I am trying to cut 1mm sheet steel (alloy not known) using a 1/8 2fl end mill. Currently at 20k RPM and 180mm/min (~7in/min) under flood cooling of soapy water.
The endmill will last about 2.5m (98in) worth of cutting before it dulls/smokes. My end mills are all of questionable qaulity and unkown material (HSS??). I have tried taking 2 passes but it seems to make no difference in overall tool life.
Different tables and calculator don't seem to have consistant data on smaller tools. Would it be worth trying to decrease RPM? The spindle is a porter-cable laminate trimmer so I doubt it would sustain torque at lower speeds. Also is it worth looking at higher quality endmills? Carbide seems not be a good idea due to vibration of the trimmer compared to a real spindle.
Any advice would be appreciated!
Thanks!