Deep Hole Drilling for EV Motor Shafts: What I'm Seeing on the Shop Floor
I’ve been seeing more EV motor shaft work in the last couple years. The pattern is consistent: a shaft maybe 300-600mm long, 30-50mm OD, with a through-hole of 10-25mm that needs to be straight and smooth over the full length. The reason is weight reduction. A hollow shaft spins up faster and puts less load on the bearings than a solid one. And the balance is better — which matters when the motor is spinning at 15,000 RPM or more. (If you’re more familiar with gun drilling solid shafts, the hollow ones have their own quirks.) ...