Abstract: An apparatus and method are provided for enhancing fatigue and load properties of subterranean well drill pipe immediate the area of securement of pipe sections by providing a weld in a discontinuous plane to secure pipe sections to each other, said weld having a greater cross section of welded surface and ability to distribute stresses which is less prone to fail due to rotational, tensile, and bending stresses, mid due to heavy loads and stresses arising from shock loading.

Abstract: A tubular drill pipe having a pin connector at one end and a box connector at the other end has each connector adapted to mate with a connector similar to that at the opposite end of the pipe--but on another pipe, to form a tool joint. The connectors are of the type having two pair of axially abutting make-up faces: a primary annular shoulder formed at the inner end of the base of the pin connector, which mates with the end face of the box connector to form a first such pair; and an internal secondary shoulder at the inner extremity of the base of the box connector which abuts the end of an outermost nose section of the pin connector.

Abstract: Portable shoulder dressing apparatus is disclosed for dressing shoulders on threaded ends of tubular connections. The shoulder dressing tool, either of the box type or pin type, uses primary and/or secondary cutters to remove material from seal and/or stop shoulders of the tubular connection either simultaneously or on a single shoulder. The shoulder dressing tool includes a mandrel that is threadably secured to the threaded end of the tubular connection. A piston and cutter bar are fixably secured together for holding primary and secondary cutter blades. The piston, cutter bar, and cutters are mounted for axial and rotational movement with respect to the mandrel. A compression chamber is activated, either hydraulically or pneumatically, to provide a biasing force to urge the cutters axially into contact with the shoulders to be dressed. An axially adjustable stop including a stop roller is used to set a travel length that determines the amount of material removed from the shoulders.

Abstract: An apparatus and method are provided for enhancing fatigue properties of subterranean well drill pipe immediate the area of securement to a tool joint by providing a multi-ramp upset series on the drill pipe which, in effect, enhances fatigue resistance properties of the pipe by increasing the wall thickness on the end of the drill pipe conduit to a greater length than that found on prior art, conventional upsets adjacent the drill pipe. The increased length of this upset configuration provides a smoother transition from the thick upset adjacent the tool joint down to the thin drill pipe body.

Abstract: A pipe body is provided having an upset portion and connecting to a tool joint to form a relatively rigid region. A stress relief groove is provided in this relatively rigid region of the tubular member to limit stress applied in the pipe body adjacent the upset portion by rotation of the pipe while the pipe is in an arcuate portion of a well bore. The stress relief groove is designed to increase flexibility of this relatively rigid region while providing that the anticipated stress to be applied in the relatively rigid section is less than the endurance limit in the locus of the stress relief groove.

Abstract: A method is provided for applying grooved bands of hardsurfacing on a tool joint for earth boring drill pipe. The hardfacing of the tool joint has tungsten carbide granules in an alloy steel matrix. The tool joint is rotated and an arc between an electrode and the tool joint is provided to create a weld puddle. The electrode is reciprocated parallel to the tool joint axis and the granules are fed into the weld puddle with the puddle being applied to the grooved bands around the exterior of the tool joint to a groove depth of from between about 0.75 inches to about 0.150 inches. The feed of the granules into the weld puddle is discontinued and the weld puddle is continued to be applied around the tool joint and in the grooved bands to provide a protruding substantially tungsten carbide free hardfacing surface about the outer diameter of the tool joint of from between about 0.050 inches to about 0.175 inches, and the hardfacing surface is machined down to substantially the outer diameter of the tool joint.

Abstract: A method is provided for maintaining threaded joints of a tool string to prevent jamming of the threads by rotation of a tool string required during movement of the tool string through a generally horizontal production portion and a curved bore portion of the well. Each thread joint is formed by use of an externally threaded pin and box configuration with the external diameter of the box substantially exceeding the external diameter of the pin. The cooperating threads are configured so that limited relative axial movement produces locking of cooperating threads against realtive rotation after full engagement. Relative axial movement is produced during makeup of the tool string by rotating a sleeve threadably mounted on the exterior of the pin and engagable to produce axial movement. The sleeve has an external diameter less than the box to prevent frictional engagement of the sleeve with the bore wall of the curved bore portion of the well.

Abstract: A method is provided for applying grooved bands of hardsurfacing on a tool joint for earth boring drill pipe. The hardfacing of the tool joint has tungsten carbide granules in an alloy steel matrix. The tool joint is rotated and an arc between an electrode and the tool joint is provided to create a weld puddle. The electrode is reciprocated parallel to the tool joint axis and the granules are fed into the weld puddle with the puddle being applied to the grooved bands around the exterior of the tool joint to a groove depth of from between about 0.75 inches to about 0.150 inches. The feed of the granules into the weld puddle is discontinued and the weld puddle is continued to be applied around the tool joint and in the grooved bands to provide a protruding substantially tungsten carbide free hardfacing surface about the outer diameter of the tool joint of from between about 0.050 inches to about 0.175 inches, and the hardfacing surface is machined down to substantially the outer diameter of the tool joint.