Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Off by 238,000 Pounds! What Weight on Bit Actually Means
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Off by 238,000 Pounds! What Weight on Bit Actually Means
When Peter looked at drilling rig specs showing a 1 million pound hook capacity, he made an educated guess about weight on bit: 250,000 pounds.
Highlights:
1. The 250,000 lb Guess (23:10) Peter guesses weight on bit based on rig specs. Wade's response: "Well, man, that's a lot. That's a whole lot." The real answer: 12,000 to 30,000 pounds on a 6-inch drill bit.
2. Why You Need a Million-Pound Hook (24:41) Wade explains the critical difference between weight on bit and total hook load. Spoiler: it's not about the bit at all—it's about pulling 4-mile laterals and heavy casing strings.
3. Swabbing: Bringing Dead Wells Back to Life (13:12) Wade breaks down the process of removing fluids from loaded-up wells using rubber cups and wire line. "You do multiple runs, swabbing just barrels of liquids off until the well can start flowing on its own."
4. Water Flood Economics Are Brutal (18:03) "You're pumping a hundred barrels of water down a hole hoping to get back like half a barrel or one barrel of oil." Wade explains why water floods are end-of-life tertiary recovery.
5. The AFE "Free Loan" Trick (19:58) "If you're going to drill a well and you make that AFE super high and people have to prepay their percentage, you essentially got a free loan." Wade reveals the games operators play with Authorization for Expenditure.
6. Light vs Heavy Oil: It's All About Carbon Chains (10:10) Wade walks through the chemistry: methane (CH4) to diesel, and why longer carbon chains mean heavier hydrocarbons. Bonus: why Oklahoma diesel "waxes up" in extreme cold.
7. Race Car Fuel Changes with Temperature (12:19) Peter shares how his dad would run different fuels at 100° California tracks versus 40° Ohio races. Wade confirms: "That would make perfect sense... you want to be running as efficiently as possible."
8. 350,000 Pounds at TD (25:14) "When we start pulling out of the hole at total depth, a lot of times we'll see anywhere up to 350,000 pounds." Wade explains why hook loads spike when fighting hole friction in horizontal wells.
View all episodes
By Peter BrechtWhen Peter looked at drilling rig specs showing a 1 million pound hook capacity, he made an educated guess about weight on bit: 250,000 pounds.
Highlights:
1. The 250,000 lb Guess (23:10) Peter guesses weight on bit based on rig specs. Wade's response: "Well, man, that's a lot. That's a whole lot." The real answer: 12,000 to 30,000 pounds on a 6-inch drill bit.
2. Why You Need a Million-Pound Hook (24:41) Wade explains the critical difference between weight on bit and total hook load. Spoiler: it's not about the bit at all—it's about pulling 4-mile laterals and heavy casing strings.
3. Swabbing: Bringing Dead Wells Back to Life (13:12) Wade breaks down the process of removing fluids from loaded-up wells using rubber cups and wire line. "You do multiple runs, swabbing just barrels of liquids off until the well can start flowing on its own."
4. Water Flood Economics Are Brutal (18:03) "You're pumping a hundred barrels of water down a hole hoping to get back like half a barrel or one barrel of oil." Wade explains why water floods are end-of-life tertiary recovery.
5. The AFE "Free Loan" Trick (19:58) "If you're going to drill a well and you make that AFE super high and people have to prepay their percentage, you essentially got a free loan." Wade reveals the games operators play with Authorization for Expenditure.
6. Light vs Heavy Oil: It's All About Carbon Chains (10:10) Wade walks through the chemistry: methane (CH4) to diesel, and why longer carbon chains mean heavier hydrocarbons. Bonus: why Oklahoma diesel "waxes up" in extreme cold.
7. Race Car Fuel Changes with Temperature (12:19) Peter shares how his dad would run different fuels at 100° California tracks versus 40° Ohio races. Wade confirms: "That would make perfect sense... you want to be running as efficiently as possible."
8. 350,000 Pounds at TD (25:14) "When we start pulling out of the hole at total depth, a lot of times we'll see anywhere up to 350,000 pounds." Wade explains why hook loads spike when fighting hole friction in horizontal wells.