I'm looking at utilizing a milling operation to put a relief on a piece of equipment, and am unsure of the best method of doing so. I thought that a high speed steel or carbide end mill (4 flute) of either 3/8" or 1/2" diameter would work for my application.

Let's just say that the material that is to be removed is triangular in shape,
.16 x .11 x .11 at 45 degrees, although the angle could vary 15 degrees either way.

I guess my first question is: Is an end mill the best choice for such a job, or is there somethign that would work better? I had hoped to use the side of the mill as opposed to the end.

My next question is in regards to feed rate. Since I'm not machining a 3/8" slot, but only removing a small amount of material, can I increase my feed rate, and by how much?

My current calculations use a feed per tooth of .002, if that helps?

Overall, I need to machine a relief an average distance of 2 feet. The equipment is a high carbon alloy steel with a Brinness of 300-400. Current calculations give me a cut time of 2.25 to almost 6 minutes (4.074 IPM). I'm wondering if that time can be decreased any significant amount, effectively, since I am only removing a small amount of material and not removing a 3/8" wide pass.

Sorry for the long question, and I hope it makes sense. Any help/advice is appreciated, and if there's any other info needed, let me know.

Thank you