Tail end ring control in a curved guide of a coiler

A method of decelerating and temporarily accumulating a length of a hot rolled product moving longitudinally along a receiving axis at a first velocity V1, said method comprising:

• directing said product through a curved guide having an entry end aligned with said axis to receive said product, and having an exit end spaced radially from said axis and oriented to deliver said product in an exit direction transverse to said axis;
• rotating said curved guide about said axis in a first direction opposite to said exit direction and at a speed at which said exit end has a velocity V2 lower than V1, thereby decelerating the product being delivered from said exit end to a reduced velocity V3, equal to V1−V2, the configuration of said curved guide and the orientation of said exit end being such as to form the product delivered from said exit end into a helical series of rings;
• depositing and temporarily accumulating said rings on a cylindrical drum;
• rotating said drum in a second direction opposite to said first direction and at a surface velocity allowing said rings to be unwound from said drum at velocity V3;
• and
• retaining a tail end segment of said product in said curved guide by rotating said curved guide in the direction of rotation of said drum and at a velocity V4 selected to achieve tail end retention for a time during which substantially all of said rings have been unwound from said drum.