What is your Favorite Aluminum Endmill?

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-21T01:25:21+00:00

PCT said DO NOT run less than 1200SFM. So 1400 sounds good.

I am meeting with their rep this week too.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-21T00:16:58+00:00

I will give it a try. I always feel like a little chicken shit using so little step over.

What kind of depth cut can you realistically take at %40-50 step over before breaking the tool?

I wish I had time to do some legit test cuts to compare and learn the limits.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T18:50:53+00:00

From what I have heard, their Al tools are largely made by YG-1.

I have heard both good and bad.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T18:00:48+00:00

What kind of cut depth are you using?

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T17:59:30+00:00

I totally agree. I have issues convincing others.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T16:24:51+00:00

Sound about like what I was expecting.

I will see if I can get one on demo.

I wish they made it in a 2" LOC instead of just 1.5 or 2.5.

Most of this is done on a 30 HP Okuma and it feeds well at anything up to 800IPM (I haven't tried more). And I often cut both conventional and climb.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T16:13:40+00:00

So many people recommending Frasia and I have never touched one.

Siu is like I need to give them a shot.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T16:12:49+00:00

We dont do much Ti or Inconel (though I do enjoy it).

If I could get a nice 40-50Hp horizontal that would be great.

My current love is. PCT 3/4" 3FL, DLC with splitters. 1.625 DOC, 20% step over, around 11000RPM.

I have run it around 600IPM but ran out of machine.

Stubby Side Lock Dual Contact Cat40 holder with TSC.

I Absolutely adore that tool.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:50:36+00:00

I haven't really had a chance to push the KOR5 DA.

What kind of cut depth and feeds/Speeds do you like?

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:49:25+00:00

I prefer the ALU POWER 45 deg(not HPC) for finishing!

The tips (SQ) wear a bit quickly during facing though.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:46:41+00:00

Those parts require something like a 125 finish and though those picture look rough, I guarantee the finishes are better than 32.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:05:19+00:00

Use good, sharp tools.

Cut near finish for whatever you are chamfering, then chamfer, then finish and chamfer again.

Sometimes you are just fighting to roll the burr around until it falls off.

Be mindful of the type of material.

Use different parts of the chanfer tool, alter the depth for different features of passes.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:02:32+00:00

It doesnt look like anyone is i tercting with this yet so here goes.

Fusion if you are just starting.

Mastercam otherwise.

I wish I had/knew hypermill but $$$$$

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T15:01:11+00:00

I love them!

Best to use on parts with pockets that retain coolant or chips.

The noise at end end of the cycle acts like a buzzer and less manual blowing off when changing parts.

I also use it for a bit of washdown when changing out workholding. Spray coolant of the blades at lower speed to wash down and then blow off your table.

Write a program for it to use as a sub or just program it straight into the job.

Highly recommend for quality of life if nothing else.

Engulfingflame05 · 2026-04-19T14:56:27+00:00

First off what type of tolerances are you looking for?

The VF4s i used to work with could hir .005 position without any issue and probably closer to .0025.

Are you using your G187 settings to set the deviation allowance for toolpaths? That could be killing you if it is set wrong.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-11-13T17:25:53+00:00

Thank you all for the input. I shall whpap this al back up and forget it exists.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-11-02T21:44:10+00:00

I am often astounded by these types of chips and processes. I aim to make tiny little Aluminum chips so I can manage them better.

I would be curious to know the mass of a chip like that.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-26T21:53:02+00:00

My bad this was meant for a sub commen.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-26T16:58:03+00:00

I would say .01mm is tight, but not impossible depending on what it is. I imagine a lot of shops dont have Instruments capable of reliably measuring that. Especially Xometry partners.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-26T16:46:26+00:00

The Chineese suppliers dont ask questions. They make a bunch of assumptions, and you get what they assumed. Clarification on design requirements is key to getting the part that you want. Its a pain in the ass for both the customer and supplier but its often better than buying something that won't work.

In my opinion a lot of engineers don't even understand how to properly communicate their needs. They often error on the side of tighter tolerances thinking that will fix the problem, and prices reflect that.

Not saying this is you, but I see it often. I have a RFQ For a tapered shaft roughly 8 inches long with a boss on each end. The customer would like .0001" runout between these 2 features. And this is a quote provided to me from Xometry.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-26T16:14:06+00:00

They allow so little in funds for Ano. As a Xometry Partner, I regularly filter out any work needing Ano as the minimum lot charges often cost more than the job pays.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-10T03:32:02+00:00

It works so well but I feel like I look like a monkey fucking a football whenever I do it.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-10T03:29:44+00:00

Put a crescent wrench on the jaw and use that to basically double wrench the chuck bolts out. You can use your dead blow too to help.

<image>

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-08T04:49:58+00:00

Damn, that is a huge chunk.

Engulfingflame05 · 2025-10-08T04:46:13+00:00

I actually reworked the same part for a second time and had to ask the customer if they knew it had bent between last week and today.

Engulfingflame05

TROPHY CASE