Aerospace manufacturing requires a number of different machining techniques, one of which is knurling. But what is Knurling? Knurling is a specialized type of manufacturing process, typically done to offer a functional finish to metal parts for improved grip and more efficient assembly. It’s especially common in Aerospace applications, where a fastener will be started by hand prior to assembly.
What is Knurling and How it Works
Knurling is a manufacturing technique that involves rolling patterns of straight, angled or crossed lines directly onto the part being processed. This results in a functional surface that is both aesthetically appealing and improves grip for assemblies being done by hand or started by hand.
There are generally two types of equipment used for knurling depending on whether the project requires through-feed or in-feed knurling:
Through-feed is used for knurling a bar over a certain length
In-feed is used for knurling on a specific location of the part
In addition to these variations in how the bar is fed through the machine, each die can be used to control how coarse or fine the pitch of the knurled thread will be.
What is Knurling – Knurling Diameters
One of the unique characteristics of knurling is that it increases the diameter of the part once the operation is complete because knurling displaces material rather than removes it. This is important to keep in mind, especially for parts that require highly accurate dimensions.
Determining Coarse and Fine Pitch
At Superior Thread, our team uses our expertise to determine the standards for what is considered coarse or fine pitch on a knurled part. Often, our customers come to us with drawings that only describe the pitch as coarse or fine, without any other specifications, so we define what we determine as coarse or fine, as shown by the examples below, where pitch #72 is fine, and pitch #24 coarse. From there, we can consult with their teams to determine what specifications suit their project best.
What is Knurling at Superior Thread Rolling
At Superior Thread Rolling, we offer expert knurling, providing reliable parts for customers across various industries, especially for our aerospace customers, understanding the many intricacies involved in their applications. Our customers depend on us for a wide range of quality rolling services, and we can offer them all in one place so that they don’t have to source out different operations to different shops. And, with each part of the project being done in one shop, there’s far less risk of inconsistent quality across parts due to being worked on by different manufacturers. We produce high quality threads and knurled materials on the parts that our customers send us, being sure to meet the latest ISO 9001 and AS9100 industry standards.
For more information about all of our services, check out our website today.