Chip-Management

Chip removal systems automatically move chips away from the machine and into a collection bin. Without a chip removal system, the operator spends hours each shift shoveling wet, heavy chips from the coolant tank. An automated chip conveyor is one of the best investments I have made for production efficiency. Auger Systems: Simple and Reliable Auger systems use a helical screw rotating in a steel trough to move chips horizontally or at a slight incline. The auger is simple, reliable, and inexpensive. It has one moving part, which means little can go wrong. ...

The coolant filtration system is the first thing I check when a deep hole drilling operation starts producing inconsistent results. Dirty coolant causes more tool failures, surface finish problems, and bore diameter drift than almost any other single factor. I have seen a shop cut tool life in half simply by letting their filtration maintenance slip by two weeks. Why Filtration Matters More in Deep Hole Drilling Deep hole drilling generates fine chips that stay suspended in the coolant much longer than the chips from turning or milling. A gun drilling operation produces chips that are typically 0.01 to 0.05 mm thick and 1 to 5 mm long. These chips pass through the drill head coolant holes at high velocity. If chips recirculate through the system, they erode seals, clog coolant passages, and scratch bore surfaces. ...

I use chip conveyors on production deep hole drilling machines to avoid stopping for chip removal. Deep hole drilling produces a lot of chips — a 50 mm BTA drill running at 0.15 mm/rev generates about 5 kg of steel chips per meter drilled. Without a chip conveyor, the operator spends more time shoveling chips than running the machine. That cost adds up fast on a two-shift operation running multiple deep hole drilling machines. ...

I reduce feed through cross holes to protect the drill from shock loading. When a gun drill passes through a cross hole, the cutting edge loses contact with the material momentarily and then re-enters on the far side. The impact of re-entry chips the cutting edge if the feed is too high. I learned this the hard way on a batch of hydraulic manifold blocks where I chipped three drills in a row before I figured out the feed reduction. ...