Tungaloy Expands Drill System With Drill Sleeves

Tungaloy America Inc. expands its DrillMeister exchangeable-head drill system by adding drill sleeves to the standard lineup to enhance drilling productivity of Swiss-type sliding-head automatic lathes.

DrillMeister is an exchangeable-head drill system that has both the efficiency of solid carbide drills and the productivity of indexable drills. Covering the diameter range from 6.0 to 25.9 mm (0.236" to 1.020") in 0.1 mm (0.004") increments, the drill system features a high precision drill body and head interface that is said to ensure precision and cutting point repeatability, while enabling for easy handling. DrillMeister offers five types of drill heads as standard, capable of addressing various drilling requirements.

Without drill sleeves, however, the use of DrillMeister drills in Swiss lathes are limited; the exchangeable-head drills can only be used when the drill shank fits the drill holder of the machine. Otherwise, DrillMeister drills have no place in drilling applications performed in Swiss lathes, not being able to bring out a full potential and benefits of modular drills in Swiss style machining, according to Tungaloy.

The new DrillMeister drill sleeves are available in 16, 25 and 32 mm in diameters for metric sizes and 3/4" and 1" for imperial sizes that fit the drill holders of the same sizes equipped in Swiss lathes. All drill sleeves have a threaded connecting port on the sleeve end for easy coolant hose connection.

The new DrillMeister drill sleeves are said to make drill installation easy and also allow for quick changing of drill heads while remaining in the limited space of the Swiss lathe, reducing machine downtime when compared with solid carbide drills. Also, due to the exchangeable-head system, DrillMeister eliminates the need and cost of regrinding, while its unique interlocking design with precision interface reportedly guarantees drill rigidity and index repeatability of each drill head. This ensures high performance and tool life predictability, while also reducing the number of drills needed in inventory.

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Tungaloy has also added 48 new drill heads to its DMH drill head line of DrillMeister exchangeable drill head system, expanding its drill diameter range from 10 to 20 mm (from 0.394" to 0.787" inches) with new drill diameters that previously did not exist.

The DMH drill head features a fracture resistant design that is suitable for applications that involve drilling holes through thin-walled sections of workpieces. In normal circumstances, thin walls tend to spring back on the drill after the drill pierces through and exits the hole. In the process, uncut material shifts and forms exit burrs that impose extra burdens on the drill edge. These problems inflict damage on drill corners, shortening tool life. The DMH drill head’s geometry protects drill corners from fracture damage, providing extended tool life and reduced downtime.

With the new drill heads in the line, DrillMeister can now address more extensive hole size requirements.