Anyone Machine Stainless on Their Torus Pro?

[MRM RCModels]

I have a project coming up that will require some stainless. Looking at using a 0.25in end mill.

Anyone got any pointers on feeds and speeds or end mill brands I should use?

Thanks

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[MRM RCModels]

Forgot to say. I'm machining 303 stainless

[SCzEngrgGroup]

Kelvin,

I've only done a very little SS, and never 303, but you should use carbide, SFPM 80-100. I STRONGLY recommend using HSMAdvisor for guidance on feeds and speeds. It is absolutely critical to keep a decent chipload, and use coolant. If you start rubbing, or let the work get hot, it will work harden, destroy the tool, and become nearly impossible to cut. Keep a decent chipload, keep it cool, and it will cut just fine.

Regards,
Ray L.

[MRM RCModels]

Kelvin,

I've only done a very little SS, and never 303, but you should use carbide, SFPM 80-100. I STRONGLY recommend using HSMAdvisor for guidance on feeds and speeds. It is absolutely critical to keep a decent chipload, and use coolant. If you start rubbing, or let the work get hot, it will work harden, destroy the tool, and become nearly impossible to cut. Keep a decent chipload, keep it cool, and it will cut just fine.

Regards,
Ray L.

Go it, thanks. Do you have any particular end mill brand?

[kvom]

303 machines well. I plugged some slot cutting into GWizard and got SFM recommendation closer to 200.

[engnerdan]

A good friend who runs a high output production shop recommends "IMCO M924 (Power-feed)" for stainless. I know that endmill alone took 5 minutes of cycle time out of a part that had a cycle time of about 20 minutes.

[MRM RCModels]

A good friend who runs a high output production shop recommends "IMCO M924 (Power-feed)" for stainless. I know that endmill alone took 5 minutes of cycle time out of a part that had a cycle time of about 20 minutes.

Thanks. You know where he buys them?

[engnerdan]

Thanks. You know where he buys them?

He is going them from Q&S Machine Tool Co here in Minnesota. But they have a dealer locator on their webpage.

Home | DealerLocator

[LeeWay]

I would think that just about any high quality carbide tool would do it.
I do cut a lot of 304 SS, but cheat by doing it on the plasma table. I am still able to drill the parts by hand with sharp bits easily afterward. I do not think 303 or 304 are all that tough to machine. Good tools and speeds with coolant should easily get you there. I think 316 is your difficult material. This is mostly just from memory reading about it though. My memory ain't perfect.

[rlockwood]

303 is easy to machine, 304 & 316 are both less so.. but they're not terrible either. It (303, along with 416) has added sulfur and is actually considered 'free machining'. It forms a chip well and is much less prone to work hardening, but not immune. As such, its important to keep your CPT (chip per tooth) high (.001+) To do so, you'll often have to reduce other cutting parameters, like depth or width of cut, in order to not break the endmill.

As a newbie to stainless, you might find a traditional HSS roughing endmill ("corn cob" type) to be more forgiving and probably offer about the same MRR as carbide. If you do go carbide, 303 is a good candidate for HSM in conjunction with high flute count (4-5fl) & performance coatings (AlTin or AlCrn).. Coolant up to ~300sfm, dry (air blast preferred) over that. Cobalt works well for drilling; peck or you'll burn the tip up (again, really more applicable to other grades)

Traditional style milling - HSS around 100sfm, carbide +200sfm, cobalt drilling around 75-90sfm.

In general, a novakon should be actually quite productive in milling stainless; you were traditionally limited by tooling issues rather than horsepower.. which levels the playing field a bit.

[MRM RCModels]

303 is easy to machine, 304 & 316 are both less so.. but they're not terrible either. It (303, along with 416) has added sulfur and is actually considered 'free machining'. It forms a chip well and is much less prone to work hardening, but not immune. As such, its important to keep your CPT (chip per tooth) high (.001+) To do so, you'll often have to reduce other cutting parameters, like depth or width of cut, in order to not break the endmill.

As a newbie to stainless, you might find a traditional HSS roughing endmill ("corn cob" type) to be more forgiving and probably offer about the same MRR as carbide. If you do go carbide, 303 is a good candidate for HSM in conjunction with high flute count (4-5fl) & performance coatings (AlTin or AlCrn).. Coolant up to ~300sfm, dry (air blast preferred) over that. Cobalt works well for drilling; peck or you'll burn the tip up (again, really more applicable to other grades)

Traditional style milling - HSS around 100sfm, carbide +200sfm, cobalt drilling around 75-90sfm.

In general, a novakon should be actually quite productive in milling stainless; you were traditionally limited by tooling issues rather than horsepower.. which levels the playing field a bit.

Thank you!

[rlockwood]

How'd it go?

[MRM RCModels]

Should know by this weekend

[AUSTINMACHINING]

I machined some 304 SS this weekend. I was making some very small parts (.4 x .3 x .090 thick) I used 1" 304SS angle x .125 thick. I secured a 12" piece of angle in my vise to nest many parts in a single operation. First I had to face the length of the stock from .125 down to .09 thick. I used a 1/4" 2 flute hss end mill for facing and a 1/16" 2 flute HSS end mill to profile the parts. I've been thrilled with HSMadvisor for speeds/feeds. I was very concerned about work holding with all the unsupported stock I had hanging over the ends of the vise, but the SS is so rigid everything worked out great on the first try. The cutting was very slow with the recommended surface speed and I only have 2 flute end mills at the moment. I managed to make all the parts without breaking the 1/16" end mill :-).

[LeeWay]

Now that is not something that is easily done on the first try. HSMadvisor must have been close to perfect. Congrats on that.