Mill Bit 6061 aluminum

[Ed Williams]

I have been using a tin coated 1/8" 2 flute bit from Enco. Is there anything better to mill with for 6061 aluminum.
Thanks Ed

[Mitsui Seiki]

It depends on what kind of maching you are talking about.

[larry53]

You might want to try a endmill that is better when cutting aluminum. There are endmills that have a higher helix angle that are made to cut aluminum.

[cnczoner]

I've experimented with various endmills for 6061-T6 and I like the plain HSS ones from Shars. I know there's better, but this is bang for the buck. Also, I try to use larger endmills where possible, and I can usually do most things with a 3/8" or 1/2" endmill. I used to think that I'm cutting more metal so it would be more inefficient, but because they're stronger, I can run faster and I get a cleaner cut. I plan to try some 3/4" endmills next. BTW, their 1/2" roughers are also great bang for the buck, but not center-cutting.

Cheers,
-Neil.