Double Helical Gear Manufacturing

Here at Highfield Gears, we understand the dynamic characteristics involved within these gear drive components and have been working with helical gear pairs since our founding in 1927.

This level of knowledge about this type of gear pair makes us the ideal business to work with the next time that component parts of your double-helical gear transmission units break, and you require new double helical gears.

We have invested heavily in a series of cutting-edge machinery at our Huddersfield-based gear centre, this allows us to create brand-new double-helical gears for your gearbox at a moment’s notice. We’ll ensure the gears we create can handle appropriate loads, are without disadvantages and can work at the speeds required to help propel your business forward.

As well as double helical gears, we also manufacture other gear types such as spur gears, helical gears, worm gears and double helical gears, for your planetary gearboxes, worm gearboxes, extruder gearboxes and helical bevel gearboxes. Over the decades we have been in operation, we have repaired, reconditioned and upgraded gearboxes and gears from a range of brands including Hansen, Radicon, Sumitomo, Flender, David Brown and Renold, so no matter what type, or make, of gearbox you have, we can help.

To get in touch to discuss our gear manufacturing solutions call us on 01484 531 010. or email us at sales@hgi-uk.co.uk. We have worked in areas across the UK, such as Stoke-on-Trent, Carlisle and Folkestone, as well as further afield in Europe. So no matter where you are – get in touch today.

As we mentioned earlier, this kind of gear pair is made of two helix angles that have opposite hands. Within the gear, the axial thrusts are opposite to each other and the forces which are produced do not transmit to the bearing on the shaft.

This gear pair set up means that they can handle high loads and can enact steady transmissions when in operation.

In addition, double helical gears, compared to single helical gears, spur gears or worm gears, have much greater strength in the tooth contact. There is also no sideways force, or end load on the mounting shafts, occurring during power transmission.

One benefit of this gear pair is the fact that they can quickly and easily replace spur gears without the need for tooth profile modification on the gear drives, or a total redesign of the mounting bearings. All this design leads to a much quieter, smoother operation, with minimal vibration, when the components are moving at speed. These design features are why these gears are used by cranes, fluid pumps as well as power transmissions.

Efficiency levels

The parallel shaft gears and their meshes are in constant rolling contact. The teeth of these gears are always touching the other gear, powering it, and ensuring that whatever application it is powering is being run to a high level. As a result of this constant contact, the general efficiency rating of this gear unit is high and ranges from 90% to an incredible 99.5%.

At Highfield Gears, we understand that these gear drives and components are more complicated to manufacture than regular spur gears or worm gears, owing in part to their complicated shape. However, we know that, when things go wrong with your gearbox, you're not interested in why they are tricky to make, you just want someone to get in there and get the job done, reduce your downtime and get your business back up to speed.

A thorough job, to repair your double-helical gear transmission systems, is exactly what you can expect when you get in touch with Highfield Gears. We’ll work hard to understand the necessary applications that are powered by your gearbox, before going ahead, rolling our sleeves up, and creating bespoke double-helical gears which feature all the dynamic characteristics that attracted you to the double-helical gear transmission systems in the first place.

Errant forces, vibration acceleration, unwanted thrust bearings, and other similar issues can all occur, and cause issues, to your gears and their associated transmissions. Very often, these detrimental occurrences happen during quieter moments, where fewer specialists are on-site to help. Nevertheless, these issues are no less damaging which is why we offer a 24/7 emergency repair service that can be on hand, at a moment’s notice, to fix or create new double-helical gears so that your downtime is limited, and your gear transmissions are back up and running.

While on their face, these gear pairs may look the same, there is, in fact, a clear, and distinct, difference between the two. Herringbone gears have no gap between the helicals and are characterised by a smooth, uninterrupted V-shape across the tooth surface. In contrast, double helical gears have a helical gear pair that has a gap between the two hands.

These cylindrical gears are regularly used in the same ways and serve a similar purpose. With a double helical gear, the contact between teeth is separated by an axial space and both of the helical gears are apart. As a result of this gearing, double helicals are much cheaper and easier to manufacture because you only need to make two gears that don’t touch. In contrast, a herringbone gear is a more difficult production because the helicals touch, meaning a special type of cutter is needed to ensure there is a different axial direction and that the tooth spaces are joined up. This makes the cost of herringbone gears much higher.

While there are plenty of differences between the two gear units, there are a couple of similarities. For instance, in both of these gears, the helicals must have the same number of teeth, helix angle, and opposite hands. There are also similarities in features, for instance, both gears can eliminate the thrust force on the bearings, meaning that their fundamental purposes are the same.