Woodworking on a Taig Mill

[kanton]

I am getting a Taig Mill and wanted to do some woodworking projects on it before moving on to aluminum and steel. The projects would include some signs, images and engravings. What sort of tooling should I use for these projects and where can it be purchased? What speeds and feeds should I use? Are there any precautions or special cleanup procedures after woodworking?

Thanks.

[awerby]

You can use the same tooling you'd use for aluminum: 2-flute endmills, flat and ball-ended. The problem is that the spiral flutes tend to dig in, and want to pull the tools out of the collets. So make sure they're in really tight. You can also use unspiraled router bits, but there's a lot less choice in those. Whatever tools you use, make sure they're sharp. Once they've been used for metal, they won't be. HSS tools tend to be sharper than carbide, although the edges don't last as long. I like tapered ball-end tools for finish passes on complex 3d things, since they've got long flute lengths and are relatively rugged. Here are some I've had good luck with:

http://www.precisebits.com/products/...arve250b4f.asp

Of course, the actual tooling you'll need depends on your specific project. Another issue is the wood dust. Taigs were designed with metal-working in mind, so the slides and screws are relatively open. Try to patrol the dust as best you can, because it tends to combine with the oil used to lubricate the mill and form a dough-like substance that clogs things up. You can tear down and clean it frequently, or use copious amounts of oil regularly to flush things out (or both).

Andrew Werby
www.computersculpture.com

I am getting a Taig Mill and wanted to do some woodworking projects on it before moving on to aluminum and steel. The projects would include some signs, images and engravings. What sort of tooling should I use for these projects and where can it be purchased? What speeds and feeds should I use? Are there any precautions or special cleanup procedures after woodworking?

Thanks.

[Amanda]

Something that I have found helpful for milling wood is turn the RPM down and the feed rate up. I've done a bunch with 1/4" end mills and router bits.

I started thinking "routers are high rpm, so I should set this at 10Krpm"... which produced very fine sawdust that got everywhere, and stalled the motors if I took even a fairly shallow cut on hard wood (like oak) unless I slowed the feed rate way down--which then caused wood burning (and didn't do the end mill any favors).

Turning the RPM down to 6700 and the feed rate up to 20-30ipm (with a 2-flute end mill) works hugely better:

• It produces wood chips, not sawdust (easier to vacuum up and doesn't gum up the works)
• It cuts a lot faster, and the surface is still as smooth as if it came right out of a planer (especially on climb cuts).
• The cutting tool stays a lot cooler, and doesn't burn the wood, while still being able to make deeper cuts without stalling.

Each type of wood has its own sweet spot for speeds & feeds, so it's worth experimenting a bit before cutting a real part, but once you've got it set up it produces very nice results in wood. I've cut sycamore, cherry, asian fig, walnut, white oak, and red oak so far, and I'm definitely hooked on using my mill as a woodworking tool.

[kanton]

What setup would you recommend for knotty pine?

[awerby]

That's just asking for trouble. The settings that would work well for the wood wouldn't work when you hit the knots - you'd likely stall the steppers. And if you cut everything like you were cutting knots, it would be unbearably slow.

Get some clear material; it'll work a lot better.

Andrew Werby
ComputerSculpture.com — Home Page for Discount Hardware & Software

[kanton]

In the CNC classes I took the tabletop mills, which were smaller than a Taig, had no problem knotty pine. The board I selected has small, widely spaced knots.