Tapping Small Holes in Titanium Is a Breeze with FlexArm Tapping Arm

Located in Valparaiso, Indiana, RockRabbit Guitars manufactures premiere guitar parts made of titanium. One of these parts requires 18 threaded holes. Up until recently, the threads were produced with thread milling, and the total time to fully machine 6 of these parts was 3 hours. Looking for a more efficient way to complete the job, RockRabbit reached out to FlexArm, and was fitted with an A-32 pneumatic tapping arm to cut machine time in half.

4-40 Tapping Titanium vs. Thread Milling

RockRabbit was set up with a FlexArm A-32 pneumatic tapping arm to tap 4-40 holes into titanium approximately ¼” deep.  To ensure the tap goes all the way through the hole, the arm is also fitted with a depth stop, which will automatically reverse out when it reaches the desired depth.

Tapping 4-40 in titanium can be quite difficult, but as you can see from the video below, it can be done very easily with a FlexArm tapping arm. In addition to the significant decrease in machine time, FlexArm tapping arms guarantee no broken taps.

The FlexArm A-32 pneumatic tapping arm starts at only $2,995 and can tap up to 9/16” with very high perpendicularity tolerance. It takes just seconds to tap a perfect hole, and there are no broken taps, no hand lubricating, no breaking chips, no digging broken taps out of parts, and no scrapped parts. This arm can literally pay for itself in one job.

Joe at RockRabbit Guitars will be dramatically increasing his efficiency with his FlexArm while cutting his machine time in half. Wouldn’t you like to do the same?

You need a FlexArm to tap your small holes in the quickest and most efficient way possible. Give us a call today at 1-800-837-2503 or request a quote to get set up with the ergonomic solution your company needs!

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Standard Features

  • Hand Pendant
  • 22″ Touch Screen Monitor
  • Omron FlexCNC Controller
  • Mobile Control Panel
  • Through Spindle Coolant 
  • Auto Tool Changer 
  • Flood Coolant
HP
Max RPM
FT/LBS
Series

18

4000

92

C-20-02 / C-10-02

18

6000

61

C-20-02 / C-10-02

33

12000

61

CM-20-02

Auto Stand-Off – This is currently defined to be surface stand-off and not to be confused with vector stand-off in 5-axis mode. The current auto stand-off is based on a changing surface and will adjust vertically based on the angle of the “A” Axis, so there is five (5) axis taken into account during the calculations, but this is not the same as the tool vector stand-off. There is the ability to do the vector stand-off change while the machine is running manually with buttons on the screen.

Z-Reader Probe – The Z-Reader is a device for mapping the location of the surface. It can be controlled manually & programmatically. The option is NOT active while cutting & is retracted out of harm’s way. It can be triggered to verify the surface at every pierce before the cutting process starts, or it could be used to drive surface mapping of the whole part before cutting starts. It begins with initialization or zeroing of the device to the surface at the beginning of a program and then accumulates or tracks the difference from that zeroing effort.

Automatic Edge Finder – The edge finder is or can be utilized manually (Jogging Method & Screen Buttons), programmatically (M & G codes), or fully automatic routine (dedicated program). This option sets offsets & program rotation to match the orientation & location on the cutting table.

AC Unit Installed on Electrical Cabinet – The unit is mounted on the cabinet’s High Power (480v) side. It is close to the location where the drives are mounted. This option keeps the cabinet temperature stable and allows heat dissipation faster. The servo drives for all axes are the most significant contributors to heat inside the electrical cabinet.

5-Axis Renishaw CalibrationThe calibration unit is a Renishaw model APCA45 with a modified spherical stylus. The device has a retractable cover and air purge to clear debris & dust during the activation process. It mounts to a swing arm controlled by a pneumatic rotary, so it is out of the way during regular operation and swings into the calibration position for calibration only. 

HP
Max RPM
FT/LBS
Series

18

4000

92

G-20-06 / G-10-06

18

6000

61

G-20-06 / -10-06

40

4000

217

GM-20-06 / G-20-06 / G-10-06

40

6000

145

G-20-06 / G-20-06 / G-10-06