Conquer Demanding Milling Applications with Reliability and Accuracy
Manufacture with sharp cuts to produce precise shapes for your customers.
Posted: January 19, 2023
TOOLING & WORKHOLDING
High cutting speeds, multilayered coatings to increase toughness, and increased material removal rates are some of the benefits of utilizing state-of-the-art end mills, thread mills, thread formers and inserts.
New Versatile Range of Solid End Mills
Cutting tool and tooling system specialist Sandvik Coromant (Mebane, N.C.) is introducing a completely new range of high-end versatile solid end mills. The CoroMill® Dura will replace the existing versatile CoroMill® Plura end mills. The concept is developed for roughing to finishing with different engagements in all applications and materials.
What makes the CoroMill Dura stand out compared to the former versatile concept and competitor end mills is its WhisperKut™ technology. “Each flute is oriented at a different helix angle, and every level of the cutting edge is unequally spaced from the others,” said Dr. Markus Groppe, global product application manager at Sandvik Coromant. “This way, you can achieve very good stability and efficient machining without vibration.”
Another noticeable feature is how easy it is to choose the correct tool within the comprehensive range of solid end mills presented in the offering. “We have put a lot of effort into tool selection,” Groppe said. Finding the right tool within the CoroMill Dura assortment should never be a struggle.”
First choice is the four-flute plug-and-play solution, which works for a wide range of applications. Additional tool variants are available for more specific operations, such as key slots, dynamic milling, semi-finishing and finishing. Further assistance comes from the CoroPlus® Tool Guide for CoroMill Dura online tool selector, which supports slotting, side milling, pocketing and helical interpolation applications to make tool selection simpler.
The CoroMill Dura is available from two to seven flutes with 1-4×D cutting length, with and without a chip divider. The end mills can be reconditioned up to three times to original specifications.
Unique Dual Contact Grip Maintains Exceptional Rigidity and Accuracy
The Fullcut Mill Contact Grip from BIG DAISHOWA-Americas (Hoffman Estates, IL) permits easy indexing of cutter heads while maintaining excellent rigidity and accuracy. With the addition of the Fullcut Radius Mill (FRM) and the Ball End Mill (BE), the Fullcut Mill Contact Grip series now features four connection sizes and seven cutter types.
The unique dual contact grip is a threaded coupling system that achieves machining capacity close to that of integrated types. The taper and flange face make close contact for solid connection and one holder allows selection from multiple heads.
The FRM includes round inserts with high rake for low cutting resistance, making it ideal for ramping and helical milling applications. The BE is solid CrN-coated carbide for superior wear resistance and is available with two or three flutes in diameters of 16, 20 or 25 millimeters.
Indexable endmills are usually known for rough milling. However, other cutters in this series, like the Fullcut Mill FCM Type for profile milling, are designed to realize sharp cutting and low cutting resistance, thanks to the versatile dual-contact Contact Grip design. Similarly, the Fullcut Mill FCR Type heads are multifunction 3D cutters suited for both heavy and stable ramping. Also, part of the series are three chamfering options, the C-Cutter Mini for transverse chamfering, the C-Cutter for plunge chamfering and the C-Cutter Universal for adjustable angle chamfering.
Tackle Challenging Applications with new High Feed SP Milling Systems
Milling challenging materials like tough steels, stainless steels, superalloys and titanium cause built-up or notched edges and broken inserts that increase tooling costs and cause unexpected downtime. To overcome these challenges, the next-generation Seco Tool’s (Troy, MI) High Feed SP milling system features a combination of dedicated cutting geometries and insert grades, as well as optimized lead angles, that combine to boost material removal rates, maximize chip evacuation and extend tool life.
Packed with versatility, one High Feed SP tool handles a complete range of high feed milling operations and materials. The tool optimizes operations such as copy milling, ramping, pocketing, face milling and plunging to further reduce tooling inventories. Users optimize milling performance while eliminating the need to switch among numerous tools to implement various machining strategies and part materials.
These milling tools provide foolproof insert indexing that prevents operator mistakes, unexpected machine downtime and scrapped parts.
New Line of Tapered Carbide End Mills for NPT/NPTF Pipe Threads is Available
EMUGE-FRANKEN USA (West Boylston, MA), a leading manufacturer of high-performance taps, thread mills, end mills, drills, and other rotary tools, recently introduced a new line of 1:16 Tapered Solid Carbide End Mills designed to prepare a tapered core hole prior to finish tapping or thread milling NPT/ NPTF/ BSPT pipe threads. The new cutters feature an innovative design that reduces the number of tools required for hole preparation over a large range of pipe thread sizes, and they extend the tool life of expensive taps and thread mills.
Only three of the company’s tapered tool sizes are required to handle a full range of hole sizes from 1/4″ up to 4″, instead of having to purchase an individual taper reamer for each pipe thread size. They also provide a highly efficient and secure method for optimizing thread milling strategies, which incorporate the use of partial profile insert technology.
The end mills work in a full range of materials from aluminum, carbon steels, stainless steels, and exotic nickel alloys. They are made of a premium micro-grain carbide substrate with TIALN-T21 coating which resists heat, edge wear and chipping. Corner radii further prevent wear or chipping while prolonging tool life. Tools are four-fluted, feature standard US length and straight inch shank (h6), and are available in three sizes: 3/8″, 1/2″ and 3/4″.
Indexable Thread Mill Tooling Company Produces Everything in House
Advent Tool & Manufacturing Inc.’s (Trevor, WI) indexable shank style and shell mill style solid carbide insert holders are available in a wide variety of sizes. Advent Tool & Manufacturing makes the holders and shell mills and the standard threading or spline milling inserts that install into the holders. The company serves a gamut of industries with threads and valves, including hydraulics, oil, aircraft, medical, automotive, heavy machinery and more. The company maintains a well-stocked inventory and ships 75% of its products out the same day they are requested; the other 25% are customs or specials.
Customer support is a key theme throughout Advent Tool & Manufacturing’s services. Its live, web-based Solutions Center is staffed by engineering staff who can forward technical drawings and PDFs directly to end users, manufacturing reps, distributors and others who have questions. Advent Tool & Manufacturing also produces everything in-house and maintains control over the products, from engineering to machining.
Next Gen Solid End Mill Features 5-flute Geometry
WIDIATM (Latrobe, PA) has expanded the capabilities of its bestselling WCE solid end milling series with a 5-flute geometry specifically designed for optimal performance when shoulder milling and side milling carbon, stainless steel and cast iron. The WCE5 solid end mill combines the unequal index feature with an elevated 38° helix to deliver unparalleled machining performance.
The 5-flute square-end end mill with sharp edges, chamfers and corner radii joins a 4-flute square-end and ball-nose end mill with both straight and Weldon® shanks as part of WIDIA’s WCE solid end mill portfolio. The WCE4, a 4-flute geometry solid end mill, combines the asymmetrical index and variable helix features to excel in operations like full slots and heavy cuts.
Other benefits include: faceted and eccentric relief to provide vibration dampening; core taper to improve chip evacuation; and universal grade (WU20PD) to perform in steel, stainless-steel and cast-iron materials.
Multi-Application Grades Support High Cutting Speeds
For shops looking to machine different materials with an insert grade, CERATIZIT USA Inc. (Schaumburg, IL), offers its first ever CTPX710 and CTPX715 multi-application grades. The grades, featuring the company’s Dragonskin technology, offer outstanding performance when machining steel, stainless steel, super alloys and non-ferrous metals.
To prevent insert waste and easily detect wear, the gold-colored TiN outer layer of the Dragonskin multilayer CVD Ti(C,N)/Al2O3/TiN coating acts as an indicator. It not only enables users to clearly identify insert wear and index before a breakage, but also prevents sharp cutting edges from going unused and the insert being inadvertently discarded. Plus, a mechanical post-coating treatment produces beneficial residual stress in the coating that results in increased process security, especially important in the large-volume production situations typically associated with turning ISO-P steels and titanium.
For machining different materials, the grades are the perfect combination of state-of-the-art high-performance substrates and advanced coating structures that allow for high cutting speeds and increased process security. The AlTiN-based coating gives the tools a very high level of thermal stability, which boosts the service life of the indexable insert to significantly reduce required tool changes. Because of the high layer thickness of the coating, the grades guarantee ultimate precision of shape and dimensional stability.
The CERATIZIT multi-application grades are currently available in the form of indexable inserts for turning tools. More applications (milling, grooving, etc.) are set to follow.
Subscribe to learn the latest in manufacturing.