Our Blog - See Examples of Spindles We've Repaired

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Welcome to our blog. Here, you'll find examples of spindles we've repaired in the past. We explain what was wrong, have images, videos and more. If you're looking for more specific brand information, or can't find a brand click here, or try the "brands" link above.

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    • Milltronics VM17 Spindle Rebuild

    Milltronics VM17

    Milltronics VM17 Spindle Repair

    This is a spindle made by Setco for a Milltronics machine. The #3 bearing of the front tri-set failed. The manufacturer or the previous rebuilder did not set the spacers correctly for the front bearing set. They had the spacers set for a much heavier preload than the speed of the spindle would allow. This caused heat and premature bearing wear that eventually lead to the failure of the spindle assembly. The taper also had 8 microns of run out.

    Northland Tool kiss ground the taper and reworked the spacers to give the front tri-set of bearings the proper preload. We assembled the spindle and test ran it on our test stand at the top operational speed of 8000 rpm. 

    Categories: Automotive Industry,CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Milltronics Spindle Repair,Setco Spindles

    Sandy @ 11:33 am


    Okuma Howa 438 Spindle

    10,000 rpm

    Grease lubricated

    The main cause of failure for this spindle was rear bearing failure. When the rear bearing failed the encoder sensor was damaged. The 40 taper had run out and needed a kiss grind. The drawbar was worn where the belleville washers sit and needed to be reconditioned to insure proper drawbar actuation.

    Northland Tool replaced the sensor, kiss ground the taper , reworked the drawbar and rebuilt the spindle. During the installation process we stayed in close contact with the installation personnel to make sure everything went smoothly.

    Categories: CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Okuma Howa Spindles

    Sandy @ 9:25 am


    Mori Seiki SH40Mori Seiki SH40

    The taper of this spindle had build up causing tool run out. The front bearings were contaminated and the front housing was over sized. All these factors contributed to bad part finish that eventually lead to our customer to send the spindle to Northland Tool for repair.

    We ground plate ground the front housing and the 40 taper in our grinding department. The spindle was then assemble in our clean room. The final quality test showed less than 2 microns repeatable run out on a 12 inch test bar over multiple tool changes. This was exactly what our customer needed for his process. View Our Mori Seiki Spindle Repair Page Here.

    If you would like more information please call us at 800-774-6353 or CLICK HERE.

    Categories: Automotive Industry,CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Milling Spindles,Mori Seiki Spindles

    Sandy @ 1:07 pm


    Mazak VTC200B
    Mazak VTC200B

    Mazak VTC200B

    12,000 rpm
    40 taper
    Oil Mist Lubrication
    This customer has multiple Mazak VTC200B machines in their facility that were experiencing frequent spindle failures. We disassembled the first spindle and found that the design was very poor. The nut for the rear bearings was hydraulic and had the long shaft that attaches to the drive motor bolted to it. The problem with this setup occurs if there is any misalignment with the drive motor, any vibration in the drive motor or if any number of ground surfaces are not virtually perfect. Any flaws in these areas subjects stress directly to the rear bearing causing premature failure. To compound these issues the drawbar system that requires significant forces to function is included in this assembly.
    We discussed these findings with our customer and mutually decided the best course of action was to replace the shaft, hydraulic nut and drive motor tube. This was the only way to insure proper fits and run outs. Special care will also need to be taken during the installation process to insure proper alignment and balance.   
    Categories: CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Mazak Spindles,Problem Solving Case Studies

    Sandy @ 10:53 am


    OKK HM40
    OKK HM40

    OKK HM40

    Conversion from ceramic to steel
    One of our long time customers had this spindle fail recently. They use the spindle to rough out parts and are only running it at a fraction of its top rated speed. We discussed the repair with them and decided that replacing the ceramic bearings with steel would not only save them money but would increase the spindles lifespan in the machine. The steel balls in the bearings are less likely than their ceramic counterparts to brinell the raceways during high load situations.
    Categories: Automotive Industry,CNC Spindles,Milling Spindles,OKK Spindles,Problem Solving Case Studies

    Sandy @ 12:28 pm


    Mori Seiki SH500 BIG PLUS
    Mori Seiki SH500 BIG PLUS

    Mori Seiki SH500 BIG PLUS

    This customer was referred to us by another of our customers. This spindle had been repaired several years ago and during that repair the taper was kiss ground. Unfortunately that made the BIG PLUS taper unusable. We were able to repair the taper to BIG PLUS standards an rebuild the spindle. View Our Mori Seiki Spindle Repair Page Here.
    Categories: BIG PLUS,CNC Spindles,Milling Spindles,Mori Seiki Spindles,Weapon Manufacturing Industry

    Sandy @ 1:43 pm


    Bridgeport VMC3020
    Bridgeport VMC3020

    Bridgeport VMC3020

    40 Taper
    8,000 rpm
    The rear bearing of this spindle was loaded incorrectly during it’s last assembly causing the bearing to fail prematurely. We adjusted the preload and repaired the spindle for our customer.
    Categories: Bridgeport Spindles,CNC Spindles,Independent Service Providers,Milling Spindles

    Sandy @ 12:11 pm


    Matsuura 800VA
    Matsuura 800VA

    Matsuura 800VA

    Before using Northland Tool & Electronics our customer was using the OEM for his spindle repairs. This was a costly route to go for two reasons. The first being the inflated cost of the repair itself, the second being the OEM insisted our customer pay to have them install the spindles. Our customer has the knowledge, ability and staff to maintain their machines and was tired of being forced to pay far to much to the OEM. We discussed our repair programs with them and determined we would be a good option to replace the OEM. Our one year warranty covers our repair regardless of who installs the spindle. Visit Our Matsuura Page Here

    Categories: CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Matsuura Spindles,Milling Spindles

    Sandy @ 10:26 am


    Dynamatronics
    Dynamatronics

    Dynamatronics

    6,000 rpm
    Grease Lubricated
    The front bearings failed from coolant contamination. The coolant entered through the front labyrinth system and washed the grease from the bearings. We gave the contamination prevention options that were available at this time to our customer and they decided on the option that worked best for them.  The taper had run out and poor contact so we kiss ground it. This spindle also received a full drawbar rebuild.
    Categories: CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Dynamatronics spindles,Milling Spindles

    Sandy @ 11:45 am


    Mori Seiki NV5000
    Mori Seiki NV5000

    Mori Seiki NV5000

    BIG PLUS Taper
    12,000 rpm
    This spindle was crashed causing damage to the front bearings and the BIG PLUS taper. We needed to grind plate grind the taper to bring it back to manufacturers specifications.
    Our final QC showed we had less than 2 microns run out on a 13 inch BIG PLUS test bar that repeated over 20 tool changes. The only way to achieve this type of accuracy is to have all the required BIG PLUS test tooling and a close working relationship with BIG PLUS.
    Our competition claims to be able to repair BIG PLUS spindles. However, recently we have found several spindles we have had to rebuild after our competition has worked on them because they really have no understanding of the tooling interface and they are not equipped to test the tooling interface. If you need your BIG PLUS spindle repaired always ask the rebuilder if they are certified and for proof they posses the proper test tooling. You will save yourself a lot of aggravation. View Our Mori Seiki Spindle Repair Page Here.
    Categories: BIG PLUS,CNC Machining Industry,CNC Spindles,Milling Spindles,Mori Seiki Spindles,Why we ask for tooling

    Sandy @ 12:24 pm


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