They say more about actual condition than the build year alone.
- Retrofit status: a manufacturer retrofit with renewed control and documentation is a point of its own (see below). Third-party conversions belong in the papers as well.
- Automation and accessories: loaders, workholding, dressing tools and existing fixtures make the takeover easier for the buyer.
- Weight, foundation and dismantling effort: on large-gear machines such as the ZP series, dismantling and transport are an effort of their own, which we factor into the estimate.
KN Retrofit and KN Recontrol in detail
KAPP NILES offers two modernisation programmes. KN Retrofit is, according to the manufacturer, a full control upgrade from the original manufacturer with complete mechanical overhaul, new fluid, electrical and safety technology and new documentation; during the retrofit a replacement machine is provided to shorten downtime. KN Recontrol is the control upgrade without mechanical overhaul, pre-assembled at KAPP NILES. According to the manufacturer the investment is 40 to 65 percent of a comparable new machine; both routes give another ten years of spare parts availability.
The manufacturer names as suitable the families VX, VAS, VIS and VUS (5-axis concept), RX and RNS (5-axis concept) as well as KX 300 (P) and KX 500 FLEX ‘etc.’, and the control types OPTRONIC D200, OPTRONIC D300 and Siemens 840D Powerline. A used-machine programme for grinding machines is not listed on the KAPP NILES service page; it names implementation, modernisation, optimisation, maintenance, spare parts and a hotline.
What we need from you
- Nameplate (series, serial number, build year), control, operating hours
- Test records and retrofit papers if available
- Photos: overall view, grinding head with dressing unit, rotary table and workpiece spindle, control cabinet and operator interface
- Site details: foundation, door and crane access, whether the machine is still connected
How selling your KAPP NILES machine works
- Send details and photos.
- First estimate. You find out how we classify your machine. The offer usually follows 24–48 hours on working days after we have all the details. Where it is urgent we can visit on site usually within 48 to 72 hours on working days.
- Dismantling and transport. We organise both, also for large and heavy machines. Whether the costs are included is stated in the offer upfront.
- Payment before pickup (direct purchase). No machine leaves your site without confirmed payment.
The whole process usually takes 7 to 15 working days on a direct purchase. Sale through our buyer network: commission stated upfront; you are paid before pickup. The general process is on How it works.
Sell your KAPP NILES machine: request a free assessment.
What we do not buy
This page covers gear grinding and gear measuring machines. We do not accept loose grinding wheels, dressing tools and individual spare parts or control components as single items. Niles lathes (WMW NILES, Niles-Simmons) are a different subject; in that case give us the exact type designation. General precision grinding machines that do not grind gears are on Sell grinding machines.
Who is KAPP NILES?
KAPP NILES GmbH & Co. KG is a family-owned company based in Coburg with a second plant in Berlin; according to the manufacturer around 1,000 people work in the whole group. The range comprises generating and profile grinders for gears, profile grinders for large gears, rotor grinders and special machines, plus grinding and dressing tools and gear measuring machines. Metrology runs through a separate company, KAPP NILES Metrology GmbH in Großostheim.
The double name comes from two roots: the Werkzeugmaschinenfabrik KAPP (1953, Coburg) and the Maschinenbaufabrik NILES (1898, Berlin). NILES has belonged to the KAPP group since 1997; in March 2018 the two production companies were merged into one economic unit, KAPP NILES GmbH & Co. KG. Machines with a ‘KAPP’ or ‘NILES’ nameplate are therefore looked after by the same manufacturer today. That is useful for your sales papers: in your listing and enquiry, give the designation on the nameplate and add the present manufacturer name.
Series at a glance
The table summarises the series that KAPP NILES lists on its manufacturer page (research as of 29 September 2026). All values are manufacturer data; the manufacturer gives the maximum tip circle diameter, and values in brackets are taken as stated there. For an individual machine the nameplate and data sheet apply; the table replaces neither.
| Series | Process | Max. workpiece Ø (mm) | Max. module (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| KNG 350 core | Gear centre, generating/profile grinding with dressable tools, external gears | 350 | 0.5 to 6 |
| KNG 350 flex | Generating and profile grinding, external and internal gears | 350 (400) | Generating 0.5 to 8, profile 0.5 to 10 |
| KNG 350 flex HS | Generating and profile grinding with high-speed spindle | 350 | Generating 0.5 to 6, profile 0.5 to 8 |
| KX DYNAMIC (KX 100 / KX 260 DYNAMIC) | Continuous generating grinding, integrated pick-up loading, series production | 125 / 260 | 0.5 to 4.5 / 0.5 to 6 |
| KX TWIN (KX 160 / KX 260 TWIN (HS)) | Continuous generating grinding, two workpiece spindles on one rotary table | 170 / 260 | 0.5 to 4.5 / 0.5 to 6 |
| KX 300 P | Generating and profile grinding, ring loader optional | 350 | Generating 0.5 to 8, profile 0.5 to 10 |
| KX 500 FLEX | Generating and profile grinding, external/internal gears and special profiles | 500 | Generating 0.5 to 8, profile 0.5 to 12 |
| KNG 3P ready | Profile grinding, entry model, manual loading | 320 | 0.5 to 10 |
| KNG 5P expert | Profile grinding, external and internal gears | 500 (600) | 0.5 to 25 |
| KNG master (8P / 10P / 12P) | Profile grinding of large gears, external and internal | 800 / 1,000 / 1,250 | 0.5 to 35 |
| ZE (400 / 630 / 800 / 1000 / 1200) | Profile grinding, external and internal gears | 400 (500) / 650 / 800 / 1,000 / 1,200 | 0.5 to 20 (25) |
| ZP (10-16 / 20-24 / 30-80) | Profile grinding of large gears, hydrostatic bearings, 5-axis interpolation | 1,000-1,600 / 2,000-2,800 / 3,000-8,000 | 40 / 40 / 50 |
| VX (55 / 59) | Profile grinding with dressable or CBN tools | 500 / 630 | 0.5 to 16 |
| RX (120 / 55 / 59) | Grinding of screw rotors | Outside Ø 120 / 320 / 320 (400) | Rotor profile, no module stated |
For the KNG 5P expert the manufacturer itself describes the link to the past: it carries the long-standing ZE series forward. Whoever sells a ZE is therefore selling a concept that the manufacturer continues in a newer series. KAPP NILES also lists special machines for large gears (ZP B, ZPI, ZP I/E and ZP E/I, among others for large-module internal gears in wind power) and the HGS groove grinder for pump rotors.
The manufacturer’s modernisation page also names older families, namely VAS, VIS, VUS and RNS. KAPP NILES publishes no specifications for them, so we state none here. For these machines the nameplate helps us especially.
Names in the used market and their pitfalls
Dealer portals list KAPP NILES machines under very different spellings. The overview shows what is behind the most common designations. Specifications from listings are dealer statements and sometimes differ from the current manufacturer page; we take only the names from them.
| Designation in a listing | What is behind it |
|---|---|
| ‘KAPP’ and ‘NILES’ as separate manufacturers | Both brands have legally belonged to KAPP NILES since 2018; some dealer portals still list them separately. |
| ‘KAPP GmbH & Co. KG’ | Outdated dealer designation. The present manufacturer is called KAPP NILES GmbH & Co. KG. |
| ‘WMW NILES DLZ’, ‘Niles N 40 MC’, ‘Niles DP 4000’ | Lathes, not gear grinders. Lathes dominate under ‘Niles’ on dealer portals. |
| ‘Niles-Simmons’ | Lathes from Chemnitz; by its own account the company descends from the Chemnitz branch of the Niles works. Not to be confused with KAPP NILES. |
| ‘Niles ZSTZ 630’, ‘Niles ZSTZ 630 C3’, ‘Niles ZSTZ 06’ | Older Niles gear grinding machines. The types ZSTZ, ZE and ZP mark the gear grinders in ‘Niles’ listings. |
| ‘KAPP VAS 433’ | A machine of the older VAS family, listed by dealers as a gear flank grinder. |
| ‘KX160Twin’, ‘KX300P’ | Dealer spelling without spaces; the manufacturer writes ‘KX 160 / 260 TWIN (HS)’ and ‘KX 300 P’. |
| ‘KN’, ‘KN grind’, ‘KN Retrofit’, ‘KNM’ | On the manufacturer page ‘KN’ is only a prefix for products and software, not a series. KNM are the measuring machines of KAPP NILES Metrology. |
Two rules help with classification. First, the designation on the nameplate counts more than the listing title. Second, compare your machine only with listings that state series, build year and control, because build years and specifications in dealer data are not always reliable.
KAPP NILES measuring machines
The metrology of KAPP NILES Metrology includes the analytical measuring machines KNM 2X, 4X, 6X and 9X for small and medium workpieces up to 1,250 mm and the KNM-X series for large workpieces up to 6,000 mm; the software is called KN inspect. For older measuring machines the manufacturer offers repowering: all linear axes are replaced, the rotary table is reconditioned and gets a new rotary motor with encoder, the electronics are renewed and the software runs on Windows 10 (64-bit). According to the manufacturer, repowering costs about half of a new product. Whether your measuring machine has been repowered is therefore a value factor.
Other brands in gear cutting
If you are selling several machines from different makers, the brand pages are here: Reishauer for generating grinders of the RZ series, Liebherr, Klingelnberg and Gleason-Pfauter. The overview of all processes is Sell gear cutting machines.
Sources
Manufacturer data, as of 29 September 2026:
- KAPP NILES: Machines and series
- KAPP NILES: Discontinuation of the control types D200, D300 and Sinumerik 840D Powerline
- KAPP NILES: Modernisation of grinding machines (KN Retrofit and KN Recontrol)
- KAPP NILES: History of the company group