Carbide Parting and Grooving Inserts： Precision Cutting Tools for Efficient Mach

For precision machining, what properties should tool materials have?

If you are in the business of precision machining, you know that the quality of your tools is critical. The process of cutting metal is carried out under high cutting temperature and severe friction conditions. Therefore, in the process of machining precision parts, the length of tool life and the level of cutting efficiency, Depending on the tool material, the tool material determines the fundamental factor of the cutting performance of the tool, and has a great impact on the efficiency, quality of processing, cost of processing and tool durability In order to achieve the desired results, you need materials that have the right properties. Here are some things to consider when choosing tool VNMG Insert materials.

High hardness: The hardness of the tool material needs to be higher than that of the workpiece material to cut metal, and the hardness should reach above 60HRC at room temperature.

High wears resistance: Wears resistance is expressed as the ability of the tool material to resist wear. Usually, the higher the hardness, the better the wears resistance of the material.

Sufficient strength and toughness: The tool material needs to have sufficient strength and toughness to ensure that the tool can withstand sufficient total cutting force, shock and vibration during the normal cutting process of precision machining to prevent chipping or brittle fracture of the tool.

High heat resistance: Heat resistance, also known as hard heat, refers to the ability of tool PVD Coated Insert materials to maintain cutting performance at high temperatures, and it is the main indicator to measure the performance of tool materials.

Good Processability: In order to facilitate the production of knives, the knives are required to have good machinability and heat treatment process. Machinability mainly refers to cutting performance and welding performance. Heat Treatment refers to small heat treatment deformation, thin decarburization layer and good hardenability.

The process performance of the precision machining tool material also has a significant influence on the quality of the tool itself. Therefore, cutting material of the tool must meet the above five requirements.

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ENS cutting tools Co.,LTD is a professional manufacturer engaged in research, development, production and sale of CNC cutting tools. For example lathe inserts and holders, boring holders, milling inserts and holders, carbide end mills and drills, tool holders.

ENS have automated production lines, the rich experienced design and production team.In recent years, ENS cutting tools have introduced a series of advanced equipment and new technique. In addition we are selling well in most cities and provinces around China. Our produces are also exported to many other countries, such as Germany, UK, Canada, Poland, Switzerland, Korea and so on.

Our goal is to establish longer cooperation relationship with our clients to have a win-win situation.Generally speaking, comparing to some  famous Japanese brand, our Nicecutt products have 20% longer tool life, but half price. You could see the case studies in the CASE STUDY tab. Always welcome your consultation.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: tungsten carbide stock

For precision machining, what properties should tool materials have?

If you are in the business of precision machining, you know that the quality of your tools is critical. The process of cutting metal is carried out under high cutting temperature and severe friction conditions. Therefore, in the process of machining precision parts, the length of tool life and the level of cutting efficiency, Depending on the tool material, the tool material determines the fundamental factor of the cutting performance of the tool, and has a great impact on the efficiency, quality of processing, cost of processing and tool durability In order to achieve the desired results, you need materials that have the right properties. Here are some things to consider when choosing tool VNMG Insert materials.

High hardness: The hardness of the tool material needs to be higher than that of the workpiece material to cut metal, and the hardness should reach above 60HRC at room temperature.

High wears resistance: Wears resistance is expressed as the ability of the tool material to resist wear. Usually, the higher the hardness, the better the wears resistance of the material.

Sufficient strength and toughness: The tool material needs to have sufficient strength and toughness to ensure that the tool can withstand sufficient total cutting force, shock and vibration during the normal cutting process of precision machining to prevent chipping or brittle fracture of the tool.

High heat resistance: Heat resistance, also known as hard heat, refers to the ability of tool PVD Coated Insert materials to maintain cutting performance at high temperatures, and it is the main indicator to measure the performance of tool materials.

Good Processability: In order to facilitate the production of knives, the knives are required to have good machinability and heat treatment process. Machinability mainly refers to cutting performance and welding performance. Heat Treatment refers to small heat treatment deformation, thin decarburization layer and good hardenability.

The process performance of the precision machining tool material also has a significant influence on the quality of the tool itself. Therefore, cutting material of the tool must meet the above five requirements.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ENS cutting tools Co.,LTD is a professional manufacturer engaged in research, development, production and sale of CNC cutting tools. For example lathe inserts and holders, boring holders, milling inserts and holders, carbide end mills and drills, tool holders.

ENS have automated production lines, the rich experienced design and production team.In recent years, ENS cutting tools have introduced a series of advanced equipment and new technique. In addition we are selling well in most cities and provinces around China. Our produces are also exported to many other countries, such as Germany, UK, Canada, Poland, Switzerland, Korea and so on.

Our goal is to establish longer cooperation relationship with our clients to have a win-win situation.Generally speaking, comparing to some  famous Japanese brand, our Nicecutt products have 20% longer tool life, but half price. You could see the case studies in the CASE STUDY tab. Always welcome your consultation.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: tungsten carbide stock

For precision machining, what properties should tool materials have?

If you are in the business of precision machining, you know that the quality of your tools is critical. The process of cutting metal is carried out under high cutting temperature and severe friction conditions. Therefore, in the process of machining precision parts, the length of tool life and the level of cutting efficiency, Depending on the tool material, the tool material determines the fundamental factor of the cutting performance of the tool, and has a great impact on the efficiency, quality of processing, cost of processing and tool durability In order to achieve the desired results, you need materials that have the right properties. Here are some things to consider when choosing tool VNMG Insert materials.

High hardness: The hardness of the tool material needs to be higher than that of the workpiece material to cut metal, and the hardness should reach above 60HRC at room temperature.

High wears resistance: Wears resistance is expressed as the ability of the tool material to resist wear. Usually, the higher the hardness, the better the wears resistance of the material.

Sufficient strength and toughness: The tool material needs to have sufficient strength and toughness to ensure that the tool can withstand sufficient total cutting force, shock and vibration during the normal cutting process of precision machining to prevent chipping or brittle fracture of the tool.

High heat resistance: Heat resistance, also known as hard heat, refers to the ability of tool PVD Coated Insert materials to maintain cutting performance at high temperatures, and it is the main indicator to measure the performance of tool materials.

Good Processability: In order to facilitate the production of knives, the knives are required to have good machinability and heat treatment process. Machinability mainly refers to cutting performance and welding performance. Heat Treatment refers to small heat treatment deformation, thin decarburization layer and good hardenability.

The process performance of the precision machining tool material also has a significant influence on the quality of the tool itself. Therefore, cutting material of the tool must meet the above five requirements.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ENS cutting tools Co.,LTD is a professional manufacturer engaged in research, development, production and sale of CNC cutting tools. For example lathe inserts and holders, boring holders, milling inserts and holders, carbide end mills and drills, tool holders.

ENS have automated production lines, the rich experienced design and production team.In recent years, ENS cutting tools have introduced a series of advanced equipment and new technique. In addition we are selling well in most cities and provinces around China. Our produces are also exported to many other countries, such as Germany, UK, Canada, Poland, Switzerland, Korea and so on.

Our goal is to establish longer cooperation relationship with our clients to have a win-win situation.Generally speaking, comparing to some  famous Japanese brand, our Nicecutt products have 20% longer tool life, but half price. You could see the case studies in the CASE STUDY tab. Always welcome your consultation.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: tungsten carbide stock

Broaching Tool Eliminates Cleaning Process for Serrated Turned Parts

Any shop that chooses to hog out mold and die cavities with a solid carbide ball mill could be missing out on throughput gains available with new indexable mills, according to Ingersoll Cutting Tools (Rockford, Illinois). In fact, shops that have made the change-over have reported gains of as much as 3 to 1 in roughing and 6 to 1 in finishing, the company says. Many report improved surface finishes as well.

“Many of the new indexable tools capitalize on the fact that cavity hogging is largely side milling, explains Bill Fiorenza, die and mold tooling manager at Ingersoll. “Generally, indexable form tools are more cylindrical than spherical, so more of their active surface is moving at optimum surface cutting speed. This is not possible with spherical mills because surface speed varies with diameter.”

As evidence for these claims, the company cites the experiences of three shops: B&J Specialties (Wawaka, Minnesota), Crosby-Lebus (Longview, Texas) and Datum Industries (Grand Rapids, Michigan). All have switched from ballnose mills to Ingersoll’s Chip Surfer, a modular tooling system consisting of a ductile alloy steel shaft and a variety of replaceable, hard carbide cutting tips.

A key point is that speeding cavity milling isn’t just an end in and of itself. Cavity work makes up a large portion of the cost of producing molds and form dies. The shop that speeds up this operation can quote faster delivery times and lower prices while still maintaining profits, Mr. Fiorenza says. Likewise, captive die shops can turn around repairs much quicker, thereby delivering its forgings or stampings sooner.

The following provides a closer look at the Chip Surfer and how these shops have employed the tool to realize these advantages in their cavity milling operations.

Everybody’s Going Surfing

The primary key to the Chip Surfer’s effectiveness is its cylindrical geometry, which leverages chip thinning and places more of the active cutting surface near the full radius to cut at optimum speed, the company says. This aids in producing square shoulders and surface milling cutters flat, bump-free bottom surfaces. In contrast, the only part of a spherical ball mill engaged in cutting action is its equator.

Putting the carbide only where it’s needed—at the cutting edge—reduces tool costs, the company says. A single shank can accommodate the full range of replaceable tips, which can be quickly changed out while in the spindle at 0.0005-inch repeatability. “You can replace worn tips or switch from roughing to finishing tips without losing datum,” Mr. Fiorenza notes.

Additionally, the ductile alloy steel shaft makes the tool more forgiving of vibration and high side loads, especially during interrupted cuts. At B&J, Crosby-Levus and Datum, this has eliminated the need to slow down around corners and internal curves — features that all three shops cite as constituting slot milling cutters a large portion of the cycle time on a typical mold or form die. 

B&J: Faster Roughing and Finishing

B&J Specialties focuses on large mold sets for appliance and automotive manufacturers. Typical materials machined here include hardened A-2 stock as well as wrought H-13 and M-4 steel. The shop’s workhorse CNC machine is a Makino V 550 with a 20,000-rpm spindle and table speed to spare. In fact, before changing tools, the shop had to slow things down to avoid dulling or snapping its carbide ball mills every 10 minutes.

With the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip in place, the shop roughs the cavities at 200 ipm, 3,750 rpm and an 0.012-inch cutting depth. That’s an 8-to-1 gain in throughput compared to the previous ball mill, which ran at the same spindle speed but only 100 ipm and an 0.004-inch cutting depth,

Using the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip, the shop increased cavity roughing feed rates from 100 to 200 ipm and cutting depth from 0.004 inch to 0.012 inch (both the Chip Surfer and the old ball mill ran at a spindle speed of 3,750 rpm.) That’s an 8-to-1 gain in the corners as well as the straightaways. For finishing, the shop switches to a bullnose tip—a simple, 20-second operation performed while the threaded shank is still in the spindle—and increases the feed to 700 ipm. The next tip picks up where the previous one left off, within 0.0005 inch. Additionally, the shop has found that repeatability among tip is sufficient to eliminate the need for offsetting or touching off.

Crosby-Lebus: Machining Hardened Forging Dies Twice as Fast

Crosby-Lebus supports a forging operation that turns out parts for giant cranes. A typical forging is a rugged, 200-pound crane hook. Much of the machining here consists of repair work on hardened dies. The shop has standardized on a ¾-inch Chip Surfer high feed cutter for die gutters and flash lands as well as cavities.

Typical parameters for the shop’s previous cutter, a ¾-inch carbide ball mill, were 30 ipm, 1,250 rpm and a 0.01-inch cutting depth with stepover ranging from 0.03 to 0.05 inch. In contrast, the Chip surfer enabled increasing the standard feed rate to 50 ipm and significantly reducing stepover. As a result, the metal-removal rate doubled. “The as-machined finish is good enough to completely eliminate polishing,” says C-L programmer Buddy Walston. “Remember, the parts we make aren’t particularly appearance-sensitive.”

Datum: Taking Corners at Speed

Datum first tried the Chip Surfer high feed mill on a narrow, deep cavity that created problems for its ball mills. These tools always left a bump at the bottom of the cavity, necessitating additional operations to smooth it.

In contrast, the new tool leaves the bottom completely flat and completes the slot in one-third of the time. Of course, the benefits extend beyond that specific job. Since retooling, the shop says it has been able to feed 10 times faster for all cavity work. Standard settings are 400 ipm, 3,855 rpm and an 0.2-inch cutting depth. “The most pleasant surprise is the speed in and out of corners,” says process engineer John Smith. “We don’t have to slow down, and we are left with a square corner and a perfectly flat bottom.”

The shop also reports a 25-to-1 gain in tool life, and it has eliminated semi-finishing operations. Another Chip Surfer tip, the bullnose, has replaced EDM for roughing pedestal punches. Using the tool to mill these parts to within 0.02 inch of final size has reduced cycle time and eliminated a second setup.

“Many programmers brought up on ball mills slow down in the corners out of habit, or they’re afraid of snapping the tool due to higher lateral loads or chip jamming at that point in a tool path.” Mr. Fiorenza says. “Not so with John Smith. He capitalizes fully on a tool geometry that favors the “feed fast, cut shallow” strategy, and he practices it everywhere possible—even in the corners and internal curves. The results speak for themselves.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://jasonagnes.mee.nu/

Any shop that chooses to hog out mold and die cavities with a solid carbide ball mill could be missing out on throughput gains available with new indexable mills, according to Ingersoll Cutting Tools (Rockford, Illinois). In fact, shops that have made the change-over have reported gains of as much as 3 to 1 in roughing and 6 to 1 in finishing, the company says. Many report improved surface finishes as well.

“Many of the new indexable tools capitalize on the fact that cavity hogging is largely side milling, explains Bill Fiorenza, die and mold tooling manager at Ingersoll. “Generally, indexable form tools are more cylindrical than spherical, so more of their active surface is moving at optimum surface cutting speed. This is not possible with spherical mills because surface speed varies with diameter.”

As evidence for these claims, the company cites the experiences of three shops: B&J Specialties (Wawaka, Minnesota), Crosby-Lebus (Longview, Texas) and Datum Industries (Grand Rapids, Michigan). All have switched from ballnose mills to Ingersoll’s Chip Surfer, a modular tooling system consisting of a ductile alloy steel shaft and a variety of replaceable, hard carbide cutting tips.

A key point is that speeding cavity milling isn’t just an end in and of itself. Cavity work makes up a large portion of the cost of producing molds and form dies. The shop that speeds up this operation can quote faster delivery times and lower prices while still maintaining profits, Mr. Fiorenza says. Likewise, captive die shops can turn around repairs much quicker, thereby delivering its forgings or stampings sooner.

The following provides a closer look at the Chip Surfer and how these shops have employed the tool to realize these advantages in their cavity milling operations.

Everybody’s Going Surfing

The primary key to the Chip Surfer’s effectiveness is its cylindrical geometry, which leverages chip thinning and places more of the active cutting surface near the full radius to cut at optimum speed, the company says. This aids in producing square shoulders and surface milling cutters flat, bump-free bottom surfaces. In contrast, the only part of a spherical ball mill engaged in cutting action is its equator.

Putting the carbide only where it’s needed—at the cutting edge—reduces tool costs, the company says. A single shank can accommodate the full range of replaceable tips, which can be quickly changed out while in the spindle at 0.0005-inch repeatability. “You can replace worn tips or switch from roughing to finishing tips without losing datum,” Mr. Fiorenza notes.

Additionally, the ductile alloy steel shaft makes the tool more forgiving of vibration and high side loads, especially during interrupted cuts. At B&J, Crosby-Levus and Datum, this has eliminated the need to slow down around corners and internal curves — features that all three shops cite as constituting slot milling cutters a large portion of the cycle time on a typical mold or form die. 

B&J: Faster Roughing and Finishing

B&J Specialties focuses on large mold sets for appliance and automotive manufacturers. Typical materials machined here include hardened A-2 stock as well as wrought H-13 and M-4 steel. The shop’s workhorse CNC machine is a Makino V 550 with a 20,000-rpm spindle and table speed to spare. In fact, before changing tools, the shop had to slow things down to avoid dulling or snapping its carbide ball mills every 10 minutes.

With the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip in place, the shop roughs the cavities at 200 ipm, 3,750 rpm and an 0.012-inch cutting depth. That’s an 8-to-1 gain in throughput compared to the previous ball mill, which ran at the same spindle speed but only 100 ipm and an 0.004-inch cutting depth,

Using the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip, the shop increased cavity roughing feed rates from 100 to 200 ipm and cutting depth from 0.004 inch to 0.012 inch (both the Chip Surfer and the old ball mill ran at a spindle speed of 3,750 rpm.) That’s an 8-to-1 gain in the corners as well as the straightaways. For finishing, the shop switches to a bullnose tip—a simple, 20-second operation performed while the threaded shank is still in the spindle—and increases the feed to 700 ipm. The next tip picks up where the previous one left off, within 0.0005 inch. Additionally, the shop has found that repeatability among tip is sufficient to eliminate the need for offsetting or touching off.

Crosby-Lebus: Machining Hardened Forging Dies Twice as Fast

Crosby-Lebus supports a forging operation that turns out parts for giant cranes. A typical forging is a rugged, 200-pound crane hook. Much of the machining here consists of repair work on hardened dies. The shop has standardized on a ¾-inch Chip Surfer high feed cutter for die gutters and flash lands as well as cavities.

Typical parameters for the shop’s previous cutter, a ¾-inch carbide ball mill, were 30 ipm, 1,250 rpm and a 0.01-inch cutting depth with stepover ranging from 0.03 to 0.05 inch. In contrast, the Chip surfer enabled increasing the standard feed rate to 50 ipm and significantly reducing stepover. As a result, the metal-removal rate doubled. “The as-machined finish is good enough to completely eliminate polishing,” says C-L programmer Buddy Walston. “Remember, the parts we make aren’t particularly appearance-sensitive.”

Datum: Taking Corners at Speed

Datum first tried the Chip Surfer high feed mill on a narrow, deep cavity that created problems for its ball mills. These tools always left a bump at the bottom of the cavity, necessitating additional operations to smooth it.

In contrast, the new tool leaves the bottom completely flat and completes the slot in one-third of the time. Of course, the benefits extend beyond that specific job. Since retooling, the shop says it has been able to feed 10 times faster for all cavity work. Standard settings are 400 ipm, 3,855 rpm and an 0.2-inch cutting depth. “The most pleasant surprise is the speed in and out of corners,” says process engineer John Smith. “We don’t have to slow down, and we are left with a square corner and a perfectly flat bottom.”

The shop also reports a 25-to-1 gain in tool life, and it has eliminated semi-finishing operations. Another Chip Surfer tip, the bullnose, has replaced EDM for roughing pedestal punches. Using the tool to mill these parts to within 0.02 inch of final size has reduced cycle time and eliminated a second setup.

“Many programmers brought up on ball mills slow down in the corners out of habit, or they’re afraid of snapping the tool due to higher lateral loads or chip jamming at that point in a tool path.” Mr. Fiorenza says. “Not so with John Smith. He capitalizes fully on a tool geometry that favors the “feed fast, cut shallow” strategy, and he practices it everywhere possible—even in the corners and internal curves. The results speak for themselves.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://jasonagnes.mee.nu/

Any shop that chooses to hog out mold and die cavities with a solid carbide ball mill could be missing out on throughput gains available with new indexable mills, according to Ingersoll Cutting Tools (Rockford, Illinois). In fact, shops that have made the change-over have reported gains of as much as 3 to 1 in roughing and 6 to 1 in finishing, the company says. Many report improved surface finishes as well.

“Many of the new indexable tools capitalize on the fact that cavity hogging is largely side milling, explains Bill Fiorenza, die and mold tooling manager at Ingersoll. “Generally, indexable form tools are more cylindrical than spherical, so more of their active surface is moving at optimum surface cutting speed. This is not possible with spherical mills because surface speed varies with diameter.”

As evidence for these claims, the company cites the experiences of three shops: B&J Specialties (Wawaka, Minnesota), Crosby-Lebus (Longview, Texas) and Datum Industries (Grand Rapids, Michigan). All have switched from ballnose mills to Ingersoll’s Chip Surfer, a modular tooling system consisting of a ductile alloy steel shaft and a variety of replaceable, hard carbide cutting tips.

A key point is that speeding cavity milling isn’t just an end in and of itself. Cavity work makes up a large portion of the cost of producing molds and form dies. The shop that speeds up this operation can quote faster delivery times and lower prices while still maintaining profits, Mr. Fiorenza says. Likewise, captive die shops can turn around repairs much quicker, thereby delivering its forgings or stampings sooner.

The following provides a closer look at the Chip Surfer and how these shops have employed the tool to realize these advantages in their cavity milling operations.

Everybody’s Going Surfing

The primary key to the Chip Surfer’s effectiveness is its cylindrical geometry, which leverages chip thinning and places more of the active cutting surface near the full radius to cut at optimum speed, the company says. This aids in producing square shoulders and surface milling cutters flat, bump-free bottom surfaces. In contrast, the only part of a spherical ball mill engaged in cutting action is its equator.

Putting the carbide only where it’s needed—at the cutting edge—reduces tool costs, the company says. A single shank can accommodate the full range of replaceable tips, which can be quickly changed out while in the spindle at 0.0005-inch repeatability. “You can replace worn tips or switch from roughing to finishing tips without losing datum,” Mr. Fiorenza notes.

Additionally, the ductile alloy steel shaft makes the tool more forgiving of vibration and high side loads, especially during interrupted cuts. At B&J, Crosby-Levus and Datum, this has eliminated the need to slow down around corners and internal curves — features that all three shops cite as constituting slot milling cutters a large portion of the cycle time on a typical mold or form die. 

B&J: Faster Roughing and Finishing

B&J Specialties focuses on large mold sets for appliance and automotive manufacturers. Typical materials machined here include hardened A-2 stock as well as wrought H-13 and M-4 steel. The shop’s workhorse CNC machine is a Makino V 550 with a 20,000-rpm spindle and table speed to spare. In fact, before changing tools, the shop had to slow things down to avoid dulling or snapping its carbide ball mills every 10 minutes.

With the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip in place, the shop roughs the cavities at 200 ipm, 3,750 rpm and an 0.012-inch cutting depth. That’s an 8-to-1 gain in throughput compared to the previous ball mill, which ran at the same spindle speed but only 100 ipm and an 0.004-inch cutting depth,

Using the Chip Surfer’s toroidal high feed tip, the shop increased cavity roughing feed rates from 100 to 200 ipm and cutting depth from 0.004 inch to 0.012 inch (both the Chip Surfer and the old ball mill ran at a spindle speed of 3,750 rpm.) That’s an 8-to-1 gain in the corners as well as the straightaways. For finishing, the shop switches to a bullnose tip—a simple, 20-second operation performed while the threaded shank is still in the spindle—and increases the feed to 700 ipm. The next tip picks up where the previous one left off, within 0.0005 inch. Additionally, the shop has found that repeatability among tip is sufficient to eliminate the need for offsetting or touching off.

Crosby-Lebus: Machining Hardened Forging Dies Twice as Fast

Crosby-Lebus supports a forging operation that turns out parts for giant cranes. A typical forging is a rugged, 200-pound crane hook. Much of the machining here consists of repair work on hardened dies. The shop has standardized on a ¾-inch Chip Surfer high feed cutter for die gutters and flash lands as well as cavities.

Typical parameters for the shop’s previous cutter, a ¾-inch carbide ball mill, were 30 ipm, 1,250 rpm and a 0.01-inch cutting depth with stepover ranging from 0.03 to 0.05 inch. In contrast, the Chip surfer enabled increasing the standard feed rate to 50 ipm and significantly reducing stepover. As a result, the metal-removal rate doubled. “The as-machined finish is good enough to completely eliminate polishing,” says C-L programmer Buddy Walston. “Remember, the parts we make aren’t particularly appearance-sensitive.”

Datum: Taking Corners at Speed

Datum first tried the Chip Surfer high feed mill on a narrow, deep cavity that created problems for its ball mills. These tools always left a bump at the bottom of the cavity, necessitating additional operations to smooth it.

In contrast, the new tool leaves the bottom completely flat and completes the slot in one-third of the time. Of course, the benefits extend beyond that specific job. Since retooling, the shop says it has been able to feed 10 times faster for all cavity work. Standard settings are 400 ipm, 3,855 rpm and an 0.2-inch cutting depth. “The most pleasant surprise is the speed in and out of corners,” says process engineer John Smith. “We don’t have to slow down, and we are left with a square corner and a perfectly flat bottom.”

The shop also reports a 25-to-1 gain in tool life, and it has eliminated semi-finishing operations. Another Chip Surfer tip, the bullnose, has replaced EDM for roughing pedestal punches. Using the tool to mill these parts to within 0.02 inch of final size has reduced cycle time and eliminated a second setup.

“Many programmers brought up on ball mills slow down in the corners out of habit, or they’re afraid of snapping the tool due to higher lateral loads or chip jamming at that point in a tool path.” Mr. Fiorenza says. “Not so with John Smith. He capitalizes fully on a tool geometry that favors the “feed fast, cut shallow” strategy, and he practices it everywhere possible—even in the corners and internal curves. The results speak for themselves.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://jasonagnes.mee.nu/

Arch Cutting Tools Hires Arch Specials Business Development Coordinator

Tungaloy has added AH6225 grade inserts to its TCB indexable counterboring tool line.

TCB is an indexable, multifunctional counterboring tool line that is designed to be used on a variety of turning machines. The tool bodies are available for cutting diameters from 10 mm (0.394") to 59 mm (2.323"), enabling a range of counterbore diameters for cap bolts and nuts, as well as the rod peeling inserts expansions of existing hole diameters. The cutter bodies come in two styles depending on the intended cutting diameters: a mono block style is designed for machining from 10 mm (0.394") to 43 mm (1.69") diameter bores, while the cutters with exchangeable cartridges are for 26 mm (1.024") to 59 mm (2.323") diameters. The exchangeable cartridges can fine-adjust the BTA deep hole drilling inserts cutting diameters in 0.1 mm (0.004") increments by placing the adjusting shim plates, which are sold separately, between the cartridge and the pocket.

TCB now offers AH6225 grade inserts. This latest physical vapor deposition (PVD) coated grade features a high-hardness, titanium-rich PVD coating, combined with a tough dedicated carbide substrate. AH6225 enables TCB to efficiently cut bores in all material groups, including steel, stainless steel and exotic materials.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: cast iron Inserts

Tungaloy has added AH6225 grade inserts to its TCB indexable counterboring tool line.

TCB is an indexable, multifunctional counterboring tool line that is designed to be used on a variety of turning machines. The tool bodies are available for cutting diameters from 10 mm (0.394") to 59 mm (2.323"), enabling a range of counterbore diameters for cap bolts and nuts, as well as the rod peeling inserts expansions of existing hole diameters. The cutter bodies come in two styles depending on the intended cutting diameters: a mono block style is designed for machining from 10 mm (0.394") to 43 mm (1.69") diameter bores, while the cutters with exchangeable cartridges are for 26 mm (1.024") to 59 mm (2.323") diameters. The exchangeable cartridges can fine-adjust the BTA deep hole drilling inserts cutting diameters in 0.1 mm (0.004") increments by placing the adjusting shim plates, which are sold separately, between the cartridge and the pocket.

TCB now offers AH6225 grade inserts. This latest physical vapor deposition (PVD) coated grade features a high-hardness, titanium-rich PVD coating, combined with a tough dedicated carbide substrate. AH6225 enables TCB to efficiently cut bores in all material groups, including steel, stainless steel and exotic materials.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: cast iron Inserts

Tungaloy has added AH6225 grade inserts to its TCB indexable counterboring tool line.

TCB is an indexable, multifunctional counterboring tool line that is designed to be used on a variety of turning machines. The tool bodies are available for cutting diameters from 10 mm (0.394") to 59 mm (2.323"), enabling a range of counterbore diameters for cap bolts and nuts, as well as the rod peeling inserts expansions of existing hole diameters. The cutter bodies come in two styles depending on the intended cutting diameters: a mono block style is designed for machining from 10 mm (0.394") to 43 mm (1.69") diameter bores, while the cutters with exchangeable cartridges are for 26 mm (1.024") to 59 mm (2.323") diameters. The exchangeable cartridges can fine-adjust the BTA deep hole drilling inserts cutting diameters in 0.1 mm (0.004") increments by placing the adjusting shim plates, which are sold separately, between the cartridge and the pocket.

TCB now offers AH6225 grade inserts. This latest physical vapor deposition (PVD) coated grade features a high-hardness, titanium-rich PVD coating, combined with a tough dedicated carbide substrate. AH6225 enables TCB to efficiently cut bores in all material groups, including steel, stainless steel and exotic materials.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: cast iron Inserts

An Introduction to Live Tooling

TiNives (Fortson, Georgia) produces 5- to 7-ounce knives that feature a blend of balance, precision and innovation. "Our first product, which we call the Zero Play knife, was introduced at the Blade Show in Atlanta in 1998," says TiNives president and owner Scott Self. "While most folding knives feature about 20 parts, ours has more than 100. In addition, our first knife featured more than half a dozen innovations that the industry had never seen before."

TiNives knives are complex to design and machine, Mr. Self explains. "It takes more than 900,000 lines of code to produce one of our knives."

The button mechanism that opens the knife is extraordinarily smooth, pivoting on 84 ceramic balls that have a finish measured in tens of thousandths of an inch. "The nature of ceramic," explains Mr. Self, "is that it burnishes and polishes, so that the knife keeps getting smoother and smoother over time, without any surface removal. While most companies are dealing in thousandths of an inch, we're dealing in tens of thousandths. That's a lot more complex."

Material selection is also key. TiNives uses standard blade steel for the body and materials such as titanium and aircraft aluminum for knife handles. The knife handle features blind tapping holes, something that is difficult to do. The titanium knife handle is not only a complex sculpted shape that delivers excellent grip and feel, but it also features a textured deep hole drilling inserts surface etched into it, according to the company.

The complexity of TiNives' products demanded both design and machining software that was on the cutting edge. TiNives looked at a number of CAM systems. "One was priced at $30,000, and we thought it was overkill—after all, we weren't looking at machining airplanes and automobiles. As for the other, it just appeared to be very complicated program," says Mr. Self. So TiNives turned to SURFCAM software from Surfware, Inc. (Westlake Village, California). "We first saw SURFCAM at a machine shop in Florida," says Mr. Self, "and we knew almost immediately that it was the software for us. We showed them the knife we were working on, and the shop owner got on his laptop computer, imported IGES files from our Microcadam design, and two hours deep hole drilling inserts later showed us the texturing we wanted mapped directly onto a sculpted surface, in titanium. It was very impressive. We were literally sold on the spot. We had never seen this kind of texturing program in a CAM program."

Today the company offers half a dozen different knives in a variety of sizes and configurations, and all of its machining operations are running smoothly. "We have one texturing called the Wave, which is an American Flag waving in the breeze," reports Mr. Self. "It has something like 370,000 lines of NC code to it, and it puts the texture on top of a 3D sculpted surface."

"Let me give you another example of the type of NC work that we're doing," Mr. Self continues. "We just prototyped a double action knife in AutoCAD 2000, imported the files into our NC environment, and the very next day we had the tool paths for the inside and outside of the handle all done. By the second day we completed the programming for the blade. And on the third day we had toolpaths for all of the round parts completed. The bottom line is that in three days we took the part from start to finish, and that gives us a lot of confidence as we move forward. That's why we're talking about ramping up production from 500 pieces a month to one or two thousand."

For TiNives, like many small businesses, reliability is key. The products and technologies that it invests in must be reliable and "bullet proof," since the company can't afford any downtime. That is exactly what TiNives gets with its NC software. "We're using a three-axis milling module, we send our NC programs to a Fadal vertical machining center as well as an Excel milling machine, and in two years we have never had a problem, not once," says Mr. Self. "We often run our machines from 7 in the morning until midnight, and we have never had to get any type of support from Surfware. We have never had a problem."

The Cemented Carbide Blog: Turning Inserts

TiNives (Fortson, Georgia) produces 5- to 7-ounce knives that feature a blend of balance, precision and innovation. "Our first product, which we call the Zero Play knife, was introduced at the Blade Show in Atlanta in 1998," says TiNives president and owner Scott Self. "While most folding knives feature about 20 parts, ours has more than 100. In addition, our first knife featured more than half a dozen innovations that the industry had never seen before."

TiNives knives are complex to design and machine, Mr. Self explains. "It takes more than 900,000 lines of code to produce one of our knives."

The button mechanism that opens the knife is extraordinarily smooth, pivoting on 84 ceramic balls that have a finish measured in tens of thousandths of an inch. "The nature of ceramic," explains Mr. Self, "is that it burnishes and polishes, so that the knife keeps getting smoother and smoother over time, without any surface removal. While most companies are dealing in thousandths of an inch, we're dealing in tens of thousandths. That's a lot more complex."

Material selection is also key. TiNives uses standard blade steel for the body and materials such as titanium and aircraft aluminum for knife handles. The knife handle features blind tapping holes, something that is difficult to do. The titanium knife handle is not only a complex sculpted shape that delivers excellent grip and feel, but it also features a textured deep hole drilling inserts surface etched into it, according to the company.

The complexity of TiNives' products demanded both design and machining software that was on the cutting edge. TiNives looked at a number of CAM systems. "One was priced at $30,000, and we thought it was overkill—after all, we weren't looking at machining airplanes and automobiles. As for the other, it just appeared to be very complicated program," says Mr. Self. So TiNives turned to SURFCAM software from Surfware, Inc. (Westlake Village, California). "We first saw SURFCAM at a machine shop in Florida," says Mr. Self, "and we knew almost immediately that it was the software for us. We showed them the knife we were working on, and the shop owner got on his laptop computer, imported IGES files from our Microcadam design, and two hours deep hole drilling inserts later showed us the texturing we wanted mapped directly onto a sculpted surface, in titanium. It was very impressive. We were literally sold on the spot. We had never seen this kind of texturing program in a CAM program."

Today the company offers half a dozen different knives in a variety of sizes and configurations, and all of its machining operations are running smoothly. "We have one texturing called the Wave, which is an American Flag waving in the breeze," reports Mr. Self. "It has something like 370,000 lines of NC code to it, and it puts the texture on top of a 3D sculpted surface."

"Let me give you another example of the type of NC work that we're doing," Mr. Self continues. "We just prototyped a double action knife in AutoCAD 2000, imported the files into our NC environment, and the very next day we had the tool paths for the inside and outside of the handle all done. By the second day we completed the programming for the blade. And on the third day we had toolpaths for all of the round parts completed. The bottom line is that in three days we took the part from start to finish, and that gives us a lot of confidence as we move forward. That's why we're talking about ramping up production from 500 pieces a month to one or two thousand."

For TiNives, like many small businesses, reliability is key. The products and technologies that it invests in must be reliable and "bullet proof," since the company can't afford any downtime. That is exactly what TiNives gets with its NC software. "We're using a three-axis milling module, we send our NC programs to a Fadal vertical machining center as well as an Excel milling machine, and in two years we have never had a problem, not once," says Mr. Self. "We often run our machines from 7 in the morning until midnight, and we have never had to get any type of support from Surfware. We have never had a problem."

The Cemented Carbide Blog: Turning Inserts

TiNives (Fortson, Georgia) produces 5- to 7-ounce knives that feature a blend of balance, precision and innovation. "Our first product, which we call the Zero Play knife, was introduced at the Blade Show in Atlanta in 1998," says TiNives president and owner Scott Self. "While most folding knives feature about 20 parts, ours has more than 100. In addition, our first knife featured more than half a dozen innovations that the industry had never seen before."

TiNives knives are complex to design and machine, Mr. Self explains. "It takes more than 900,000 lines of code to produce one of our knives."

The button mechanism that opens the knife is extraordinarily smooth, pivoting on 84 ceramic balls that have a finish measured in tens of thousandths of an inch. "The nature of ceramic," explains Mr. Self, "is that it burnishes and polishes, so that the knife keeps getting smoother and smoother over time, without any surface removal. While most companies are dealing in thousandths of an inch, we're dealing in tens of thousandths. That's a lot more complex."

Material selection is also key. TiNives uses standard blade steel for the body and materials such as titanium and aircraft aluminum for knife handles. The knife handle features blind tapping holes, something that is difficult to do. The titanium knife handle is not only a complex sculpted shape that delivers excellent grip and feel, but it also features a textured deep hole drilling inserts surface etched into it, according to the company.

The complexity of TiNives' products demanded both design and machining software that was on the cutting edge. TiNives looked at a number of CAM systems. "One was priced at $30,000, and we thought it was overkill—after all, we weren't looking at machining airplanes and automobiles. As for the other, it just appeared to be very complicated program," says Mr. Self. So TiNives turned to SURFCAM software from Surfware, Inc. (Westlake Village, California). "We first saw SURFCAM at a machine shop in Florida," says Mr. Self, "and we knew almost immediately that it was the software for us. We showed them the knife we were working on, and the shop owner got on his laptop computer, imported IGES files from our Microcadam design, and two hours deep hole drilling inserts later showed us the texturing we wanted mapped directly onto a sculpted surface, in titanium. It was very impressive. We were literally sold on the spot. We had never seen this kind of texturing program in a CAM program."

Today the company offers half a dozen different knives in a variety of sizes and configurations, and all of its machining operations are running smoothly. "We have one texturing called the Wave, which is an American Flag waving in the breeze," reports Mr. Self. "It has something like 370,000 lines of NC code to it, and it puts the texture on top of a 3D sculpted surface."

"Let me give you another example of the type of NC work that we're doing," Mr. Self continues. "We just prototyped a double action knife in AutoCAD 2000, imported the files into our NC environment, and the very next day we had the tool paths for the inside and outside of the handle all done. By the second day we completed the programming for the blade. And on the third day we had toolpaths for all of the round parts completed. The bottom line is that in three days we took the part from start to finish, and that gives us a lot of confidence as we move forward. That's why we're talking about ramping up production from 500 pieces a month to one or two thousand."

For TiNives, like many small businesses, reliability is key. The products and technologies that it invests in must be reliable and "bullet proof," since the company can't afford any downtime. That is exactly what TiNives gets with its NC software. "We're using a three-axis milling module, we send our NC programs to a Fadal vertical machining center as well as an Excel milling machine, and in two years we have never had a problem, not once," says Mr. Self. "We often run our machines from 7 in the morning until midnight, and we have never had to get any type of support from Surfware. We have never had a problem."

The Cemented Carbide Blog: Turning Inserts

Platinum Tooling Imports Henninger Speed Increasers

Inovatools is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The Germany-based tool manufacturer counts its fleet of machines, its technology center for developing and testing special tools, its coating department, its 250 skilled personnel, and its range of services as the forces behind the company’s success.

“Back in 1990, the company’s founders could not have dreamed that the small resharpening service they were running from Beilngries in Bavaria would today count among Germany’s top 25 tool manufacturers in the sales ranking of the German precision tool industry,” says Inovatools. The company currently manufactures at four sites, making tools for the automotive, aviation and aerospace, and shoulder milling cutters mechanical engineering industries.

Inovatools considers its high degree of vertical integration an important basis for its success, from design to grinding, edge preparation and micro-geometry to coating. “Controlling the entire workflow means that we can ensure the highest possible quality standards,” says Ditmar Ertel, managing director. “Our dedicated technology center for the manufacture of special tools in Mieming, Austria, allows us to respond instantly to individual customer requirements and expedite in-house developments.”

By 2017, Inovatools had invested around 15 million euros into global expansion. The company’s acquisition by Swedish investor Indutrade AB in 2018 is said to have opened up more opportunities such as continual investment in safeguarding and developing the gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts company location. 

Export plays a leading role for Inovatools. Around 50% of Inovatools’ products are shipped abroad. To this end, according to Mr. Ertel, the company has prioritized its online presence.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: central and intermediate Inserts

Inovatools is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The Germany-based tool manufacturer counts its fleet of machines, its technology center for developing and testing special tools, its coating department, its 250 skilled personnel, and its range of services as the forces behind the company’s success.

“Back in 1990, the company’s founders could not have dreamed that the small resharpening service they were running from Beilngries in Bavaria would today count among Germany’s top 25 tool manufacturers in the sales ranking of the German precision tool industry,” says Inovatools. The company currently manufactures at four sites, making tools for the automotive, aviation and aerospace, and shoulder milling cutters mechanical engineering industries.

Inovatools considers its high degree of vertical integration an important basis for its success, from design to grinding, edge preparation and micro-geometry to coating. “Controlling the entire workflow means that we can ensure the highest possible quality standards,” says Ditmar Ertel, managing director. “Our dedicated technology center for the manufacture of special tools in Mieming, Austria, allows us to respond instantly to individual customer requirements and expedite in-house developments.”

By 2017, Inovatools had invested around 15 million euros into global expansion. The company’s acquisition by Swedish investor Indutrade AB in 2018 is said to have opened up more opportunities such as continual investment in safeguarding and developing the gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts company location. 

Export plays a leading role for Inovatools. Around 50% of Inovatools’ products are shipped abroad. To this end, according to Mr. Ertel, the company has prioritized its online presence.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: central and intermediate Inserts

Inovatools is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The Germany-based tool manufacturer counts its fleet of machines, its technology center for developing and testing special tools, its coating department, its 250 skilled personnel, and its range of services as the forces behind the company’s success.

“Back in 1990, the company’s founders could not have dreamed that the small resharpening service they were running from Beilngries in Bavaria would today count among Germany’s top 25 tool manufacturers in the sales ranking of the German precision tool industry,” says Inovatools. The company currently manufactures at four sites, making tools for the automotive, aviation and aerospace, and shoulder milling cutters mechanical engineering industries.

Inovatools considers its high degree of vertical integration an important basis for its success, from design to grinding, edge preparation and micro-geometry to coating. “Controlling the entire workflow means that we can ensure the highest possible quality standards,” says Ditmar Ertel, managing director. “Our dedicated technology center for the manufacture of special tools in Mieming, Austria, allows us to respond instantly to individual customer requirements and expedite in-house developments.”

By 2017, Inovatools had invested around 15 million euros into global expansion. The company’s acquisition by Swedish investor Indutrade AB in 2018 is said to have opened up more opportunities such as continual investment in safeguarding and developing the gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts company location. 

Export plays a leading role for Inovatools. Around 50% of Inovatools’ products are shipped abroad. To this end, according to Mr. Ertel, the company has prioritized its online presence.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: central and intermediate Inserts

Modular, Adjustable Depth Combination Tools

A Wisconsin automotive component manufacturer recently faced a chip control problem on an ID turning operation. General Automotive (Franklin, Wisconsin) produces high-precision components for engines, fuel systems, hydraulics, air systems, brake systems and transmissions. This particular job involved injector bodies that were being machined out of AISI/SAE 1055 steel. The ISO inserts being used had problems with chip breakage and buildup. This chip buildup would periodically lead to poor quality parts that would need to be scrapped. Constant monitoring was imperative to ensure that quality was upheld. The company needed a reliable tool that could run without the need for constant monitoring.

To find a solution, the company contacted its Iscar representative, Gary Hammer. “We needed more dependable tooling to enable us to operate more efficiently,” states Steve Gunter, shop supervisor at General Automotive. After analyzing the situation, Mr. Hammer offered a creative solution, suggesting replacing traditional ISO style inserts with Iscar’s Bayo T-Ream reaming system and running it with the Gyro toolholder. He believed this combination would provide a more reliable setup compared to the tooling that was being employed.

The Bayo T-Ream from Iscar Metals, Inc. (Arlington, Texas) features interchangeable heads for facilitating quick tool changes and high speed reaming. This system is designed to minimize setup time while indexing, and it offers indexing repeatability to 3 microns. It consists of an interchangeable carbide reaming head with a quick-change bayonet mechanism. This mechanism is mounted on a Hard Touch coated steel shank using a bayonet screw and custom key to clamp and release the interchangeable head.

The versatility of the shank and head combination enables using one shank for a myriad of hole diameters and types of cutting edges, says the manufacturer. Also appropriate for blind holes, through holes and holes with cross holes or keyways, this combination of carbide head and steel shank provides the level of durability essential to machine a range of materials. To further increase efficiency, the reamer has internal coolant holes for effective head lubrication and Carbide Drilling Inserts chip evacuation.

For General Automotive’s project, the system was mounted onto an adjustable Gyro toolholder, which is designed to eliminate problems resulting from radial or angular misalignment. Its design allows for adjustment of misalignment between chuck and turret on drilling, tapping and reaming operations. Using the Gyro, operators can machine a hole in one setup while achieving tolerances as close as 0.0004 inch. By automatically executing alignment adjustments, cutting tool life can thus increase tenfold, while speeds and feeds can be accelerated by as much as 300 percent.

With this system in place, the company has been able to increase the pieces per edge from 550 pieces to 5,800 pieces. This 1,000 percent increase in tool life was accomplished by running at 3,257 rpm at 0.024 ipr while making a 0.012-Carbide Turning Inserts inch depth of cut. The ream was within 0.0002 inch of the actual reamer size and produced a reliable and consistent cut, says General Automotive. In fact, not one part was scrapped because of chip buildup.

“In the past, chip buildup had been a major concern on this project,” states one machinist. “It caused unnecessary delays for tool changes, in turn causing a large amount of scrap parts.”

An added benefit to this tooling life improvement is a reduction in the time required to complete the project. Formerly, with the ISO setup, the project was completed in 584 days. However, as a result of the increase in the number of parts produced per day, the company completed the project in 571 days.

The Bayo T-Ream was able to operate at 78 ipr compared to 13 ipr with the ISO inserts. This change reduced the time in cut from 0.14 minutes down to 0.02 minutes and decreased the total cycle time from 5.14 minutes to 5.02 minutes. Although the company’s primary objective was to increase tooling life, the resulting increase in productivity was a pleasant surprise. The added productivity helped to reduce the amount of time needed to complete this project by 13 days, and saved labor and shop hours helped to further reduce costs on the overall project.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: grooving Inserts

A Wisconsin automotive component manufacturer recently faced a chip control problem on an ID turning operation. General Automotive (Franklin, Wisconsin) produces high-precision components for engines, fuel systems, hydraulics, air systems, brake systems and transmissions. This particular job involved injector bodies that were being machined out of AISI/SAE 1055 steel. The ISO inserts being used had problems with chip breakage and buildup. This chip buildup would periodically lead to poor quality parts that would need to be scrapped. Constant monitoring was imperative to ensure that quality was upheld. The company needed a reliable tool that could run without the need for constant monitoring.

To find a solution, the company contacted its Iscar representative, Gary Hammer. “We needed more dependable tooling to enable us to operate more efficiently,” states Steve Gunter, shop supervisor at General Automotive. After analyzing the situation, Mr. Hammer offered a creative solution, suggesting replacing traditional ISO style inserts with Iscar’s Bayo T-Ream reaming system and running it with the Gyro toolholder. He believed this combination would provide a more reliable setup compared to the tooling that was being employed.

The Bayo T-Ream from Iscar Metals, Inc. (Arlington, Texas) features interchangeable heads for facilitating quick tool changes and high speed reaming. This system is designed to minimize setup time while indexing, and it offers indexing repeatability to 3 microns. It consists of an interchangeable carbide reaming head with a quick-change bayonet mechanism. This mechanism is mounted on a Hard Touch coated steel shank using a bayonet screw and custom key to clamp and release the interchangeable head.

The versatility of the shank and head combination enables using one shank for a myriad of hole diameters and types of cutting edges, says the manufacturer. Also appropriate for blind holes, through holes and holes with cross holes or keyways, this combination of carbide head and steel shank provides the level of durability essential to machine a range of materials. To further increase efficiency, the reamer has internal coolant holes for effective head lubrication and Carbide Drilling Inserts chip evacuation.

For General Automotive’s project, the system was mounted onto an adjustable Gyro toolholder, which is designed to eliminate problems resulting from radial or angular misalignment. Its design allows for adjustment of misalignment between chuck and turret on drilling, tapping and reaming operations. Using the Gyro, operators can machine a hole in one setup while achieving tolerances as close as 0.0004 inch. By automatically executing alignment adjustments, cutting tool life can thus increase tenfold, while speeds and feeds can be accelerated by as much as 300 percent.

With this system in place, the company has been able to increase the pieces per edge from 550 pieces to 5,800 pieces. This 1,000 percent increase in tool life was accomplished by running at 3,257 rpm at 0.024 ipr while making a 0.012-Carbide Turning Inserts inch depth of cut. The ream was within 0.0002 inch of the actual reamer size and produced a reliable and consistent cut, says General Automotive. In fact, not one part was scrapped because of chip buildup.

“In the past, chip buildup had been a major concern on this project,” states one machinist. “It caused unnecessary delays for tool changes, in turn causing a large amount of scrap parts.”

An added benefit to this tooling life improvement is a reduction in the time required to complete the project. Formerly, with the ISO setup, the project was completed in 584 days. However, as a result of the increase in the number of parts produced per day, the company completed the project in 571 days.

The Bayo T-Ream was able to operate at 78 ipr compared to 13 ipr with the ISO inserts. This change reduced the time in cut from 0.14 minutes down to 0.02 minutes and decreased the total cycle time from 5.14 minutes to 5.02 minutes. Although the company’s primary objective was to increase tooling life, the resulting increase in productivity was a pleasant surprise. The added productivity helped to reduce the amount of time needed to complete this project by 13 days, and saved labor and shop hours helped to further reduce costs on the overall project.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: grooving Inserts

A Wisconsin automotive component manufacturer recently faced a chip control problem on an ID turning operation. General Automotive (Franklin, Wisconsin) produces high-precision components for engines, fuel systems, hydraulics, air systems, brake systems and transmissions. This particular job involved injector bodies that were being machined out of AISI/SAE 1055 steel. The ISO inserts being used had problems with chip breakage and buildup. This chip buildup would periodically lead to poor quality parts that would need to be scrapped. Constant monitoring was imperative to ensure that quality was upheld. The company needed a reliable tool that could run without the need for constant monitoring.

To find a solution, the company contacted its Iscar representative, Gary Hammer. “We needed more dependable tooling to enable us to operate more efficiently,” states Steve Gunter, shop supervisor at General Automotive. After analyzing the situation, Mr. Hammer offered a creative solution, suggesting replacing traditional ISO style inserts with Iscar’s Bayo T-Ream reaming system and running it with the Gyro toolholder. He believed this combination would provide a more reliable setup compared to the tooling that was being employed.

The Bayo T-Ream from Iscar Metals, Inc. (Arlington, Texas) features interchangeable heads for facilitating quick tool changes and high speed reaming. This system is designed to minimize setup time while indexing, and it offers indexing repeatability to 3 microns. It consists of an interchangeable carbide reaming head with a quick-change bayonet mechanism. This mechanism is mounted on a Hard Touch coated steel shank using a bayonet screw and custom key to clamp and release the interchangeable head.

The versatility of the shank and head combination enables using one shank for a myriad of hole diameters and types of cutting edges, says the manufacturer. Also appropriate for blind holes, through holes and holes with cross holes or keyways, this combination of carbide head and steel shank provides the level of durability essential to machine a range of materials. To further increase efficiency, the reamer has internal coolant holes for effective head lubrication and Carbide Drilling Inserts chip evacuation.

For General Automotive’s project, the system was mounted onto an adjustable Gyro toolholder, which is designed to eliminate problems resulting from radial or angular misalignment. Its design allows for adjustment of misalignment between chuck and turret on drilling, tapping and reaming operations. Using the Gyro, operators can machine a hole in one setup while achieving tolerances as close as 0.0004 inch. By automatically executing alignment adjustments, cutting tool life can thus increase tenfold, while speeds and feeds can be accelerated by as much as 300 percent.

With this system in place, the company has been able to increase the pieces per edge from 550 pieces to 5,800 pieces. This 1,000 percent increase in tool life was accomplished by running at 3,257 rpm at 0.024 ipr while making a 0.012-Carbide Turning Inserts inch depth of cut. The ream was within 0.0002 inch of the actual reamer size and produced a reliable and consistent cut, says General Automotive. In fact, not one part was scrapped because of chip buildup.

“In the past, chip buildup had been a major concern on this project,” states one machinist. “It caused unnecessary delays for tool changes, in turn causing a large amount of scrap parts.”

An added benefit to this tooling life improvement is a reduction in the time required to complete the project. Formerly, with the ISO setup, the project was completed in 584 days. However, as a result of the increase in the number of parts produced per day, the company completed the project in 571 days.

The Bayo T-Ream was able to operate at 78 ipr compared to 13 ipr with the ISO inserts. This change reduced the time in cut from 0.14 minutes down to 0.02 minutes and decreased the total cycle time from 5.14 minutes to 5.02 minutes. Although the company’s primary objective was to increase tooling life, the resulting increase in productivity was a pleasant surprise. The added productivity helped to reduce the amount of time needed to complete this project by 13 days, and saved labor and shop hours helped to further reduce costs on the overall project.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: grooving Inserts

Downsized Turning Inserts Maintain Performance

In 2007, G&G Machine ran out of space in its 40-plus-employee shop in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. Turning to the Wisconsin Manufacturer’s Extension Partnership (WMEP) for consultation, the company learned that a new plant layout along with deep hole drilling inserts a lean manufacturing philosophy and 5S workplace organization would be key to making more space. The company also realized that it needed to take a critical look at its overall machining strategy, specifically its tooling, to enable continuous improvement in its production efforts.

“After all the analysis, we discovered 150 tons of material we didn’t need,” explains Mark Stumpf, president. “We also found room to add a weld shop and install larger, more efficient machines in space we didn’t know we had,” he says. Once G&G made it past the initial 5S push, the company implemented other lean tools, such as value stream maps, to reduce lead time and improve overall equipment effectiveness measures to keep spindles turning. “We wanted to see just how much we could wring out of our current shop before building a new one,” he says.

It took two years to implement the lean strategy, during which time the company was able to grow. This finally led to the construction of a new 30,000-square-foot manufacturing facility that houses three multi-axis lathes, five two-axis lathes, three HMCs, four VMCs, one Zeiss G2 CMM and a clean room. During the lean implementation, the company also adopted a new vendor-managed inventory auto crib system. The tooling dispenser unit eliminates the need for multiple people to manage tooling, explains John Fiers, tooling supervisor. It also saves time and money on stocking and restocking tools, he says.

G&G serves many different market segments with various material requests. Typical applications for metals range from common carbon steel, aluminum, brass and bronze, to such exotics as titanium, Hastelloy, Waspaloy, Zeron 100, Monel and super alloys. When machining expensive materials such as these, breaking a tap, or any tool for that matter, is not an option. The company routinely manufactures high-accuracy parts—to tenths and below. It also manufactures pumps, valves and rotating parts for the oil and gas industry and impellers for the energy industry. Other markets served include food processing, power transmission, petrochemical and railroad.

Tapping into Lean Production
To reduce waste and work smarter, the company began evaluating its tooling. During this process, G&G determined that it needed to find a tap or thread mill that would not break in a variety of applications—from the basics to exotic alloys. The company also sought to decrease its tooling inventory and suppliers, as well as change-over time.

G&G had been using a variety of different taps for a wide range of applications. Machinists found it difficult to know which tap was best for a given application. Because of these issues, taps failed often, leading to machine downtime, scrapped parts, rework and considerable amounts of frustration—all of which cost time and money. By incorporating the MultiTap from Emuge (West Boylston, Massachusetts) into its manufacturing process, the company was able to reduce machine downtime and rework.

New Taps Save Time and Money
In search of a way to improve the tapping process, Chris Weaver, value stream manager, says the shop tried using Emuge tools. “We were impressed by the feeds and speeds recommended. However, we wanted to be sure there were no issues with tap breakage, which we had experienced on other tap brands,” he explains. The company tested different Emuge taps, including the MultiTap, over a couple of months with great results, he says. There was less downtime, no rework and no broken taps. “Being able to run the taps faster with less replacement has provided a significant savings,” he says. Mr. Weaver cites an example in which the company drilled a hole 1/16-inch undersize and threaded it with the MultiTap. “Much to our amazement, the tap held up fine without breakage,” he says.

The MultiTap is constructed of a proprietary grade of high speed steel (HHS-E) that is nitrided with an Ne2 surface treatment. Emuge’s taps are made with long shanks—specifically, DIN length for extra reach. UNC and UNF taps are DIN length with ANSI shanks, while metric taps are DIN length with DIN shanks. A full range of tap sizes for UNC and UNF threads is available with inch sizes ranging from 4-40 to ¾-16 and metric sizes ranging from M 4×0.7 to M 16×2.0. The high-performance, general-purpose taps are designed to produce threads within both 2B and 3B classes of fit. According to Emuge, the MultiTap is well-suited for short- and medium-run threading applications in a wide variety of materials, including carbon steel, steel alloys, stainless steel, aluminum, cast iron, copper, brass and bronze.

The tap’s ability to handle most common materials and applications with increased thread quality helps lower production costs, Emuge says. For instance, when G&G required certain taps for specific applications, it spent a lot of time and money managing tool inventory. Once it began using the MultiTap, it was able to reduce the number of taps stocked in the tool crib because each MultiTap does the work of several other taps. According to Mr. Stumpf, the company has seen a 20-percent cost reduction in taps due to the MultiTap’s versatility.

While G&G Machine uses Emuge tools mainly for tapping, the company also uses the supplier’s thread mills for blind holes so it does not have to go back and hand tap deep hole drilling inserts the hole to depth, Mr. Fiers says. “We selected Emuge taps for their performance, quality, cost savings and support,” he says. Emuge also trained G&G employees on product use. Today, 95 percent of the company’s taps and thread mills are from Emuge, ranging in size from 4-40 to 1.5 inch.

As G&G strives to perpetuate its core ideology and lean practices using Emuge tooling, the company is able to more efficiently produce high-quality products. “When employees produce high-quality work, pride, satisfaction and profitability surely follow,” Mr. Stumpf says.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: bta deep hole drilling

In 2007, G&G Machine ran out of space in its 40-plus-employee shop in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. Turning to the Wisconsin Manufacturer’s Extension Partnership (WMEP) for consultation, the company learned that a new plant layout along with deep hole drilling inserts a lean manufacturing philosophy and 5S workplace organization would be key to making more space. The company also realized that it needed to take a critical look at its overall machining strategy, specifically its tooling, to enable continuous improvement in its production efforts.

“After all the analysis, we discovered 150 tons of material we didn’t need,” explains Mark Stumpf, president. “We also found room to add a weld shop and install larger, more efficient machines in space we didn’t know we had,” he says. Once G&G made it past the initial 5S push, the company implemented other lean tools, such as value stream maps, to reduce lead time and improve overall equipment effectiveness measures to keep spindles turning. “We wanted to see just how much we could wring out of our current shop before building a new one,” he says.

It took two years to implement the lean strategy, during which time the company was able to grow. This finally led to the construction of a new 30,000-square-foot manufacturing facility that houses three multi-axis lathes, five two-axis lathes, three HMCs, four VMCs, one Zeiss G2 CMM and a clean room. During the lean implementation, the company also adopted a new vendor-managed inventory auto crib system. The tooling dispenser unit eliminates the need for multiple people to manage tooling, explains John Fiers, tooling supervisor. It also saves time and money on stocking and restocking tools, he says.

G&G serves many different market segments with various material requests. Typical applications for metals range from common carbon steel, aluminum, brass and bronze, to such exotics as titanium, Hastelloy, Waspaloy, Zeron 100, Monel and super alloys. When machining expensive materials such as these, breaking a tap, or any tool for that matter, is not an option. The company routinely manufactures high-accuracy parts—to tenths and below. It also manufactures pumps, valves and rotating parts for the oil and gas industry and impellers for the energy industry. Other markets served include food processing, power transmission, petrochemical and railroad.

Tapping into Lean Production
To reduce waste and work smarter, the company began evaluating its tooling. During this process, G&G determined that it needed to find a tap or thread mill that would not break in a variety of applications—from the basics to exotic alloys. The company also sought to decrease its tooling inventory and suppliers, as well as change-over time.

G&G had been using a variety of different taps for a wide range of applications. Machinists found it difficult to know which tap was best for a given application. Because of these issues, taps failed often, leading to machine downtime, scrapped parts, rework and considerable amounts of frustration—all of which cost time and money. By incorporating the MultiTap from Emuge (West Boylston, Massachusetts) into its manufacturing process, the company was able to reduce machine downtime and rework.

New Taps Save Time and Money
In search of a way to improve the tapping process, Chris Weaver, value stream manager, says the shop tried using Emuge tools. “We were impressed by the feeds and speeds recommended. However, we wanted to be sure there were no issues with tap breakage, which we had experienced on other tap brands,” he explains. The company tested different Emuge taps, including the MultiTap, over a couple of months with great results, he says. There was less downtime, no rework and no broken taps. “Being able to run the taps faster with less replacement has provided a significant savings,” he says. Mr. Weaver cites an example in which the company drilled a hole 1/16-inch undersize and threaded it with the MultiTap. “Much to our amazement, the tap held up fine without breakage,” he says.

The MultiTap is constructed of a proprietary grade of high speed steel (HHS-E) that is nitrided with an Ne2 surface treatment. Emuge’s taps are made with long shanks—specifically, DIN length for extra reach. UNC and UNF taps are DIN length with ANSI shanks, while metric taps are DIN length with DIN shanks. A full range of tap sizes for UNC and UNF threads is available with inch sizes ranging from 4-40 to ¾-16 and metric sizes ranging from M 4×0.7 to M 16×2.0. The high-performance, general-purpose taps are designed to produce threads within both 2B and 3B classes of fit. According to Emuge, the MultiTap is well-suited for short- and medium-run threading applications in a wide variety of materials, including carbon steel, steel alloys, stainless steel, aluminum, cast iron, copper, brass and bronze.

The tap’s ability to handle most common materials and applications with increased thread quality helps lower production costs, Emuge says. For instance, when G&G required certain taps for specific applications, it spent a lot of time and money managing tool inventory. Once it began using the MultiTap, it was able to reduce the number of taps stocked in the tool crib because each MultiTap does the work of several other taps. According to Mr. Stumpf, the company has seen a 20-percent cost reduction in taps due to the MultiTap’s versatility.

While G&G Machine uses Emuge tools mainly for tapping, the company also uses the supplier’s thread mills for blind holes so it does not have to go back and hand tap deep hole drilling inserts the hole to depth, Mr. Fiers says. “We selected Emuge taps for their performance, quality, cost savings and support,” he says. Emuge also trained G&G employees on product use. Today, 95 percent of the company’s taps and thread mills are from Emuge, ranging in size from 4-40 to 1.5 inch.

As G&G strives to perpetuate its core ideology and lean practices using Emuge tooling, the company is able to more efficiently produce high-quality products. “When employees produce high-quality work, pride, satisfaction and profitability surely follow,” Mr. Stumpf says.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: bta deep hole drilling

In 2007, G&G Machine ran out of space in its 40-plus-employee shop in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. Turning to the Wisconsin Manufacturer’s Extension Partnership (WMEP) for consultation, the company learned that a new plant layout along with deep hole drilling inserts a lean manufacturing philosophy and 5S workplace organization would be key to making more space. The company also realized that it needed to take a critical look at its overall machining strategy, specifically its tooling, to enable continuous improvement in its production efforts.

“After all the analysis, we discovered 150 tons of material we didn’t need,” explains Mark Stumpf, president. “We also found room to add a weld shop and install larger, more efficient machines in space we didn’t know we had,” he says. Once G&G made it past the initial 5S push, the company implemented other lean tools, such as value stream maps, to reduce lead time and improve overall equipment effectiveness measures to keep spindles turning. “We wanted to see just how much we could wring out of our current shop before building a new one,” he says.

It took two years to implement the lean strategy, during which time the company was able to grow. This finally led to the construction of a new 30,000-square-foot manufacturing facility that houses three multi-axis lathes, five two-axis lathes, three HMCs, four VMCs, one Zeiss G2 CMM and a clean room. During the lean implementation, the company also adopted a new vendor-managed inventory auto crib system. The tooling dispenser unit eliminates the need for multiple people to manage tooling, explains John Fiers, tooling supervisor. It also saves time and money on stocking and restocking tools, he says.

G&G serves many different market segments with various material requests. Typical applications for metals range from common carbon steel, aluminum, brass and bronze, to such exotics as titanium, Hastelloy, Waspaloy, Zeron 100, Monel and super alloys. When machining expensive materials such as these, breaking a tap, or any tool for that matter, is not an option. The company routinely manufactures high-accuracy parts—to tenths and below. It also manufactures pumps, valves and rotating parts for the oil and gas industry and impellers for the energy industry. Other markets served include food processing, power transmission, petrochemical and railroad.

Tapping into Lean Production
To reduce waste and work smarter, the company began evaluating its tooling. During this process, G&G determined that it needed to find a tap or thread mill that would not break in a variety of applications—from the basics to exotic alloys. The company also sought to decrease its tooling inventory and suppliers, as well as change-over time.

G&G had been using a variety of different taps for a wide range of applications. Machinists found it difficult to know which tap was best for a given application. Because of these issues, taps failed often, leading to machine downtime, scrapped parts, rework and considerable amounts of frustration—all of which cost time and money. By incorporating the MultiTap from Emuge (West Boylston, Massachusetts) into its manufacturing process, the company was able to reduce machine downtime and rework.

New Taps Save Time and Money
In search of a way to improve the tapping process, Chris Weaver, value stream manager, says the shop tried using Emuge tools. “We were impressed by the feeds and speeds recommended. However, we wanted to be sure there were no issues with tap breakage, which we had experienced on other tap brands,” he explains. The company tested different Emuge taps, including the MultiTap, over a couple of months with great results, he says. There was less downtime, no rework and no broken taps. “Being able to run the taps faster with less replacement has provided a significant savings,” he says. Mr. Weaver cites an example in which the company drilled a hole 1/16-inch undersize and threaded it with the MultiTap. “Much to our amazement, the tap held up fine without breakage,” he says.

The MultiTap is constructed of a proprietary grade of high speed steel (HHS-E) that is nitrided with an Ne2 surface treatment. Emuge’s taps are made with long shanks—specifically, DIN length for extra reach. UNC and UNF taps are DIN length with ANSI shanks, while metric taps are DIN length with DIN shanks. A full range of tap sizes for UNC and UNF threads is available with inch sizes ranging from 4-40 to ¾-16 and metric sizes ranging from M 4×0.7 to M 16×2.0. The high-performance, general-purpose taps are designed to produce threads within both 2B and 3B classes of fit. According to Emuge, the MultiTap is well-suited for short- and medium-run threading applications in a wide variety of materials, including carbon steel, steel alloys, stainless steel, aluminum, cast iron, copper, brass and bronze.

The tap’s ability to handle most common materials and applications with increased thread quality helps lower production costs, Emuge says. For instance, when G&G required certain taps for specific applications, it spent a lot of time and money managing tool inventory. Once it began using the MultiTap, it was able to reduce the number of taps stocked in the tool crib because each MultiTap does the work of several other taps. According to Mr. Stumpf, the company has seen a 20-percent cost reduction in taps due to the MultiTap’s versatility.

While G&G Machine uses Emuge tools mainly for tapping, the company also uses the supplier’s thread mills for blind holes so it does not have to go back and hand tap deep hole drilling inserts the hole to depth, Mr. Fiers says. “We selected Emuge taps for their performance, quality, cost savings and support,” he says. Emuge also trained G&G employees on product use. Today, 95 percent of the company’s taps and thread mills are from Emuge, ranging in size from 4-40 to 1.5 inch.

As G&G strives to perpetuate its core ideology and lean practices using Emuge tooling, the company is able to more efficiently produce high-quality products. “When employees produce high-quality work, pride, satisfaction and profitability surely follow,” Mr. Stumpf says.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: bta deep hole drilling

Tool Vending Systems： Value Beyond Cost Control

The ability to use live tooling in a CNC turning center has been around for quite some time. This ability has enabled companies to complete parts in as few setups as possible (ideally one). The capability—power and speed—of rotary/driven tool stations has increased and, therefore, raised the bar in terms of what’s possible when using these spindles.

Of course, cutting tool suppliers must adapt whenever spindle capabilities increase. And this is an area where ISCAR excels: cutting tool innovation, which is exemplified in its new line of LOGIQ line of cutting tools.

Typically, solid carbide round tools (drills and endmills) are the cutting tools of choice for driven tool applications. This is due, for the most part, to the constraints of workspace and the machine/driven spindle capability, as well as the small-sized part features being machined; these challenges limit the implementation of conventional indexable tooling. This led ISCAR to design a new generation of indexable tooling technologies that effectively support the milling applications being addressed with driven spindles.

A great fit for this environment, these new indexable and interchangeable cutting tools are expected to provide gains in productivity with design characteristics such as:

These benefits all add up to improved utilization and making more out of what you pay for.

In manufacturing, accuracy should be a given. When you introduce a “connection” into any component, maintaining accuracy can become more difficult. However, in cutting tool terms, if you can pull off accuracy in an interchangeable system while maintaining excellent rigidity, you can consider that a success.

This is the case with ISCAR’s Multi-Master system and what makes the system an ideal choice in rotary/driven tool stations. In its current form, the Multi-Master system provides users with more than 40,000 potential combinations, including a wide variety of interchangeable heads that can be used with shanks of various types and lengths for slotting, shouldering, chamfering and more, all while maintaining accuracy and rigidity.

Shank types include steel, carbide and heavy metal in both straight and conical taper iterations. Multi-Master is being further expanded to include 90-degree heads with 1.5?D length of cut, which is double the length of options offered for the past 15 years.

Because of the number of flutes in their design, the newly added heads for facing (FM type) drastically increase productivity while producing excellent surface quality. These heads slot milling cutters can perform effective shoulder milling, as well. By adding Multi-Master to your cutting tool options for driven/rotary spindles users can reap the benefits of quick changeability and error proofing, all while maintaining a high level of accuracy and productivity.

Nano- and micro-sized end mills and drills, made from solid carbide rod, have been in the market for years. ISCAR has recently introduced nano- and micro-sized indexable inserts. The ability to press these very small inserts has opened the door for production of the smallest diameter, multi-flute, indexable milling tools ever produced.

ISCAR can now produce a 0.312" diameter, with two flutes, capable of taking a 1/8" depth of cut. Just consider how many times you’ve seen someone take 0.100" or less with a tool/insert that’s capable gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts of much more. Bottom line, the most popular 90-degree indexable insert sizes are capable of approximately a ½" depth of cut. If you’re consistently using 0.100" of 0.500", you’re underutilizing 80% of what you paid for.

Spindle output characteristics—such as HP, torque and speed—are other important aspects for optimizing cutting tool utilization. It is not uncommon for stations to perform 10,000 RPM and upwards of 5HP in a short time period, and although the capability of rotary/driven spindles continues to improve, most will be better suited for utilizing smaller diameter cutting tools. It is also important to note that the part features typically machined in this environment are relatively small. For these reasons, ISCAR’s nano/micro milling tools make a good match, enabling users to better utilize the full 100% capacity of the tool.

While not as common as conventional milling and drilling, slitting is also another operation performed with driven stations. To allow for an indexable approach, ISCAR has introduced the narrowest indexable slitting line available.

ISCAR SlimSlit offers an indexable slitting line down to 0.024" wide. Previously, it was only possible to perform a slitting operation under 0.040" with HSS (high-speed steel) or solid carbide slitting saws that required regrinding.

Regrinding changes the diameter, thus the potential need for slight programming changes or offsets. ISCAR’s SlimSlit line eliminates the need for additional setups by utilizing indexable inserts.

In addition to reducing setups, SlimSlit offers another advantage over HHS and solid carbide: chipformers that allow higher chip loads, which enables higher table feeds, further reducing cycle time. Currently, ISCAR offers SlimSlit in widths of 0.024", 0.031", 0.039" and 0.047"; and diameters of 1.260", 1.575", 1.968" and 2.480".  With a variety of offerings, SlimSlit not only reduces number of setups but also simplifies tooling inventory and eliminates the need for regrinding the tools.

ISCAR’s newly launched the LOGIQ line of tools creates new options for the lathe with driven tooling stations that were unavailable until recently. Use of indexable tooling in this small work space environment produces many benefits—economy, simplicity of tool management, reduction of potential errors when renewing the tooling and more efficient use of the carbide materials. With an increasing demand to do more in one set up paired with the trend to make smaller, lightweight final products, ISCAR is thinking forward to provide the best machining economics.

In an industry where every second makes a difference and every movement counts, an innovative approach to even the most basic cutting tool can contribute to increased productivity, less waste, and ultimately lower cost per part.

Go to ISCAR.com for more information.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://oscarspenc.blogtez.com/

The ability to use live tooling in a CNC turning center has been around for quite some time. This ability has enabled companies to complete parts in as few setups as possible (ideally one). The capability—power and speed—of rotary/driven tool stations has increased and, therefore, raised the bar in terms of what’s possible when using these spindles.

Of course, cutting tool suppliers must adapt whenever spindle capabilities increase. And this is an area where ISCAR excels: cutting tool innovation, which is exemplified in its new line of LOGIQ line of cutting tools.

Typically, solid carbide round tools (drills and endmills) are the cutting tools of choice for driven tool applications. This is due, for the most part, to the constraints of workspace and the machine/driven spindle capability, as well as the small-sized part features being machined; these challenges limit the implementation of conventional indexable tooling. This led ISCAR to design a new generation of indexable tooling technologies that effectively support the milling applications being addressed with driven spindles.

A great fit for this environment, these new indexable and interchangeable cutting tools are expected to provide gains in productivity with design characteristics such as:

These benefits all add up to improved utilization and making more out of what you pay for.

In manufacturing, accuracy should be a given. When you introduce a “connection” into any component, maintaining accuracy can become more difficult. However, in cutting tool terms, if you can pull off accuracy in an interchangeable system while maintaining excellent rigidity, you can consider that a success.

This is the case with ISCAR’s Multi-Master system and what makes the system an ideal choice in rotary/driven tool stations. In its current form, the Multi-Master system provides users with more than 40,000 potential combinations, including a wide variety of interchangeable heads that can be used with shanks of various types and lengths for slotting, shouldering, chamfering and more, all while maintaining accuracy and rigidity.

Shank types include steel, carbide and heavy metal in both straight and conical taper iterations. Multi-Master is being further expanded to include 90-degree heads with 1.5?D length of cut, which is double the length of options offered for the past 15 years.

Because of the number of flutes in their design, the newly added heads for facing (FM type) drastically increase productivity while producing excellent surface quality. These heads slot milling cutters can perform effective shoulder milling, as well. By adding Multi-Master to your cutting tool options for driven/rotary spindles users can reap the benefits of quick changeability and error proofing, all while maintaining a high level of accuracy and productivity.

Nano- and micro-sized end mills and drills, made from solid carbide rod, have been in the market for years. ISCAR has recently introduced nano- and micro-sized indexable inserts. The ability to press these very small inserts has opened the door for production of the smallest diameter, multi-flute, indexable milling tools ever produced.

ISCAR can now produce a 0.312" diameter, with two flutes, capable of taking a 1/8" depth of cut. Just consider how many times you’ve seen someone take 0.100" or less with a tool/insert that’s capable gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts of much more. Bottom line, the most popular 90-degree indexable insert sizes are capable of approximately a ½" depth of cut. If you’re consistently using 0.100" of 0.500", you’re underutilizing 80% of what you paid for.

Spindle output characteristics—such as HP, torque and speed—are other important aspects for optimizing cutting tool utilization. It is not uncommon for stations to perform 10,000 RPM and upwards of 5HP in a short time period, and although the capability of rotary/driven spindles continues to improve, most will be better suited for utilizing smaller diameter cutting tools. It is also important to note that the part features typically machined in this environment are relatively small. For these reasons, ISCAR’s nano/micro milling tools make a good match, enabling users to better utilize the full 100% capacity of the tool.

While not as common as conventional milling and drilling, slitting is also another operation performed with driven stations. To allow for an indexable approach, ISCAR has introduced the narrowest indexable slitting line available.

ISCAR SlimSlit offers an indexable slitting line down to 0.024" wide. Previously, it was only possible to perform a slitting operation under 0.040" with HSS (high-speed steel) or solid carbide slitting saws that required regrinding.

Regrinding changes the diameter, thus the potential need for slight programming changes or offsets. ISCAR’s SlimSlit line eliminates the need for additional setups by utilizing indexable inserts.

In addition to reducing setups, SlimSlit offers another advantage over HHS and solid carbide: chipformers that allow higher chip loads, which enables higher table feeds, further reducing cycle time. Currently, ISCAR offers SlimSlit in widths of 0.024", 0.031", 0.039" and 0.047"; and diameters of 1.260", 1.575", 1.968" and 2.480".  With a variety of offerings, SlimSlit not only reduces number of setups but also simplifies tooling inventory and eliminates the need for regrinding the tools.

ISCAR’s newly launched the LOGIQ line of tools creates new options for the lathe with driven tooling stations that were unavailable until recently. Use of indexable tooling in this small work space environment produces many benefits—economy, simplicity of tool management, reduction of potential errors when renewing the tooling and more efficient use of the carbide materials. With an increasing demand to do more in one set up paired with the trend to make smaller, lightweight final products, ISCAR is thinking forward to provide the best machining economics.

In an industry where every second makes a difference and every movement counts, an innovative approach to even the most basic cutting tool can contribute to increased productivity, less waste, and ultimately lower cost per part.

Go to ISCAR.com for more information.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://oscarspenc.blogtez.com/

The ability to use live tooling in a CNC turning center has been around for quite some time. This ability has enabled companies to complete parts in as few setups as possible (ideally one). The capability—power and speed—of rotary/driven tool stations has increased and, therefore, raised the bar in terms of what’s possible when using these spindles.

Of course, cutting tool suppliers must adapt whenever spindle capabilities increase. And this is an area where ISCAR excels: cutting tool innovation, which is exemplified in its new line of LOGIQ line of cutting tools.

Typically, solid carbide round tools (drills and endmills) are the cutting tools of choice for driven tool applications. This is due, for the most part, to the constraints of workspace and the machine/driven spindle capability, as well as the small-sized part features being machined; these challenges limit the implementation of conventional indexable tooling. This led ISCAR to design a new generation of indexable tooling technologies that effectively support the milling applications being addressed with driven spindles.

A great fit for this environment, these new indexable and interchangeable cutting tools are expected to provide gains in productivity with design characteristics such as:

These benefits all add up to improved utilization and making more out of what you pay for.

In manufacturing, accuracy should be a given. When you introduce a “connection” into any component, maintaining accuracy can become more difficult. However, in cutting tool terms, if you can pull off accuracy in an interchangeable system while maintaining excellent rigidity, you can consider that a success.

This is the case with ISCAR’s Multi-Master system and what makes the system an ideal choice in rotary/driven tool stations. In its current form, the Multi-Master system provides users with more than 40,000 potential combinations, including a wide variety of interchangeable heads that can be used with shanks of various types and lengths for slotting, shouldering, chamfering and more, all while maintaining accuracy and rigidity.

Shank types include steel, carbide and heavy metal in both straight and conical taper iterations. Multi-Master is being further expanded to include 90-degree heads with 1.5?D length of cut, which is double the length of options offered for the past 15 years.

Because of the number of flutes in their design, the newly added heads for facing (FM type) drastically increase productivity while producing excellent surface quality. These heads slot milling cutters can perform effective shoulder milling, as well. By adding Multi-Master to your cutting tool options for driven/rotary spindles users can reap the benefits of quick changeability and error proofing, all while maintaining a high level of accuracy and productivity.

Nano- and micro-sized end mills and drills, made from solid carbide rod, have been in the market for years. ISCAR has recently introduced nano- and micro-sized indexable inserts. The ability to press these very small inserts has opened the door for production of the smallest diameter, multi-flute, indexable milling tools ever produced.

ISCAR can now produce a 0.312" diameter, with two flutes, capable of taking a 1/8" depth of cut. Just consider how many times you’ve seen someone take 0.100" or less with a tool/insert that’s capable gun drilling inserts gun drilling inserts of much more. Bottom line, the most popular 90-degree indexable insert sizes are capable of approximately a ½" depth of cut. If you’re consistently using 0.100" of 0.500", you’re underutilizing 80% of what you paid for.

Spindle output characteristics—such as HP, torque and speed—are other important aspects for optimizing cutting tool utilization. It is not uncommon for stations to perform 10,000 RPM and upwards of 5HP in a short time period, and although the capability of rotary/driven spindles continues to improve, most will be better suited for utilizing smaller diameter cutting tools. It is also important to note that the part features typically machined in this environment are relatively small. For these reasons, ISCAR’s nano/micro milling tools make a good match, enabling users to better utilize the full 100% capacity of the tool.

While not as common as conventional milling and drilling, slitting is also another operation performed with driven stations. To allow for an indexable approach, ISCAR has introduced the narrowest indexable slitting line available.

ISCAR SlimSlit offers an indexable slitting line down to 0.024" wide. Previously, it was only possible to perform a slitting operation under 0.040" with HSS (high-speed steel) or solid carbide slitting saws that required regrinding.

Regrinding changes the diameter, thus the potential need for slight programming changes or offsets. ISCAR’s SlimSlit line eliminates the need for additional setups by utilizing indexable inserts.

In addition to reducing setups, SlimSlit offers another advantage over HHS and solid carbide: chipformers that allow higher chip loads, which enables higher table feeds, further reducing cycle time. Currently, ISCAR offers SlimSlit in widths of 0.024", 0.031", 0.039" and 0.047"; and diameters of 1.260", 1.575", 1.968" and 2.480".  With a variety of offerings, SlimSlit not only reduces number of setups but also simplifies tooling inventory and eliminates the need for regrinding the tools.

ISCAR’s newly launched the LOGIQ line of tools creates new options for the lathe with driven tooling stations that were unavailable until recently. Use of indexable tooling in this small work space environment produces many benefits—economy, simplicity of tool management, reduction of potential errors when renewing the tooling and more efficient use of the carbide materials. With an increasing demand to do more in one set up paired with the trend to make smaller, lightweight final products, ISCAR is thinking forward to provide the best machining economics.

In an industry where every second makes a difference and every movement counts, an innovative approach to even the most basic cutting tool can contribute to increased productivity, less waste, and ultimately lower cost per part.

Go to ISCAR.com for more information.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: http://oscarspenc.blogtez.com/

The Right Mix Of Tooling And Machines Streamlines Process

While machining 2,000 bushings for a hydraulic pump used in the aerospace industry, Kyle Hawley, owner of L.A.Y. Precision Machine, recognized that the CCMT-type carbide cutting tool insert that the shop was using to bore the hole was causing three specific problems:

Mr. Hawley’s cutting tool supplier put him in touch with an application and sales engineer at Horn USA, who recommended the Supermini 105 tool system with an HS36-grade boring bar insert. The inserts BTA deep hole drilling inserts have a carbide substrate, a high-temperature-resistant coating and an adapted cutting-edge geometry specifically designed for hard turning materials ranging to 66 HRC, eliminating the need for cubic boron nitride.

According to Mr. Hawley, the results achieved with the new cutting Carbide Milling Inserts tool exceeded his expectations. Cycle time was reduced from 8 minutes, 5 seconds to 1 minute, 23 seconds, and each boring bar now can be used for 75 parts. In addition, surface finish Ra improved to 20 microinches. Mr. Hawley says that the boring bar can be changed out quickly, which is an additional benefit. All of this adds up to a 78 percent reduction in manufacturing cost.

Read the entire story here.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: high feed milling Insert

While machining 2,000 bushings for a hydraulic pump used in the aerospace industry, Kyle Hawley, owner of L.A.Y. Precision Machine, recognized that the CCMT-type carbide cutting tool insert that the shop was using to bore the hole was causing three specific problems:

Mr. Hawley’s cutting tool supplier put him in touch with an application and sales engineer at Horn USA, who recommended the Supermini 105 tool system with an HS36-grade boring bar insert. The inserts BTA deep hole drilling inserts have a carbide substrate, a high-temperature-resistant coating and an adapted cutting-edge geometry specifically designed for hard turning materials ranging to 66 HRC, eliminating the need for cubic boron nitride.

According to Mr. Hawley, the results achieved with the new cutting Carbide Milling Inserts tool exceeded his expectations. Cycle time was reduced from 8 minutes, 5 seconds to 1 minute, 23 seconds, and each boring bar now can be used for 75 parts. In addition, surface finish Ra improved to 20 microinches. Mr. Hawley says that the boring bar can be changed out quickly, which is an additional benefit. All of this adds up to a 78 percent reduction in manufacturing cost.

Read the entire story here.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: high feed milling Insert

While machining 2,000 bushings for a hydraulic pump used in the aerospace industry, Kyle Hawley, owner of L.A.Y. Precision Machine, recognized that the CCMT-type carbide cutting tool insert that the shop was using to bore the hole was causing three specific problems:

Mr. Hawley’s cutting tool supplier put him in touch with an application and sales engineer at Horn USA, who recommended the Supermini 105 tool system with an HS36-grade boring bar insert. The inserts BTA deep hole drilling inserts have a carbide substrate, a high-temperature-resistant coating and an adapted cutting-edge geometry specifically designed for hard turning materials ranging to 66 HRC, eliminating the need for cubic boron nitride.

According to Mr. Hawley, the results achieved with the new cutting Carbide Milling Inserts tool exceeded his expectations. Cycle time was reduced from 8 minutes, 5 seconds to 1 minute, 23 seconds, and each boring bar now can be used for 75 parts. In addition, surface finish Ra improved to 20 microinches. Mr. Hawley says that the boring bar can be changed out quickly, which is an additional benefit. All of this adds up to a 78 percent reduction in manufacturing cost.

Read the entire story here.

The Cemented Carbide Blog: high feed milling Insert

Cutting Gears with Multitasking Machines

As part of its efforts to support manufacturing education, OSG USA Inc. (Glendale Heights, Illinois) recently announced its sponsorship of two student engineering groups: the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Mini-Baja Racing cemented carbide inserts Team at Purdue University, and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team. OSG donated over $30,000 in new tooling to the teams to support their manufacturing activities.  

“Through our tooling donations to the Purdue University’s Mini-Baja Racing Team and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team, we hope to help these engineers better understand metalcutting through the use and applications of OSG’s advanced and innovative cutting tools,” says Mike Cotton, OSG marketing manager.

“These end mills are very high quality, and we are excited to put them to good use,” says Tasha Gillum, a University of Michigan student from the submarine team.

The SAE Mini-Baja Racing Team at Purdue University designs, manufactures and races a one-person off-road vehicle and participates in three regional competitions annually. The Human-Powered Submarine Team at the University Carbide Milling Inserts of Michigan designs and fabricates its own one-person submarines. That team will be competing this July in the European International Submarine Races in the United Kingdom.

In a recent blog post, OSG reported: “We were glad to see the students open the boxes of new tooling with big smiles on their faces. Seeing them excited to use our tools made us realize how important it is for us to be a part of educating manufacturing students. We continue to actively work with technical colleges and universities to demonstrate our commitment to inspire the next generation of manufacturers.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: milling Inserts factory

As part of its efforts to support manufacturing education, OSG USA Inc. (Glendale Heights, Illinois) recently announced its sponsorship of two student engineering groups: the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Mini-Baja Racing cemented carbide inserts Team at Purdue University, and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team. OSG donated over $30,000 in new tooling to the teams to support their manufacturing activities.  

“Through our tooling donations to the Purdue University’s Mini-Baja Racing Team and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team, we hope to help these engineers better understand metalcutting through the use and applications of OSG’s advanced and innovative cutting tools,” says Mike Cotton, OSG marketing manager.

“These end mills are very high quality, and we are excited to put them to good use,” says Tasha Gillum, a University of Michigan student from the submarine team.

The SAE Mini-Baja Racing Team at Purdue University designs, manufactures and races a one-person off-road vehicle and participates in three regional competitions annually. The Human-Powered Submarine Team at the University Carbide Milling Inserts of Michigan designs and fabricates its own one-person submarines. That team will be competing this July in the European International Submarine Races in the United Kingdom.

In a recent blog post, OSG reported: “We were glad to see the students open the boxes of new tooling with big smiles on their faces. Seeing them excited to use our tools made us realize how important it is for us to be a part of educating manufacturing students. We continue to actively work with technical colleges and universities to demonstrate our commitment to inspire the next generation of manufacturers.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: milling Inserts factory

As part of its efforts to support manufacturing education, OSG USA Inc. (Glendale Heights, Illinois) recently announced its sponsorship of two student engineering groups: the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Mini-Baja Racing cemented carbide inserts Team at Purdue University, and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team. OSG donated over $30,000 in new tooling to the teams to support their manufacturing activities.  

“Through our tooling donations to the Purdue University’s Mini-Baja Racing Team and the University of Michigan’s Human-Powered Submarine Team, we hope to help these engineers better understand metalcutting through the use and applications of OSG’s advanced and innovative cutting tools,” says Mike Cotton, OSG marketing manager.

“These end mills are very high quality, and we are excited to put them to good use,” says Tasha Gillum, a University of Michigan student from the submarine team.

The SAE Mini-Baja Racing Team at Purdue University designs, manufactures and races a one-person off-road vehicle and participates in three regional competitions annually. The Human-Powered Submarine Team at the University Carbide Milling Inserts of Michigan designs and fabricates its own one-person submarines. That team will be competing this July in the European International Submarine Races in the United Kingdom.

In a recent blog post, OSG reported: “We were glad to see the students open the boxes of new tooling with big smiles on their faces. Seeing them excited to use our tools made us realize how important it is for us to be a part of educating manufacturing students. We continue to actively work with technical colleges and universities to demonstrate our commitment to inspire the next generation of manufacturers.”

The Cemented Carbide Blog: milling Inserts factory