Gear Cutting & Spline Machining Australia
Custom gears and splines manufactured to DIN standards. Spur, helical, bevel, worm gears, rack & pinion, and all spline types. Hobbing, shaping, grinding, and broaching. Quotes within 2 business days.
Gear Types We Supply
Spur Gears
The most common gear type. Straight teeth parallel to the shaft axis. Simple to manufacture, highly efficient, and ideal for moderate speeds. Used in gearboxes, conveyor drives, and general industrial machinery.
- ✓ Modules M0.5 to M50+
- ✓ Internal or external
- ✓ DIN 6–9 standard
- ✓ Single or double helical variants
Helical Gears
Angled teeth provide gradual tooth engagement, resulting in smoother, quieter operation than spur gears. Higher load capacity per tooth width. Used in automotive transmissions, industrial gearboxes, and high-speed drives.
- ✓ Helix angles 15°–45°
- ✓ Smoother than spur gears
- ✓ Higher load capacity
- ✓ Parallel or crossed shaft variants
Bevel Gears
Transmit motion between intersecting shafts, typically at 90°. Straight bevel (industrial), spiral bevel (high speed/high torque), and hypoid bevel (offset shafts) types available.
- ✓ Straight and spiral bevel
- ✓ Shaft angles 45°–90°
- ✓ High efficiency drives
- ✓ Mining and marine applications
Worm Gears
Worm and worm wheel pairs achieve high reduction ratios (10:1 to 100:1) in a compact envelope. Inherently self-locking in many configurations. Used in lifting equipment, conveyors, and positioning systems.
- ✓ Reduction ratios to 100:1
- ✓ Self-locking capability
- ✓ Bronze wheel / steel worm
- ✓ Right angle drives
Rack & Pinion
Converts rotary motion to linear motion. Racks machined in steel or hardened steel for CNC machine tool drives, large positioning systems, and industrial automation.
- ✓ Spur and helical rack profiles
- ✓ Custom lengths available
- ✓ Hardened and ground options
- ✓ CNC machine tool quality
Internal Ring Gears
Internal (ring) gears for planetary gearbox assemblies, wheel hub drives, and large ring gear applications in mining and mineral processing equipment.
- ✓ Planetary gear sets
- ✓ Large diameter rings
- ✓ Broached or shaped
- ✓ Mining and heavy industry
Spline Machining
Splines transmit torque between shafts and hubs while allowing axial movement. All standard and custom spline profiles are available through Rapid Manufacturing's supplier network.
Involute Splines
DIN 5480, ANSI B92.1 — the most common standard for power transmission splines. Internal and external
Highest torque density, self-centering, most common industrial standard
Parallel Key Splines
Flat-sided teeth with parallel flanks. Simple to inspect and manufacture. DIN 5461/5462/5463/5464
Easy to manufacture and inspect, widely used in general industry
Serrated Splines
Fine triangular teeth in large numbers. Very high torque for shaft diameter. Used in steering columns and light shafts
High tooth count, compact, good for light shafts
Keyways & Woodruff Keys
Milled keyways (parallel and tapered), Woodruff key seats, broached keyways in bores
Standard shaft-hub connection for single-direction torque
Gear Manufacturing Processes
Gear Hobbing
Primary roughing and semi-finishing process for spur and helical gears. A multi-start hob generates the involute tooth profile by simultaneous rotation of the hob and gear blank. Achieves DIN 7–9 quality in soft state.
Gear Shaping
Used for internal gears, cluster gears (where hobbing clearance is insufficient), and close-shoulder gears. A gear-shaped cutter reciprocates while both cutter and workpiece rotate. Achieves DIN 7–8.
Gear Grinding
Post-hardening finishing process that removes heat treatment distortion and achieves the final accurate tooth profile. Form grinding or generating grinding. Achieves DIN 4–6. Required for precision and high-speed gearing.
Broaching
Most efficient process for internal splines and internal gear teeth in production quantities. A broach with progressively larger teeth is pulled through a pre-machined bore in a single pass. Achieves IT6–IT7 accuracy.
Gear Cutting FAQ
What gear types can be manufactured in Australia?
Australian gear manufacturers can produce all common gear types: spur gears (straight teeth, parallel shafts), helical gears (angled teeth, smoother engagement), bevel gears (intersecting shafts, 90° drives), worm gears (high reduction ratios, self-locking), rack and pinion (linear to rotary motion), internal ring gears, and planetary gear sets. The most common gear types for mining and industrial applications in Australia are spur and helical gears in steel and hardened steel, typically to DIN 6–8 quality standards.
What is the difference between gear hobbing and gear grinding?
Gear hobbing is the primary gear cutting process. A multi-tooth hob (a type of form cutter) is used to generate the gear tooth profile by rotating the hob and gear blank simultaneously. Hobbing produces soft gears ready for heat treatment. Gear grinding is a post-heat-treatment finishing process that removes the distortion from hardening and produces the final precise tooth profile. Hardened and ground gears achieve DIN quality 4–6, while hobbed-only gears typically achieve DIN 7–9. High-performance applications in mining, defence, and aerospace typically require hardened and ground gears.
What DIN quality grades are achievable for custom gears?
DIN gear quality grades range from DIN 12 (rough) to DIN 3 (ultra-precision). Hobbed gears (soft): DIN 7–9. Shaved gears: DIN 6–7. Hardened and ground gears: DIN 4–6. Precision ground gears with CMM inspection: DIN 3–5. For most industrial applications (conveyor drives, gearboxes, industrial machinery), DIN 7–8 is sufficient. For aerospace, defence, and precision instruments, DIN 4–6 is standard.
What materials are used for custom gear cutting?
Common gear materials include: medium carbon steel 1045 (general purpose, case hardening), alloy steels 4140 and 4340 (high torque, case or through hardening), case-hardening steels 8620 and 9310 (hard case, tough core — ideal for mining gears), stainless steel 316 (corrosion-resistant applications), bronze (worm gear wheels, low noise), cast iron (large ring gears, cost-effective), and engineering nylons/acetal (light-duty, silent operation). Material selection depends on torque, speed, operating environment, and noise requirements.
What spline types can be machined in Australia?
Australian precision machining suppliers can produce all standard spline types: involute splines (most common — DIN 5480, ANSI B92.1), parallel key splines (flat-sided, simple to manufacture), serrated splines (fine teeth, high torque density), square and rectangular splines (heavy-duty shafts), Woodruff keys and keyways, and custom non-standard spline profiles. Internal splines (female, broached or shaped) and external splines (male, hobbed or milled) are both available. Broaching is the most cost-effective method for internal splines in production quantities.
What industries use custom gear cutting in Australia?
Custom gear cutting is used across mining and resources (conveyor drives, crusher gearboxes, dragline components), oil and gas (pump drives, wellhead equipment, subsea gearboxes), defence (vehicle transmissions, naval propulsion, weapons system drives), marine (marine gearboxes, winch drives, anchor chain mechanisms), food and beverage (stainless gears for hygienic drives), and industrial automation (servo drives, robotics, precision positioning). Australia's mining sector is the largest domestic consumer of custom gear cutting services.
What is the minimum order quantity for custom gears?
Custom gear cutting has no minimum order quantity for one-off and replacement gears — a single replacement gear for a mining conveyor or a prototype gear set for a new product is readily sourced through Rapid Manufacturing's supplier network. Tooling costs (hobs, broaches) may apply for non-standard modules or profiles. Standard module gears (M1–M12) can typically be cut without special tooling. Quotes are provided within 2 business days for gear cutting projects of any volume.
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