Hi everyone.
I am a long time lurker, and am usually able to find anything I need through searching the forums. This one eludes me though, so I turn my thoughts to the forum.
Ever since attending IMTS 2018, I have had this incredibly irritating itch to build a machine. At the event, Fryer debuted a new model, which they called the Toolroom Horizontal. See attached.
Attachment 410618
I have done dozens of builds before, I am a full time machinist, and I am fully aware of the stresses in a horizontal as well as how impractical they are for versatility. I am not ever going to achieve a MRR like a 20 ton machine. I am more intrigued of the idea of a mini horizontal for having one, as well as developing something totally different and not really ever done. It would be like having a baby DeVlieg.
For the last 3 or 4 months, I have been holding off on starting this build for one simple reason.
How the heck do they protect the spindle from coolant creep? I understand that good seals and such help, but with VMCs gravity helps pull coolant down and out. How in the world do you protect your spindle from this? I understand that horizontal spindles are designed differently, but I do not see where they differ. What type of seals are they, or what is done in practice to prevent this?
I have a spare Kitamura CAT 40 spindle cartridge, as well as a chineseum BT30 cartridge that I can experiment with. But I have no idea where to even start, and I dont want to blow bearings for the sake of just trying things.
Thanks for the input.