How the new Saddle works

The system is very simple in design, and able to be used by someone with no previous training. All components come ready for use, and all that is needed is a common hand drill and a spanner.

The saddle is first bolted onto the pipe and tightened into place, using the nuts and bolts provided. This automatically introduces the drill bit into the correct position and is ready for use. The hand drill is then attached to the top of the drill bit and the chuck tightened. Drilling may now commence until breakthrough is felt, or the chuck hits the top of the drill head, thus stopping the drill head from cutting through both sides of the pipe.

Following this, the drill is raised upwards with the bit still in place until it stops and the ball vlave can be shut off. No water or gas will escape during this operation, due to the specially designed drill head which seals off on the drill bit. It is part of the design that is unique to the fitting.

The drill used has a short cutting tip of 30mm and a shank of 130mm from the top of the flute. It is this shank that enables the drill to be raised through the ball valve and into the drill head without the seal breaking and water or gas escaping. The drill has a step from shank to cutting tip to prevent the drill from exiting the drill head too far, thus allowing leakage.

When drilling is complete and the ball valve closed, the drilling head may be removed and any debris washed out by simply opening the valve slightly to purge it out. In the case of gas, the head must be cleared manually.

With the drill head removed, a 3/4" female threaded outlet is revealed to allow the relevant fitting to be added, to connect to the supply pipe. This is to be supplied along with the other components to the customer's requirements.

The drill head may be used repeatedly with only the O rings replaced at regular intervals, to ensure a good seal with the drill bit. Each saddle supplied without a drill head will have a spare set of O rings to be fitted to the drill head. This is possible due to a small cost of this part of the fitting.

To find out more about Springlynn Saddles, simply click here to contact us or here to send us an email.