M

Mustang

Well Known Member
I have read obscure comments about the Quackenbush being the "Real Deal" for drilling in the plate-nuts. Where would one get one of these units?

Thanks, Pete
 
Ha Ha have not heard that in ages

Mustang said:
I have read obscure comments about the Quackenbush being the "Real Deal" for drilling in the plate-nuts. Where would one get one of these units?

Thanks, Pete
Click to expand...
If you are Boeing you need it. It is the name of a brand of "feed drills", not nut plates specifically. This is big time expensive stuff. I don't know but guess if it cost $2000 or $4000 per tool, it would not surprise me. Feed drills are for precision holes and reaming. Its critical on a 2 inch thick wing panel stack up on a Jumbo Jet, but we don't need it to drill 0.040. All you need is a nut plate drill guide, and you will be golden.

I did find a catalog that shows a Quackenbush "specialty nut plate drill" (page 142)

http://www.coopertools.com/catalog/pdffiles/ade/ade.pdf


I guess it drills and counter sinks all in one shot. Cool but this is industrial production level stuff. Who ever said it was bragging and gee-whiz'ing.

I worked around Boeing and heard the name used many a time. I was not a driller or production guy, I was a structural engineer. Did not care how they made the hole, just that it was right. G
 
Last edited:
We use nutplate drill motors on a regular basis here at work. They are generally called "Quackenbush" ( now owned by Cooper) or the older "Winslow" motors ( Hi-Shear). They aren't cheap to buy or operate. They work by self clamping through the clearance hole of the nutplate and drilling /countersinking in one step. These are the typical components:

VS500/5450445 NUT PLATE DRL MTR,PG,PNU,SPACING .500 ,DBL WNG,ALUM
CB10001979023 1051222 C1000-1979-023 STD COLLET
CB20002031023 1053620 M2000-2031-023 STD MANDREL
CB8221 1012022 - SPRING F/OMARK MANDREL .1655 - .3500
WI1049495 1049495 - 11699-0.500-1979-2000 DBL WING PRESS FT
WI5450445 SPACER BLOCK

They suck a lot of air and new ones are $4000 plus. If you just have to have one, call Production Tool & Technology (478-781-8415) and he could set you up with a nice used one for a whole lot less that.

Les Dial
Staff Manufacturing Engineer, F-22A
Lockheed Martin Aeronautical Company
 
Production en masse

Mustang said:
I have read obscure comments about the Quackenbush being the "Real Deal" for drilling in the plate-nuts. Where would one get one of these units?Thanks, Pete
Click to expand...
Pete,

My last job assignment at Boeing before retiring was running the "Set-Up Crib" supporting the F-15 line. My day to day duties included maintaining all manner of power feed equipment including repairing and servicing Quackenbushs. Quackenbushes can be enormous power feed drills fitted with either a drill bit or reamer and always require custom drill bars (hard tooling) temporarily bolted to the airframe in order to insert the nose of the Quackenbush into and quarter turned to lock.

A Winslow, on the other hand is a small pneumatically powered drill motor configured to match a given nutplate pattern. The dual specially designed drill bits fitted to the Winslow include countersinks machined into them. The operator merely inserts the Winslow into center nutplate hole, depresses the trigger and the 2 nutplate rivet attach holes are automatically drilled and countersunk at the same time. Needless to say, this is strictly high-end production stuff. Get yourself a nutplate jig or two and save the big bucks for your instrument panel.

Rick Galati RV-6A "Darla"
 
Last edited:
Pete,

I's love to have one as well, but the cost is too high. A new Quackenbush (Cooper Tools) is about $3900. Every once and awhile they come up on Ebay. The problem with buying one there is that you need to make sure that the unit has the right configuration for the nutplates you use. Most of them that I have seen on Ebay are not set up for the size of nutplates we use, and it costs about $500 for the parts to change the spacing.
 
WHOOOAAA!

I guess I was referring to the nutplate drill template not the Hi-Zuit, 4000 bucknik doohicky!

So let me re-phrase my question; Where would a guy get a couple of different nutplate drilling jig/templates for 6-32 and 8-32 screws?

Thanks for the high tech responses guys.
Cheers, Pete
 
Not the right answer but ...

I used the platenuts themselves. My procedure was to drill the center hole 1/8" or #30 exactly where I wanted it. Then I clecoed tha platenut in that location on whatever side was convenient for drilling and aligned the mounting "ears" which ever way I wanted them to be aligned and I would drill right through one of the mounting holes with a #40 drill. Then I added a silver clecoe to that hole in the platenut and structure to lock in the alignment and drilled the other mounting hole. Then I removed the clecoes and the platenut and drilled the center hole to fullsize for the screw or bolt and countersunk the mounting holes (of course debur, etc). When I was mounting floating platenuts I used non-floating platenuts as the tool (template) for drilling the holes. When squeezing the rivets for mounting floating platenuts be careful not to overlap the floating element retainer tabs.

By the way I found it VERY useful to have several of the next two larger clecoe sizes available.

Bob Axsom
 
You asked............

Mustang said:
WHOOOAAA!

I guess I was referring to the nutplate drill template not the Hi-Zuit, 4000 bucknik doohicky!
Cheers, Pete
Click to expand...
You asked....., "Quackenbush". That's what you get for hanging out in the Glasair fourms. Don't you know they are using GLUE and STRING to make their planes! :eek: Heck the word "Quack" is right in there; did you not notice "drill template" was not mentioned? :rolleyes:

Bob's right but....

the NP templates are nice and are found at most sheet metal tool supplier.
(cleaveland tools, Avery, ATS.....).

I also use the nut plate itself. Drill the hole, use a short screw to hold nut
plate down tight and align as need, drill two satellite holes. Remove, debur,
counter sink, rivet nut plate on. Done. George
 
Last edited:
Get the Jig!!!

If you are building an RV-8, especially a QB, this tool pays for itself.

Sure, you could locate the hole for the screw, cleco or screw in the nutplate, drill the hole for one arm, cleco that one down so it doesn't twist, then drill the other arm. Remove screws or clecos, and repeat.

The jigs are sweet. Once you've got the screw hole located you throw the screw pilot in, drill one arm, flip the jig over and drill the second. Done. If you think of the pure number of nutplates on the floor alone, $35-40 is nothing.

Marty Hill
 
You must log in or register to reply here.