Thread cutting, finescale, but massive

[John57sharp]

Though this might raise a smile, workers at SpaceX in Boca Chica, Texas cutting a huge thread, by hand(s) in the base of the new water cooled blast plate for their Superheavy Launch vehicle. The biggest guys available were called in to lend some muscle!

SpaceX thread cutting

These videos, and many others which have offered multiple views of the construction of the site and the vehicles are one of the reasons my modelling takes so long, it’s fascinating.

Cheers
John

 

[David Waite]

Hi John
To me it looks like they are reaming out the holes not cutting a thread, But still hard yakka in any case.
David

 

[ICH60]

This shows the welding they use on the Space X

 

[simond]

It looks to me like they forgot to do the thread cutting (or reaming, but I don't think so) whilst the whopping great big bit of metal was in whatever machine bored the holes, as they are obviously machine finished.

I do hope the boys doing the hard graft got a beer from whoever made the planning cock-up!

 

[Dave Holt]

If it was reaming rather than thread cutting, would it be necessary to back the tool off, as seen? A possible reason to do the work by hand might be to correct for any distortion caused by welding the pre-machined end plates into the structure and no access to a large, portable horizontal borer?
Dave.

 

[mickoo]

Looks like threaded on a big screen.

 

[David Waite]

I stand corrected I couldn’t see any thread on my I pad it’s certainly is a thread.
David

 

[michael080]

I guess they face the same problem I have: How to get a perpendicular thread into the material. But then, I don't build spaceships

Michael

 

[mickoo]

I stand corrected I couldn’t see any thread on my I pad it’s certainly is a thread.
David

To be fair, it's very hard to see there is a thread, I've got a big 27" monitor and had to watch it full screen to see it and it can only be see it in certain views, most of the other views seem to appear to have smooth bores, but that could be down to the camera definition that took the video.

Either way, that's a large slab of steel to be working on

 

[ICH60]

It is quite a fine thread as well for such a large hole.

 

[Osgood]

For NPT (USA) pipe threads, the 'threads per inch'(TPI) is 8 for 2 1/2" dia. and remains at 8 for all sizes up to 10".
That looks like maybe a 10" dia hole?

 

[John57sharp]

It’s definitely thread, they put screw in caps to allow the whole system to be drained and cleaned out.

Lots of detail Here if you have the time

John