Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router
Management wants me to check on the feasibility of using profile knives, with this arbor:
arbor
and this head:
shaper
to cut some curved moldings.
This is on an Onsrud large format 5-axis (head-head) router.
I think this is a recipe for disaster, but since I'm not normally a woodworking guy, I figured I'd query the experts here. Has anyone ever used a setup like this, if so what kind of issues did you have with it?
Re: Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router
I haven't and I wouldn't.A five pound cutter block!A long router cutter and a few passes would be my choice.I don't know Onsrud machines and consequently haven't ever spoken to their technical support people.I suggest you do so and if they give the OK at least your family will have somebody to sue if it all goes wrong.
Re: Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router
No personal experience with that combo of machine & tool, but several things come to mind:
Are the blades positively held into the cutter? If it's just a friction fit, I'd be worried about one coming loose and being thrown across the shop, perhaps hard enough to go right thru somebody.
The arbor says 100mm, and I presume that's the length of the ground section of it. The cutter says 3in cut length, and the photo seems to indicate that is the entire length of the cutter. That means that you need to have a spacer that takes up about 0.937 inches (or a tiny bit more, so that it's not loose on the arbor).
How fast are you thinking of turning it? Do you have any ability to balance the blade+cutter+arbor assembly?
Are the forces that will be generated within the ability of your spindle to handle it, at the RPMs that you will need to get a clean cut? Big VMCs can and do swing big heavy tools at high speed, but they have big, beefy spindles to do so, and the tools are often not made of multiple parts that are screwed together - monolithic tools (like a solid carbide end mill) mounted in shrink-fit tool holders that are balanced for high-RPM operation is what I understand is usually done for this sort of thing...
Re: Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router
Contact some of the big tooling manufacturers, like Leitz or Guhdo, and ask their recommendation for your application.
Or call Southeast tool and ask what heads they recommend for that arbor.
You can use tooling like that, but just don't randomly choose something.
Assuming you have a 15+HP spindle, it should be fine.
Re: Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router
A word of caution here; we ran a variety of insert tooling (like this - File Not Found on an Anderson CNC (11,000 lb. machine). Even with a 15 HP spindle, we could stall the spindle! We found that when operating at the MFG's maximum RPMs, we were running well below the max torque developed by the spindle. Look closely at the motor torque/hp profile on your machine before you commit to tooling.
Another issue; although you may be able to configure the tooling to detail max speed in your software, sometimes that info can be over ridden at the machine to exceed the rpm. We had a tool constrained to 12,000 rpm in the software run at 18,000. We had an HSK63 tool holder break at that speed. Thankfully, no one was hurt.
Re: Using a shaper cutter on a 5X router