Deep hole drilling machines range from roughly $40,000 for an entry-level CNC gun drill to $800,000+ for a counter-rotating BTA production machine. Real market listings from Made-in-China, Machinio, Indiamart, Alibaba and used-equipment dealers such as Exapro and Kitmondo let us map realistic price bands by machine type, brand and region — and show why the sticker price is only the beginning of the real cost.
The bands below come from actual manufacturer listings on Made-in-China, Machinio, Indiamart, Alibaba and the used-equipment market, cross-checked against published market research. Western builders such as UNISIG, TBT and Mollart do not publish list prices — their machines are quoted against your envelope — but the ranges here bracket what real buyers pay.
| Machine Type | Typical New Price | Reference Market Data | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry CNC deep hole machine | $40k–$80k | Made-in-China: DH-800 3-axis $60k; ZJA06-0606 gun-drill system $46k; ZJA10-1008 (1 m depth) $69k | Mold cooling holes, valve bodies, small-bore jobbing |
| Dedicated gun drilling machine | $50k–$200k | Precihole (India) ₹43–100 lakh (~$51k–$119k); Jiayong $40k–$130k; DHD-3220 aerospace custom $88k; GD-5A $90k | Precision Ø1–50 mm bores, L/D to ~200:1 |
| Ejector retrofit (DTS) | $30k–$100k | Sandvik-style two-tube system fitted to an existing lathe, HBM or machining center; needs high-HP spindle + coolant | Adding deep hole capability to a capable base machine |
| BTA machine, entry–mid | $60k–$180k | Schnell Machine Tools (India) ₹10–150 lakh (~$12k–$180k); SBM125 ₹50 lakh (~$60k); T2120G (Ø200 mm × 16 m) ~$101k | Ø12–250 mm production bores, 10–100+ kW spindles |
| BTA / STS production (Western) | $200k–$800k+ | UNISIG, TBT, Mollart, Kays custom builds; counter-rotation, multi-spindle cells, high automation | Aerospace, oil & gas, energy; long L/D with tight straightness |
| Large horizontal deep hole (6–20 m) | $300k–$1M+ | 6-axis boring/milling deep-hole cell ~$360k; ZJG08-4020 60-ton tube plate machine $375k; 16 m T2120G from ~$101k (China) | Long shafts, hydraulic cylinders, tube sheets |
Five attributes move the price more than anything else. Manufacturers list the base machine cheaply and charge for the system that makes deep holes work: coolant, filtration and automation.
| Price Driver | Typical Incremental Cost Signal | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Coolant system (HP + filtration) | +10–25% over base | Determines bore quality and tool life; the #1 hidden cost |
| Counter-rotation / work spindle | +15–40% | Required for long L/D straightness on shafts and cylinders |
| Automation (ATC, robot, monitoring) | +20–50% | Pays back in lights-out hours and repeatable process control |
| Longer stroke / larger bore envelope | +5–15% per metre | Bigger castings, beds and way travel dominate the frame price |
| Spindle power upgrade | +10–20% | Feed-rate headroom on hardened and superalloy parts |
The used market for deep hole machines is genuinely deep — premium European brands sell at 40–75% of replacement cost, and machine lifespan is long if coolant and spindle are healthy.
Market research from QYResearch counts TBT, Mollart, Kays Engineering, Entrust and TechniDrill as the top five manufacturers, together holding roughly 45% of the global market — and sizes the market at $850M in 2023, growing about 6.3% per year toward $1.28B by 2030.
| Brand | Country | Position | Typical Envelope | Price Signal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNISIG | USA | High-end CNC; strong in medical gundrilling, oil & gas, automation cells | Ø25–300 mm, to 12 m | Top of market; quoted, not listed |
| TBT | Germany | Global leader; gun drilling + BTA; new CNC series with automation | Full range | Premium |
| Mollart | UK | Aerospace & automotive custom builds, multi-axis systems | Custom | Bespoke, premium |
| Kays Engineering | UK | Top-5 global market share, custom machines | Custom, large | Mid–high |
| Entrust / TechniDrill | Global | Specialist deep hole machine builders | Mid–large | Mid |
| HONGJI Machine Tools | China | High-volume, cost-effective builds | Up to large | Low–mid |
| Precihole | India | Gun drilling value; Ø1–250 mm, to 10 m | 1–250 mm | Mid (₹43–100 lakh) |
| Schnell Machine Tools | India | BTA entry–mid range | Ø25–125 mm+ | Low–mid (₹10–150 lakh) |
| Region | What You Get | Reference Data | Watch For |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | Cheapest new build, broad size range | Entry CNC $40k–$130k (Made-in-China); Zonjet 6-axis $280k; 60-ton ZJG08-4020 $375k; heavy deep hole boring ~$80k (Machinio, Liaoning); 16 m T2120G from ~$101k | After-sales reach, control documentation, freight & duty |
| India | Strong mid-range value for standard bores | Precihole gun drills ₹43–100 lakh (~$51k–$119k); Schnell BTA ₹10–150 lakh (~$12k–$180k) | Custom configurations can have long lead times |
| Europe | Premium build quality + the deepest used pool | Used TBT E 320-1-1800 $102k; Beyer BTBH 28 €110k; Wohlenberg B10S £114k (Exapro, Kitmondo) | Price, lead time, high labour cost |
| North America | Automation-heavy cells, local service | UNISIG US builds; strong medical and oil & gas base | Higher service and labour rates |
The purchase price is typically only 60–75% of the true first-year cost. Build the full ledger before you compare quotes.
| Cost Item | Typical Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price | $40k–$800k+ | The visible number — base + options + automation |
| Coolant & filtration system | +10–25% | HP pump, filters, chip conveyor, mist extraction |
| Installation & foundations | $5k–$30k | Rigging, leveling, coolant trench/pump for horizontals |
| Tooling (first set + regrinds) | $10k–$60k | Gundrills, BTA heads, drill tubes, guide bushings |
| Consumables & power | Ongoing | Cutting oil, filters, electricity at 30–100 kW spindles |
| Maintenance & spares | 2–5% of price / yr | Pumps, seals, ways, hydraulics, coolant |
| Training & process engineering | $5k–$25k | Operator training, qualification, trial holes |
| Scrap / tool-breakage risk | Variable | Inside-bore breakage recovery can exceed a month of output |
There are four ways to gain deep hole capability. The right one depends on utilization, cash position and how sure you are of the production forecast.
Bore diameter, depth, material, batch size, tolerance — the envelope everything else hangs on.
Gundrill vs BTA vs ejector, sized to diameter and L/D (gundrill Ø1–50 mm; BTA Ø12–250+ mm).
Use Vc and feed for your materials; 7.5–30 kW gun drilling, 15–100+ kW BTA.
Pressure and flow per method; filtration to ≤10 μm for superalloys.
Horizontal for long bores and gravity chip evacuation; vertical for small footprint and short stroke.
ATC, loading, tool monitoring — match to batch size, not ambition.
Add coolant, tooling, installation, training and trial holes to the sticker.
Spares lead time, commissioning support, and process engineering availability.
Part drawings, envelope (max bore × depth), materials, tolerances, volumes and any straightness target.
Machine, coolant, filtration, tooling, rigging and trial-hole program listed separately.
Same material, same envelope — not a sales brochure.
Drill tube stock, control spares, and who flies in for commissioning.
Two quotes with different coolant systems may have the same price and very different costs per hole.
| Mistake | Why It Costs Real Money |
|---|---|
| Buying the smallest envelope that fits today’s parts | No room for tomorrow’s bores — a new machine years sooner than planned |
| Skimping on coolant pressure / filtration | Poor bore finish, short tool life, higher cost per hole |
| Ignoring rigging, foundation and duty | Sticker-to-landed gap of 10–25% surprises the budget |
| Forgetting the tooling budget | First tooling set can be 10–20% of machine price |
| No trial-hole program | Parameters never validated — scrap on the first production batch |
| Zero after-sales plan | Spares lead time and remote support turn downtime into weeks |