The Bridgeport Torq-Cut 22 is a smaller CNC vertical machining center. It comes fitted with a grease lubricated and belt driven spindle capable of running up to 7,500 rpm.
Read MoreWeiss 176162 Spindle Repair
When our customer first contacted us about this Weiss 176162 spindle, they were limiting the spindle speed to 4-5000 RPM (capable of 15,000 rpm) because it was emitting a loud, high-pitched squeal if run any faster. A week later, they were unable to go past 1000 RPM without it screaming, and the tools were coming out hot. This busy aerospace manufacturer needed to complete an order for a customer so they proceeded to run the spindle for another several months in their Hardinge Bridgeport XR500 5AX (5-axis vertical machining center). When they finally pulled the spindle and sent it to us, they requested an expedited turn time as the orders were stacked up and they could not afford significant downtime.
CHALLENGE
Once the spindle arrived in our facility, we observed that it turned very stiffly when rotated by hand. Upon breakdown it was apparent that the front quad set of bearings was heavily contaminated with coolant, especially the #1 bearing. Our dimensional inspection uncovered excessive runout in the tooling taper, and we also noticed that the specialized rotary union was leaking, which had caused significant corrosion to components at the rear of the spindle. Fortunately, there was no other damage which would require further corrective action. Because the OEM bearings for the grease-injection lubrication system are not available, we advised our customer that we would be converting the spindle to use readily available high-speed grease for life bearings.
SOLUTION
Unfortunately, a replacement rotary union was not available and had to be manufactured. Our customer approved their quote with the best turn time we could offer, given our vendor’s lead time. In the interim, we kiss ground the shaft taper, reducing the runout to less than 2µ. We rebuilt the spindle with all new ultra high speed grease for life bearings, Belleville washers, quad seals, o-rings & screws. By the time the rotary union arrived, the spindle run-in and QC were already completed. We were able to assemble the rotary union to the spindle, perform a final test run to check for balance and rub.
RESULT
This spindle passed our final quality inspection before being returned to our customer with a 1-year warranty.
DETAILED CAUSE OF FAILURE
Does your spindle need repair? GET A QUOTE TODAY
More Case Studies
Repair History - Here are examples of similar spindle repairs that may contain additional information that will help you. If you have additional questions, please contact us.
Spindle contamination is a critical issue that can significantly impact the performance and longevity of your machinery.
Read More