cut mild steel?

[dharps]

Friends:
I'm trying to determine if I can cut shapes in 1/16 mild steel plate with a wood working CNC router. I don't even know where to post the question. Any help appreciated.
Doug Fay
(I build harps)

[hemsworthlad]

The simple answer would be NO.!! . . . But the true answer depends on a few variables.! If you have the neccesary then YES.

How strong is the machine.? Needs to be very strong
What spindle is being used.? Ideally slow one with good torque or fast but capable of handling stress. (dependant on cutter.? see below)
Can you use cooling.? Ideally cutting fluid, blown air will be better than nothing.

Mild steel can be cut dry with high speed spindles but requires the correct cutter and cuttters designed for dry high speed milling tend be quite expensive.

I cut 1/8 mild steel box section with my machine and it handles it very easily but my machine is steel framed quite strong with ballscrews, use's a 2.2KW watercooled spindle. . . . The cutters are the secret.!
They must be High speed capable of cutting DRY, normal milling cutters just wont work properly if run fast and will potentially damage the machine or spindle if run dry at high speed and the result will be rubbish with dead cutters at best, worst case dead spindle and potential for fire due to VERY HOT CHIPS from incorrect cutting.!

With a strong machine and correct cutter then yes it can be done.! . . . But I wouldn't want to be doing it day in day out because it will reduce the life of the machine considerably if not fully designed for cutting steel.! The forces are massive compared wood.

SO my answers is YES can be done but NOT RECOMMENDED with a wood router.!!

Regards
Dean.

[jsheerin]

Some info:
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/diy-cn...el_router.html

If you're thinking about building a router to cut steel and maybe some other things, I'd go a different route. If you have a router and might want to very slowly cut some steel that doesn't require the best surface finish, go for it.