Endmill tooling materials, specifications, forms, configurations and types.
Endmill materials
HSS - Basic tool steel endmills. Does not offer the major advantages of Carbide or Cobalt end mills.
Cobalt - increases abrasion resistance for better tool life
Carbide - Can be run at a higher surface feet per minute as long as the machine is very rigid and spindles can hold tight tolerances. Types of tool holders used may also play a big part in life and quality of cut.
Endmill Forms
Single End - Teeth on one end of the cutter only. This style is the most common available.
Double End - An end mill that has teeth on both ends of the cutter.
Stub Length - Usedin applications where tool deflection must be minimized.
Endmill types and configurations
Corner Radius - a radius is ground on the tips of the flutes to help reduce damaging if the endmill.
Drill Point - General purpose end mill that can be used for drilling. milling or chamfering
Ball End - Used for milling cavities or pockets, fillets and slots.
Roughers - For removing large amounts of material as quickly as possible. These mills can remove material about 3 times as fast as conventional emdmills.
Endmill specifications
Coatings - adds greater tool life and also can increase speeds.
Flutes -2 and 4 flute are the most common
2-Flute - best for chip evacuation.
3-Flute - General milling
4, 5, 6, and 8 Flute - provides better surface finish and reduces cutting load per tooth.
Left-Hand Spiral - Used for milling thin sheets to direct chips away from work
High Helix - Used for rapid chip evacuation. Works well for aluminum machining applications.
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