Originally Posted by escott76  FYI you should be able to take much more than .005" in 6061 with a 1/4" tool in a roughing pass. You can do passes of .005" if you like, but there is no reason to take that little. |
Mine with a 1/4" Finish end mill will take 0.03" doc with very low chip loads in 6061, the issue is the motor though, not enough power...
Your best bet would be to get a chunk of steel and take some lite cuts with a 4 flute cutter to figure out what chipload the machine can handle then go from there.