Terry McDonald: Site Safety
We’ve all seen people wearing those braces on their wrists that extend from the knuckles to midway up the forearm, and most of us...
Part 2 of an outline of the evolution and continued development of hobs
Tangential feed hobs are in three basic designs: pancake, multiple-spiral cylindrical, and pineapple. The former are low in cost with a narrow face and...
Understanding equipment used in the endo and low-pressure carburizing processes
I’ve explained in previous columns a few basic tenants of endo and low pressure carburizing processes, so perhaps a discussion of the equipment used...
Q&A with Matt Mondek
Cotta Transmission has been in business for more than a century. Could you tell us a little about its history and areas of expertise?
I’d...
Terry McDonald: Site Safety
In my experience, many gear manufacturers purchase used equipment for their shops. While this is a feasible method of acquiring the equipment we need...
Hobs have developed over the 150 years, but it was in the 1980s that...
An essential part of the gear art is in selecting the correct hob for the required gear. The hob diameter, length, number of gashes,...
When considering vacuum carburizing, audit post heat-treat processing cost to determine if the costs...
I have nothing against vacuum carburizing, I’ve spent a good deal of my career developing and selling the process, it’s just that few applications...
Q&A with Michael White
Brad Foote is such a well-known name in the gear manufacturing industry, could you give us a little background?
I’d be glad to. Bradford Foote...
Q&A with Allan Arch
I understand there’s an interesting story behind your company’s name and location.
That’s true. My father, Joseph Arch, founded Southern Gear in Miami. He was...
Terry McDonald: Site Safety
Spring has finally sprung! Isn’t that one of the nicest things you’ve read today? Just think, it’s the start of grilling season (remember to...
Electric Discharge Method, Electro Chemical Machining, and laser and abrasive water jet machining among...
The Electric Discharge Method (EDM) is based on an electrically conductive material being eroded by a continuous spark discharge to its surface. Using special...
Interest in high-pressure gas quenching (HPGQ) increases
Hydrogen for high-pressure gas quenching (HPGQ) has the highest thermal conductivity and heat capacity of any commercially available gas, but currently is not used...
Terry McDonald: Site Safety
In a report issued late last year covering the period from Oct. 1, 2009 through Sept. 30, 2010, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health...
Research and development into nanotechnology and molecular engineering are resulting in gear types and...
The Bell Corporation identified five characteristics of what they termed the post-industrial society. They are: 1) the majority of the labor force is in...
Carburizing vs. nitriding: Where does the future lie?
In last month’s column I highlighted difficulties in applying the plasma nitriding process. In many ways the process’s expected outcome had the right idea;...
Q&A with Ken Ahlgren
I understand that broaching runs in your family.
You’re right. My father, Kenneth, and my grandfather Raymond “Guss” Ahlgren both worked at Federal Broach &...
Terry McDonald: Site Safety
Remember, it’s not too late to get a flu shot. It is one of the nicest things you can do for your fellow employees,...
Estimates say more than 30 basic forms have been produced, and this number continues...
Gear design and manufacture was simplified with the introduction of hobbing more than a century and a half ago. The hob’s cutting edge represented...
The inside story of ionitriding in the United States
When ionitriding—or generically speaking, plasma nitriding technology—was being transferred to the United States from Germany in the mid eighties I was managing an R&D...
Q&A with Talion Edwards
Tell us a little about the society’s background, and the annual conference.
The first Coordinate Metrology Systems Conference (CMSC) was held in San Antonio, Texas,...
