To boldly alchemize what no one alchemized before
An Utai Drill Bit
OUT OF CHARACTER INFORMATION
- Intent: To provide a drill bit capable of being used to mine restricted materials
- Image Source: Tube Technologies
- Canon Link: N/A
- Restricted Missions: Brewing Alcohol Out of Thin Air (the drill bits are alchemized; posts #1-15)
- Primary Source: Drill bit (well)
- Manufacturer: Utai Magic Circle
- Model: Utai Drill Bit
- Weight: 120 kg
- Diameter: 310mm
- Affiliation: Closed-Market
- Production: Semi-Unique
- Modularity: Yes
- Material: Alchemized duranium
- Lightsaber resistance
- Can be installed in a variety of well-drilling machines
- Lightsaber-resistant
- Can even bore holes into ore containing restricted materials due to the additional material strength alchemy provides its teeth
- Presence: Force presence means that unless you somehow install a Force-diffuser somewhere close to the shaft, Force-users can detect a Force-presence centered on the drill bit
- Heavy: its sheer weight makes moving the bit more difficult
- Force-nullifiers: Voidstones and ysalamiri will suppress the Force-presence
- Boring holes into ore containing restricted materials make it prone to malfunctions (i.e. the drill bit mechanisms get clogged) and then the drill bit must be removed from the well shaft
- Drilling speed is slow when used on ore containing restricted materials, such as ultrachrome, Hijarna stones, stygium, cortosis and Isotope 5, taking quite a bit of time
- Cannot be weaponized
The Utai Drill Bit is a tricone drill bit used to break rocks either horizontally or vertically, depending on the orientation of the drilling machine outfitted with an Utai Drill Bit. Its alchemized duranium teeth allows it to grind rocks while the shaft attached to it rotates upon itself, with the shaft itself called the prime mover. Usually the ore goes away from the drill bit when this occurs, due to the nature of the shafts in use, where spiral conduits allow the ore to be brought to the other end of the shaft for collection. However, as with all things alchemized, the drill bits lose their Force-properties while exposed to Force-nullifiers, even though, in practice, it occurs at low depths or when the bit is above ground, ready to move on to another wellbore, unless one is mining void stones.
Due to the alchemical treatment increasing the strength of the drill bit, and making its teeth sharp enough to cut into even ultrachrome or Hijarna stones, it is capable of drilling into ore containing restricted materials. While drilling through normal materials, it can achieve a rate of penetration of about 20 meters per hour, that is, can drill a hole at 20 meters per hour; when drilling restricted materials, such as ultrachrome, Isotope 5, stygium, cortosis and Hijarna stones, it can achieve 5-10 meters per hour at best, with RMs presenting more resistance, slowing the drilling to a crawl.