I regularly cut aluminum sheet using a regular carbide blade. No problem. I always use new/sharpened blade for fine cutting. When worn I use them for MDF and occational aluminum. It seems to me alu does not dull it any faster than MDF. But *go slow* it is likely to snag, and that can break the carbide. And only straight aluminum. Anodized *will* dull your blade. It's covered with aluminum oxide, also used in grinding paper.
Back to your router. It's just the same. The cutting angle for wood is also right for aluminum. It uses high cutting speeds, again also right for aluminum. But then it's the tool control! Basically by hand you don't have it. Vacpress's advice is very much right. Shallow cuts to keep as much control as you can. If it catches better than you can resist (not much), then it's not like wood that it will just snare and chew out a big chunk. No, it will act like a gearwheel on a rack and your router will take off.
So if your plan is to lightly edge trim some alu plate or thin stock, yes it will work provided you always have in mind where will the router go if it snags. If you think about routing pockets or inside holes, don't try it!
If you're talking about a CNC router, yes it could work fine. But you will find out how well built your machine is. It needs to be much more rigid than necessary for wood.  |