Tungsten Carbide Core Bits

  • Tungsten-carbide (TC) does not possess the hardness of diamond and as such has a limited range of application.   TC core bits can be a cost effective means of drilling through softer unconsolidated formations.

    We supply two types of tungsten carbide core bits. The standard TC Insert type has a crown with a sawtooth profile, where each tooth is a tungsten carbide insert.   Inserts may vary in shape: they may be flat plates that extend across the width of the crown, or octagonal shaped prisms arranged alternately on the inside and outside diameter of the crown. The octagonal inserts are more hard wearing because they have a greater number of cutting edges and are less prone to chip or shatter.

    Carbotec type bits are composed of crushed tungsten-carbide chips suspended in a metallic alloy and fused to the steel crown. Typically, these tungsten-carbide chips have a grain size of 2 to 5mm and have a totally random orientation within the bit crown. This type of core bit  has many more cutting edges than the standard TC. insert variety. Therefore Carbotec bits have a wider range of applications including slightly harder sedimentary formations.

    Advantages:

    • Relatively cheap compared with diamond bits
    • Cut effectively at low r.p.m. and low weight on bit
    • Can be cost effective in soft formations