Problem:

What could be causing marking of tube in the fin section of the mill and weld box?
Probable Cause and Solutions:

Strip width too wide

Driven roll settings adjusted too tight
Driven rolls not parallel
Driven stands loose, check integrity
Driven rolls not set at metal line
Drive RPM not coordinated with breakdown and sizing RPM
Fin blade worn beyond tolerance
Side rolls setting adjusted too wide
Side rolls boxes loose, check integrity
Side rolls not set to metal line
Side rolls not centered with driven rolls
Side rolls not parallel
Check tube size between each driven and side roll pass
Analyze design for improper forming
Weld roll settings adjusted too tight
Rolls worn beyond tolerance

Unstable Plate Voltage and Plate Current

Tube and Pipe Solutions Forum
Question:
Generally when we produce our 0.024 X 0.500 diameter tube, we observe that the plate
voltage and plate current is not stable. The voltage varies from 1011 KV and the current
varies from 5-6 A.
Is this normal to see a variation like this for a small tube? What advice can you offer?
Answer:
There are several things that could be causing your variation in plate current and voltage,
including the welder itself.
Here a few things to check on the mill.
1) Insure there are no mechanical issues on the mill, such as bent shafts, bearing run
out, in any of the passes, especially the weld box are with the weld rolls. Any
mechanical issues in the forming section can cause the tube and the gauge to breath
causing the variation in the welder. This also goes for the alignment of the mill. (See
our profit pointer series on the web Tube Mill Alignment)
2) Ensure the gauge of the material is not changing; this will cause this type of problem.
3) Is the strip width correct so that the drive or pull is correct through the mill?

4) Ensure there have not been any changes in the set up of the welder components,
induction coil and or contacts, impeder etc.
5) Ensure the set up of the tooling is per the set up chart. If some earlier passes in the
forming are not forming enough, and the work is all left to later passes, these causes
over forming, overworking of the final passes before the weld box or the weld rolls
themselves and can cause this variation. (Again, see our profit pointer series on the
web Tube Mill Set Up)
6) Is there a speed variation between mill drive sections that can cause strip movement?
If all the above is covered, then you should have your welder checked out by a certified
technician.
7) Check the impeder to ensure it is staying cool enough which can be difficult to do on
small diameters
8) Check for enough coolant flow though the impeder as well as coolant temperature
9) The impeder must be as large as possible
10) How many wraps is on the coil used and what is the coil inside diameter in
relationship to the tube?
11) Check the frequency of any movement and see if it can be traced to the diameter or a
roll

Split Rolls - Tube Rolls and Pipe Rolls

Tube and pipe split rolls are the best value in the industry - Guaranteed.

The reason why split tube and pipe

mill rolls are the very best value is quite simple: you receive 2 rolls for approximately
20%-30% more than one roll. How it works - We manufacture two halves of a roll and bolt
them together to make one whole roll.
They look and work the same as solid one piece tube and pipe mill rolls. However, the
differences between the two are numerous. For example: when reworking or
reconditioning your solid one piece tube and pipe mills rolls, you must reduce the roll
diameters. This causes the rolls to rotate with the tube and pipe mill shafts at a faster
speed. Think of a bicycle sprocket. The smaller the sprocket that you use, the faster you
peddle, the same applies for rolls. So, if your rolls rotate faster and faster after each

rework, the rolls will spin faster causing them to wear out faster. If your rolls wear out
faster you are going to have to buy new rolls more often.
Another example: Say that your rolls are spinning faster and producing less. That is
because your tube and pipe mill cannot keep up with the speed difference. The smaller
the rolls requires that you turn up the speed of the mill to keep the same production
speed as when the tooling was new. With tube and pipe mill split rolls, you never have to
reduce the roll diameters when reworking. This means your rolls will last at least 10-15
times longer than solid rolls.

Let's look at split roll theory and its advantages.

Split Roll Theory

The theory of split roll design is very basic. The throat diameter of the roll is maintained
after each rework, holding the mill speed constant, with no adverse effect on the roll's
ability to drive the tube. In effect, the roll size from a shaping and driving standpoint,
does not change when a split roll is reworked.
Tool wear and rework are a fact of life in the tube and pipe business. In order to maximize
tool life, roll wear must be monitored and rework scheduled on a regular basis. However,
using split rolls will benefit your established rework schedule by allowing you to rework
only those rolls that require it. To understand this, it is necessary to look at roll wear and
the process of reworking split rolls, compared to re-contouring solid rolls.

Tube rolls will wear in the areas of the roll that perform the most work (shaping and
driving). On a typical roll, this is in the two radii and the throat diameter (see Figure 1).
Also, fin pass and sizing rolls wear quicker than breakdown rolls. When a solid roll is
reworked, the throat diameter is reduced to restore the contour to its original shape (see
Figure 2). This reduction in throat diameter can have some adverse effects on mill setup
and tube production.

In addition, on
driven passes, the bottom line of the tube (metal line) drops, in order to make full contact
with the reworked bottom roll. If the mill does not allow for shimming of the bottom driven
roll shafts to correct for the drop caused by rework, the metal line alignment of the mill
will be drastically affected.
For example, if the fin section is reworked and cannot be shimmed up to match the metal
line of the breakdown section, the strip will run down hill from last breakdown to the first
fin, causing buckling, bending, and marking of the tube.
If the fin section can be shimmed, the decreased speed of the reworked solid rolls can be
controlled only if the mill has multiple drives and RPM trim control to adjust the RPM for
each drive. For instance, if the breakdown rolls are driven separately from the fin pass
section, the fin passes can be adjusted faster to coordinate with the rest of the line
speed. If this shimming and speed adjustment is not possible, the breakdown passes
would have to be reworked, regardless of the amount of wear.
As you can see, reworked solid rolls require substantial readjustment of your mill before
production can resume. On the other hand, split rolls can eliminate most of this
readjustment and get your mill back on line in a shorter period of time.

As mentioned, a split roll is made in two sections and joined together as one roll. Wear
patterns and wear rates are the same as those seen on solid rolls, but when rework is
required, the re-contouring is performed differently. Figure 3 is a cross sectional view of
typical split roll in two sections.

To rework this style of roll, the sides are ground to narrow the overall width. Then, the
original contour is re-cut into the roll by taking material from the flanges, without reducing
the throat diameter. The only change required to the mill setup is the installation of longer
spacers to compensate for the narrower reworked rolls. The potential problems seen with
solid rolls (the shimming up of driven passes and variable roll speed) are eliminated.
Figure 4 illustrates the reduction of width on a split roll after numerous regrinds.

Deciding to Use Split Roll Tooling

The real benefits of using split rolls can only be realized if you are set up for large
production runs. The savings in setup time alone can justify the use of split roll tooling
because downtime on large runs is money. In addition, the extended life of the roll tooling
will offset the extra initial cost.
With experience in designing and manufacturing split rolls, we will help you perform a
comprehensive analysis on your mill to determine if split roll tooling can be economically
beneficial to your tube or pipe operation.
Tube Mill and Pipe Mill Requirements for Using Split Roll Tooling
By design, split rolls are wider than solid rolls for an equivalent tube size. The extra width
is found in the flanges. Due to this fact, the tube mill or pipe mill that is being considered
for conversion to split roll tooling must have sufficient roll space. Roll-Krafts Engineering
Department can assist you in analyzing your present mill to determine if split roll tooling
can be installed.
Another important consideration is the number of motor drives on your mill. As
mentioned, breakdown rolls usually do not wear as quickly as fin and sizing pass rolls.
Therefore, conventional solid rolls can be used for breakdown passes, only if the mill has
individual drives for each section (breakdown, fin, and sizing). A single-drive mill would
require a complete set of split rolls in order to keep mill speed constant. One benefit from
using split rolls on such a mill is extended tool life. The number of regrinds far exceeds
the number possible with conventional solid rolls and would offset the higher initial cost of
split rolls.
A two-motor drive mill should also use a complete set of split rolls. On such a mill, the
second drive is for the sizing section. Mixing solid rolls for breakdowns (remember, the
speed will change after rework) and split rolls for fin passes (roll speed is constant after
rework) does not allow for mill speed adjustment. This can result in marking the tube. A
partial set of split rolls can be used in this case. Like a single-drive mill, cost savings can
be realized from longer tool life.
A three-motor drive mill is ideal for split roll tooling. Solid rolls are used in the breakdown
passes, and split rolls are used for the fin and sizing passes. Although roll speed will
change when the breakdown rolls are reworked, their speed can be adjusted without
changing the speed of the rest of the mill. Keep in mind that if you are using solid rolls,

the breakdown passes are reworked to control mill speed when the fin passes are
reworked, even though the amount of wear would indicate it is not necessary. Using solid
rolls for breakdowns, with split rolls in the fin and sizing sections, reduces the number of
times the breakdown passes are reworked. This extends tooling life and saves money.
Another possible combination of split and solid roll tooling in a three-drive mill is the use
of split rolls in the bottom breakdown section. Bottom rolls wear quicker than the top rolls
in this section of the mill. Therefore, it makes sense that the bottom rolls will require
rework before the top rolls. If you are using solid tooling, both rolls would have to be
reworked at the same time to maintain compatibility with one another.
Finally, if split rolls are being used on the bottom only, they can be reworked when
required, maintaining compatibility with the top rolls and eliminating the need to shim the
mill because throat diameter is not reduced.