Originally Posted by DareBee  Yup - It can be hard to justify $90 for 1 cutting tip. |
First off, if you shop around, you'll see that $90.00 isn't necessarily the price of a PCD insert for this specific application.
Now, if you are in a
production environment, and are using, let say for arguments sake, 30 carbide inserts/month (between
$8-12 a piece), and getting sub-par results. Is it worth it to pay a little more for ONE insert that will outlast it's carbide counterpart 100-300% longer and still give you the option to re-sharpen the edge at a fraction of the cost of a new PCD insert?
If you are doing a one-off piece and want the best finish, you have to weigh the pros and cons of investing a little money to get the results that you need, or stick with the old carbide solution.
Aerospace, automobile, and plastics manufacturers have long understood the advantages of using PCD, and have actually saved more money in making the switch.
Unfortunately, most folks have the same reaction as you when looking at the initial price and don't look farther down the road, or how much they've been spending on throw away cutting tools.