Gearless multi-spindle die tapping machine

Zagar Inc. announces its latest technology gearless multi-spindle tapping machine engineered as an in-line solution providing high-production tapping of clip and cage nuts for the fastener industry. The CNC-controlled tapping machine provides the central step – precision tapping – for progressive die tapping that also uses coil feed, piercing, and blanking.

The Zagar machine places 128 spindles precisely and very close to center. A unique gearless drive is key to making it happen, not only getting each spindle as close as possible, but ensuring rigid performance to avoid backlash. The result is high-quality threads with no lag or out-of-tolerance thread forms due to gear train play that can occur using a geared head.

The process is totally automated and takes place while the clip and cage nuts are still on the strip, in fact before any operations have been performed. The material is fed off the coil with a precise amount of lag. Then a punch press pierces the material to begin to form first group. The in-process material is then pulled into the multi spindle tapping machine where all threaded holes are produced in one pass. Then onto a blanking press where finished pieces are punched out. The feed is continuous, with a precise amount of slack between stations, so each time the material is positioned, all three operations are performed simultaneously. The process produces from 2 to 128 fasteners every ten seconds.

Improving American productivity for more than eighty years, Zagar Inc. manufactures and distributes, multi-spindle drill and tap heads and machines, a range of workholding solutions, feed units, robotic end effectors, and offers a range of contract manufacturing services. The company’s expertise is machining both ferrous and non-ferrous materials for industries such as automotive, aerospace, electrical, medical, off-road construction equipment, hydraulic, pneumatic, and high-production drilling and tapping.