Originally Posted by Zumba Does anyone here know if an endmill can be sharpened on a surface grinder with a 5C Spin indexer? Seems like the flutes wouldn't be hard to grind, but you'd still need to grind the ends on a bench/pedestal machine.
How much does an endmill grinder cost in comparison? |
1st off, the fixture for grinfing the ends of EndMills is really cheap, around $20 It fits right on a surface grinder, and has both primary & secondary angles as well as the hollow center angle built into the little fixture base! I has the ability to index for each flute too!
2nd, the endmill flute fixture is called an "Air Bar" or "Air Bearing", it holds a 5C collet or endmill holder, and floats on a cussion of air from an air compressor. They are $400 used if you can find one! They fit on the surface grinder, and require a flaring cup wheel, and a stationary finger to support the flute being ground. If you do not have a gental dexterity in your fingers, the endmills can get trashed in the blink of an eye! (been there, done that
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3rd, the Spin Fixture is for grinding diameters, flats, squares, or shapes on short peaces. They are usually sloppy bearings, and would not do an endmill very good. Spin fixtures are great for grinding the hardened shanks of taps and endmills, so you can tap or mill deeper! They are also good for grinding the ends of case hardened Leadscrews for bearings, and couplings!
4th, a dedicated Endmill Sharpener like the ones made by Darex are $2k new!
Eric