I am the proud new owner of a PCNC1100 (delivered last week). Unfortunately I am having troubles with my cuts. By way of background, I ran a TAIG cnc mill for the past three years, so while the Tormach is a serious upgrade, I am not new to the CNC or chip-making world.
The attached photographs demonstrate my problem. This is a piece of 6061 which I am milling with a 3/8" 2-flute HSS end mill, taking 0.0625" DOC, about 45% stepover, 4000 RPM and 30 IPM. I am calculating my S&F in G-Wizard (and this is a recipe I have used on other mills). I am using a Trico MD-1200 coolant system. It should be a conservative cut for the Tormach.
The bottom finish is excellent. But the side finish is a problem. It appears to be chipweld. I am surprised because I have used this same tooling and coolant system on my taig with no problems. I have tried different end mills, including high quality (putnam, OSG) with similar problems - both 1/4" and 3/8". The bottom finish is superb, but the side is a disaster.
Any suggestions about what could be causing the poor finish on the sides only?