Oil Field Lathe Machines: Hollow spindle
Oil Field Lathes also known as Hollow spindle lathes and oil country lathes have big spindle bores and outboard chucks on the headstock. These are popular in the oil fields because you can take a long workpiece and push it through the headstock to make complex threads.
Oilfield Lathe For Sale
Oil field big bore lathes come with various length beds and a large swing which can machine big steel rollers, large diameter flanges, and long shafts of ships, for example. Some common accessories include a rotary quill option on tailstocks, double chuck systems, rear tool post, taper attachments, 3-jaw or 4-jaw chucks, steady rest, follow rest and quick-change tool posts.
CNC Lathes for the Oil Field Industry
Axlelson, Lansing, Lehmann, Lodge & Shipley, LeBlond, Gishold Big Bore Lathe Manufacturers
The oil field industry demands very heavy-duty machines. Oil field lathes are used for threading large drill stems and casings. Popular manufacturers of oil country lathes include Lodge, LeBlond, Gishold, Lehmann, and Axlelson.
Lehmann hollow spindle lathes are large lathes found commonly in oil field service shops. Even though Lehmann doesnt build lathes anymore, they are still known for their Fast Threading system for cutting threads, rapid traverse on the carriage, and good heavy taper attachments.
Another common, used hallow spindle lathe is made by Lansing. These are Korean-made large lathes have massive spindle bores, though some consider them less beefy than Lodge & Shipley (L&S) traditional oil country lathes. The L&S big bore lathe is beefier than a Lansing lathe with an equivalent capacity and big bore spindle.
Big Bore Lathe Brand Names Change
When Lehmann went out of business, it was bought by Drillco, then Smith International, and eventually merged with Schlumberger. LeBlond mills are now part of Makino. Even though some CNC lathe machine tool companies have come and gone, good used CNC lathes stand the test of time with good maintenance. Parts and service for these machines is still available, both privately and though the current holding company of the name brands.
Used Hollow Spindle Lathe Applications
Nuclear, Scientific, Wind Tunnels & More
Hollow spindle lathes make long tubular parts like linear accelerators, supersonic wind tunnels, and nuclear reactors. They are differentiated from oil country lathes by the sand in the gearboxes and on the lathe ways. Any application that needs very large machined cylindrical parts can be an excellent fit for a used hollow spindle lathe.
Used Lathes for Oil Field Applications Make Good Sense
Shifts in the energy industry have a big impact on machine shops in the oil industry. Shops in this industry experience highs and lows as the price of oil fluctuates. Rather than carrying payments on big, new oil field lathes, many shops buffer the potential impact of market swings with high-quality used hollow spindle lathes. Used hollow spindle lathes can be retrofitted to have newer CNC controls, axis drives, and axis servo motors. A good used hollow spindle lathe is designed to last for many, many years.