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Advise on HMT brand radial drill quality

Bryce.R

Aluminum
Joined
May 15, 2011
Location
Toowoomba QLD Australia
G'day all,

Just chasing some advise/reviews on HMT radial drills. Looking at purchasing one second hand at the moment and couldn't find any info online in regards to the quality of their machines.
From what I understand they are an Indian built machine which rings alarm bells.

Thanks in advance.
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G'day all,

Just chasing some advise/reviews on HMT radial drills. Looking at purchasing one second hand at the moment and couldn't find any info online in regards to the quality of their machines.
From what I understand they are an Indian built machine which rings alarm bells.

Thanks in advance.

Thank them directly. They speak rather excellent English, perhaps with the lilt of song to it:

"http://hmtmachinetools.com/evolution-of-hmt.htm"

:)

This is the official website of HMT Machine Tools Limited
A Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Heavy Industries,
Government of India

"http://hmtmachinetools.com/product/108/radial-drilling-machine.htm"
 
Are they a quality machine?

"Absolutes" are not easy on basic whitebread box-of-rocks dumb manual drilling machines. All of them manage to make holes. Go figure.

So "quality" relative to which other choice?

What other realistic options have you to compare with, your location, not my one?

Basque, Brazilian, Taiwanese, Chinese? Do TF without??

Telling you I'd prefer a vintage ATW, Cincinnati-Bickford, or Cannedy-Otto and you holding out for an Asquith is right useless, if there are none of those worthies to be had, yah?

:)
 
There are a few Asquith radial drills about but could be half a century old already plus.

I have used 2 different model HMT lathes and found their gear to be pretty good. One of the models I’d rate much, much higher then a Colchester. Better way lube, change gear lube, dial and hand wheel sizing and layout. Plus hydraulic clutch, hydraulic brake. Just a better alround machine. Simple and effective. There were some deficiencies such as plain bush bearings in the apron for some of the shafts, but I’d not be too worried.
 
Be sure to go and look at it run. Listen to the gears and see if it shifts without growling. Check to be sure the column lock holds, Check the column for vertical scores. Also open the electrical box and give it the sniff test. If it smells like fire walk away. Bring a drill and a chunk of steel with a pre-drilled hole in it and a clamp and test drill with it. Look inside the spindle and see if the taper is buggered up and drift hole isn't buggered up.


Radial drills are pretty simple machines and can save hours when you can drill and power tap. I have seen that name machine, but have never run one. When I see someone buying a machine from a dealer sight un seen in person is like buying a car by looking at it in a picture and not taking it for a test ride.

You can also ask inside this Aussie forum: Metal Work Forums
 
There are a few Asquith radial drills about but could be half a century old already plus.

I have used 2 different model HMT lathes and found their gear to be pretty good. One of the models I’d rate much, much higher then a Colchester. Better way lube, change gear lube, dial and hand wheel sizing and layout. Plus hydraulic clutch, hydraulic brake. Just a better alround machine. Simple and effective. There were some deficiencies such as plain bush bearings in the apron for some of the shafts, but I’d not be too worried.

A helluva lot more HMT are made than we Chickn's realize.

Research I did just as this came up shows that India, 11th or better ranked builder of machine-tools, globally, consumes 80% of all the machine-tools it builds within its own growing industrialization drive. Most are CNC and have been for long years, already.

We might be a tad more cautious as to thinking they are still so backwards an economy as to be limited to casting nought but Listeroid Diesels out of slag corrupted with sand.

For one thing, they have too damned many DIY rockets with atom bomb warheads on them to be technically incompetent, even if we'd rather they had built safer railways instead .

:(
 
I was told years ago that HMT stood for Hindu Machine Tools.... but I now notice according to their website it actually stands for Hindustan Machine Tools...which makes more sense as Hindustan is the original Persian name for India. I once had a Pacesetter lathe made by HMT...ironically an American Pacesetter (yes, pace"setter", not pacemaker, on the smaller HMT version)

It is interesting that even in the mid 1970's some old line USA machine tool builders were having problems to the point of outsourcing some of their designs. I once saw a Tawianese made Brown and Sharp no. 2 vertical mill at an auction.... appeared very nice actually...like new.... never seen another once since, maybe it was the only B&S no. 2 ever made in Taiwan ?
 
Yeah, styling wasn't high on their list of priorities but they were rugged and durable. I liked their machinery, a lot of thought had been given to them being repaired by relatively unskilled labour.

Regards Tyrone.
 
If this is one I think it is in Moorabbin I have looked at this machine, it seemed okay but nothing else in that toolroom seemed well looked after at all, there was a big fab area next to it and grinding dust all over it, no apprentice holes though, good selection of drills and workholding.
 
If you can, check with an indicator if the head moves while locking it. May be just loose though.
Our Ikeda at work does, any thing close and I move the work to the drill. Only use it a couple times a year though.

Dave
 
Bring a drill and a chunk of steel with a pre-drilled hole in it and a clamp and test drill with it. Look inside the spindle and see if the taper is buggered up and drift hole isn't buggered up.

Why the pre-drilled hole? Easier to clamp with t-nuts?
 
So you don't get drill wobble with BIG drills You could bring some center drills too. Just figure it will save you some set up time. Be sure to clamp everything down as the machine has so much torque it will rip your arm off. They are a simple, effective machine, great for drilling holes and power tapping. You can swing the column and move the rail and head so fast and lock it. If you have never ran one you will wonder what took you so long after you do.
 
Why the pre-drilled hole? Easier to clamp with t-nuts?

That IS strange, actually. Any drillpress.

The real "test" is how well it does with an ignorant helical-twist drill and not-even a TINY pilot hole.

And "Oh, BTW" department. If it is new news, DO be aware a radial wants SERIOUS GOOD floor anchorage! Bad cess to turn the arm out at 90 to the narrow base and lift or tilt the heavy bugger, bust-off a drill or big-ass tap from mis-alignment.... or worse.

Moving them is a nug's game as well. All part of why I settled for the AB5/S "pillar" drill instead.

Even though there was a time I mought almost have married the 8 foot ATW that kept me in bread and beans, it had lower HP and a smaller nostril than the Alzmetall has.

3" holes worth..
 








 
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