While there are many ways to make gears, one of the most common and effective methods is gear hobbing. It offers unique advantages, and most manufacturers rely on the use of hobbing machines for manufacturing spur gears and helical gears. Traditionally, hobbing included a lubricant or a coolant and was a lubricated process. However, due to some drawbacks that it presented, a dry type of hobbing was introduced. Let’s find out more about the advantages and disadvantages offered by these two types of processes.

 

Difference between Wet and Dry Gear Hobbing

 

Wet or Lubricated Hobbing

The use of lubricant or coolant in hobbing improves tool life, reduces corrosion, provides lubricity, and reduces the impact caused by friction and machining. However, the increasing price of coolants impacts the cost of manufacturing gears. Some hobbing machines may also come with a hefty price tag because of their need to process the lubricants. Specifically, additional washing is needed at the end of the hobbing process when using coolants. Also, some coolants could cause allergic reactions, respiratory problems, and poisoning in workers. Apart from these issues, there have been concerns about how to dispose of used coolants and contaminated chips economically and in an environmentally sustainable manner. 

 

Dry Hobbing

Dry hobbing mainly refers to hobbing without the use of coolants. Advances in CNC machine technology and better carbide tool materials have supported the introduction of dry hobbing. Dry hobbing offers a more feasible option as compared to the traditional lubricated process of hobbing. This type of hobbing is considered to be more cost-effective and environmentally friendly than conventional wet hobbing. Technological advances have further enabled dry hobbing by the development of highly accurate, high-speed cutting machines.

 

True Gear & Spline Ltd manufactures different types of gears using state-of-the-art CNC machines for gear hobbing, gear machining, gear shaping, and a lot more. Contact us today to learn more about how we can assist your business.