Aww gee Mac, when the boss wasn't looking we always used a diamond cupwheel for getting into those hard to reach corners with out the stone wearing away. It wasn't too often but it made life a whole lot easier.
As a matter of interest any workshop dust,grit, oil contaminated metal dust is lung cancer inducing if you do it all the time. I worked in quite a few shops over fourty years, and the dust from small bench tool grinders was always hanging about in the air, when the sun shone through the windows. One of the hidden hazards of general shop work. The next time you're in a factory have a look on top of a cupboard and note the layer of dust.
As far as carbides are concerned, I wouldn't dream of turning cast iron with HSS. Too much tool point/edge wear.
I also have a set of brazed on carbide screw cutting tools for finishing a thread when you just want to get that last thou and polish it too. The tool angles are made to suit 60 deg and 55 Deg, left and right hand threads.
As they are only used for finishing the top is ground flat and this enables cleaning up both flanks of the thread.
The set I've still got were made in 1962 when I finished my 'prenticeship, sort of a send off present.
Ian.  |