Good advice so far, here comes mine... Slotting 2, maybe 3 flute if it is designed for the material. Avoid 4 flute like the plague !!
Your endmill depth issue sounds material deformation roughing with the 1/4 inch/pushing z upwards (how heavy/rigid is the machine?). Thats the main reason to see .004-.005" step that is removed after rerunning the 1/4" em, other than the part lifting up a bit which I have dealt with often enough... |