Thread Rolling Works with Both High and Low Volume Jobs

Rolling threads on various materials became a necessity in high volume manufacturing in the US following its discovery in Germany after the second world war.

The most dramatic effect was in the production of spark plugs. In the US alone more than 10 million spark plugs were being produced daily by several manufacturers. Leaded fuels were necessary to lubricate engine valves but subsequently fowled spark plugs limiting their useful life to about 10,000 miles. When lead was outlawed in motor fuels in the 1970’s hardened valve seats became the standard and without lead deteriorating spark plug life increased more than 10-fold. This reduced product demand equally.

Thread rolling migrated from multi spindle screw machines to modern CNC machines for the very same reasons. Cold forming of threads became equally important in lower volume production from a time and cost consideration. Threads can be formed typically at 1 inch of thread per second of cycle time. A cold formed thread has greater yield strength and surface quality than a cut thread. Many materials that are difficult to cut are easy to roll. Time cycles and part volume create significant value in throughput cost. This value impacts on the final cost of the finished product. In a job shop atmosphere, it can be the strategic difference between winning the quote or losing the work to a lower bidder. Rolled threads can reduce the effects of corrosion improving life cycles in many applications. The relative ease of applying this technology to today’s metal working machines makes it even more important as a value-added component of the modern machine shop.

We can evaluate your part, your process and your machine when applying the application of thread rolling to your operation. Thread rolling was once conceived as a “black art” but is truly a straight forward application driven technology easily applied in any modern machine shop. Many military and aviation components demand rolled threads for strength and surface quality. Let us help with your application.  The cost implications can be the leverage your company needs to improve profitability.

Tap Strength

Roll Form Tapping can increase the tensile strength of an internal thread up to twice the tensile strength of a cut thread. Carbide taps will decrease the cycle time required to thread by at least a factor of two.

Fette offers a carbide nib form tap assembled on a steel shank to take advantage of the speed potential while preserving overall tap strength to tangential forces. The improved cycle times are sweetened by tap life that can be more than 10 times the life of a steel tap.

Machining Aluminum Can Be Most Cost Effective With PCD Inserts

Machining Aluminum can be most cost effective with PCD inserts, however, insert cost is very high. Most Aluminum is milled and turned with carbide inserts honed for sharpness and polished to aid in chip flow. The best of both worlds is a development by LMT Fette in Germany using a coating process defined as Plasma CVD. The coating is applied to a honed insert and increases insert life while maintaining the edge integrity. As an added benefit Milling speeds can be as high as 6000sfm and turning speeds to 10,000 sfm. Speeds significantly improve throughput and insert life can be 10 times longer than uncoated inserts. Insert cost is comparable to uncoated polished inserts.

Cold Thread Forming (Thread Rolling) Often Can Efficiently Improve Machinability.

The mechanical characteristics of many materials can make them difficult to thread using traditional cutting technologies. Chip control and work hardening can be an obstacle to efficient machining.  Cold thread forming (thread rolling) often can be used to efficiently improve machinability.

Thread rolling is especially efficient in many Nickel, Monel, Inconel, Titanium, Silicon Bronze, Copper, Brass, Copper alloys and Aluminum alloys. Typically, these materials can be threaded faster and at lower cost through rolling. The chip-less cold formed method adds strength and improves thread performance and is amendable to today’s modern production equipment. Identifying a material grade can quickly determine if rolling is a benefit both in thread cost and thread quality.

Most common thread forms UNC, UNF, UNEF, M, MF, MEF, Acme, Stub Acme and Whitworth are several thread types that are good candidates for rolling. Other forms are also capable. We can quickly identify your specific need and determine capability.

Performance of A Thread Rolling Tool

The long-term performance of a thread rolling tool is directly related to wear of the spindles, bearings, backing plate and face plate of the rolling head. Wear of any or all these components will manifest initially in pronounced taper of the finished thread. Older style heads were equipped with needle bearings while newer style heads utilized carbide bushings. The carbide helped to maintain parallel form for longer life cycle than the needles. Correcting taper generally requires replacing one or more of the contributing components. In a pinch, the straightness is achieved through preparation of a counter tapered part prep. This can squeeze additional life out of the tool without the time and cost of immediate repair or part replacement.

We inspect, evaluate and quote repair cost and time when tool performance becomes suspect and the inspection is scheduled regarding production needs.