Is cable tool drill rigs still a thing?

There we found several large, truck-mounted cable tool drill rigs -- some only a few years old -- that had been purchased as part of a (yet another) failed water development scheme. The rigs were being dismantled and turned into machetes, plows, and other useful items.

What rig do you use to drill a water well?

My Father and Grandfather used to drill water wells with a "Baptist" type rig. It was slow compared to a rotary but very simple and cheap to make. They could probably go down to four hundred feet or so. It doesn't require large horse power or a water pump to circulate.

How do you drill a hole in a drill rig?

The method I would recommend is the cable tool method. You could buy used tools reasonably priced. All the rig has to do is spool cable (5/8") or so to allow the bit to go up and down. A walking beam is needed to drill with. This is what gives the up/down movement that does the chewing up of the material your going through.

What is a cable tool drill?

This design, common on Cable Tool drill trucks, involves steel that is shaped so that mud and water can easily slip past when it is dropped in the well hole. Note a small strip of hardened steel embedded into the tip of the bit.

How does a water drill rig work?

Water drill rigs use a combination of high volume varied pressure air, water and drilling mud to expel cuttings, unless want to withdraw the drill at regular intervals not much else will function and will wedge drill head in bore hole in short order. Cable tool rigs do not use a medium to flush the well. They bail out the cuttings as required.

How do you drill a rig with a walking beam?

(Riverview) Egon has the right idea. The method he is talking about is called balling in some circles. The method I would recommend is the cable tool method. You could buy used tools reasonably priced. All the rig has to do is spool cable (5/8") or so to allow the bit to go up and down. A walking beam is needed to drill with.