[cheetahcnc]

I've seen the TTS flycutter running on a PCNC 1100 at a show, and in one of the latest videos Tormach released. Any news on when it will be released? Couldn't find much about it except a mention here:

Tormach Tooling System: What

...and the video squaring an aluminum block using the flycutter here:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhVtJ6bRDl4]Tormach - How to Square up a Block with a CNC Mill - YouTube[/ame]

Jim

[howecnc]

Sooo… about that TTS FlyCutter… « Milling Around

[bevinp]

Zip Fly??

[zephyr9900]

TseTSe Fly

[cheetahcnc]

Sooo… about that TTS FlyCutter… « Milling Around

Thanks for the link. Looking forward to getting one of these.

Jim

[cheetahcnc]

It's here!

32428 - TTS SuperFly Cutter Kit

Jim

[Scott_M]

I was in the beta tests for the new fly cutter and did some extensive testing on the "SuperFly". It is very impressive. I compared it to the Glacern FM45-250 Face mill In both steel and aluminum the SuperFly had almost double the MRR using the same inserts. This is because the fly cutter is only turning 1 insert. Each additional inserts sucks up horse power. On a low horse power machine the fly cutter will win . I am sure if we were talking about a 10+ HP spindle the Glacern would blow away the fly cutter. But on the Tormach this fly cutter was far more efficient. The best I could do with the SuperFly in aluminum was a cut .035" deep @ 100 ipm for a MRR of 8.75 cu. in.( this cut was in the red ) The video below is .030" deep. The best MRR's I could get with the Glacern were 4.5 cu. in.( alum. ) and 1.25 cu. in ( steel ) The SuperFly got 2.125 cu. in. in steel.

The biggest drawback to this kind of MRR is the amount of chips distributed all over your shop !! If you look in the video you can see that I have cardboard extensions on the guards, they helped a little bit.

I talked to Andy at Tormach and he should have a blog post coming out soon for the SuperFly.


[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXT9uBOmD5Q&feature=plcp]Super Fly Tests - YouTube[/ame]

[cheetahcnc]

I was in the beta tests for the new fly cutter and did some extensive testing on the "SuperFly". It is very impressive. I compared it to the Glacern FM45-250 Face mill In both steel and aluminum the SuperFly had almost double the MRR using the same inserts. This is because the fly cutter is only turning 1 insert. Each additional inserts sucks up horse power. On a low horse power machine the fly cutter will win . I am sure if we were talking about a 10+ HP spindle the Glacern would blow away the fly cutter. But on the Tormach this fly cutter was far more efficient. The best I could do with the SuperFly in aluminum was a cut .035" deep @ 100 ipm for a MRR of 8.75 cu. in.( this cut was in the red ) The video below is .030" deep. The best MRR's I could get with the Glacern were 4.5 cu. in.( alum. ) and 1.25 cu. in ( steel ) The SuperFly got 2.125 cu. in. in steel.

The biggest drawback to this kind of MRR is the amount of chips distributed all over your shop !! If you look in the video you can see that I have cardboard extensions on the guards, they helped a little bit.

I talked to Andy at Tormach and he should have a blog post coming out soon for the SuperFly.

Sounds great. Ordered one on Thursday, should be here soon. Another excellent advantage of this tool, in addition to your fantastic results, is it only requires one insert. I already have two Tormach face mills (four inserts) which will still get used, but this tool with those numbers is a big plus.

Any clearance issues for the ATC?

Jim

[Scott_M]

I do not have an ATC so I can't say for sure. The SuperFly does have an ATC Groove so it probably works fine.

Scott

[crawley]

Any idea what the minimum diameter will be? They mention a max of 3" on the website but no minimum.

[David C. Allen]

I asked Tormach here is their reply:

The fly cutter radius is adjustable from about 1.25" to about 1.85". That is with keeping all three set screws on the tool bar.

David

[Steve Seebold]

I saw it working today at Little Machine Shop open house. All I can say is WOW.

[WOTDesigns]

I saw it working today at Little Machine Shop open house. All I can say is WOW.

It was a pleasure to meet you and see some of your RC parts. That adjustable prop mount was something else bud.

AS FAR AS ATC clearane: NO ISSUES. The thing is COMPACT. Picture a normal 3/4 shank fly cutter with the tiny epoxy conversion kit (NOT WHAT IT IS, much higher quality) that's about the length. I would guess 1.75"-2" from spindle nose to bottom of insert. They had it set at ~0.185" and it looked like a midget in the carousel. It was next to a 25mm indexable cutter and it wasn't even close to being able to bump it if loaded with the fly cutter pointing right at it.

The insert was something else. VERY VERY VERY impressive!

[Steve Seebold]

It was a pleasure to meet you and see some of your RC parts. That adjustable prop mount was something else bud.

AS FAR AS ATC clearane: NO ISSUES. The thing is COMPACT. Picture a normal 3/4 shank fly cutter with the tiny epoxy conversion kit (NOT WHAT IT IS, much higher quality) that's about the length. I would guess 1.75"-2" from spindle nose to bottom of insert. They had it set at ~0.185" and it looked like a midget in the carousel. It was next to a 25mm indexable cutter and it wasn't even close to being able to bump it if loaded with the fly cutter pointing right at it.

The insert was something else. VERY VERY VERY impressive!

Shiddy, the offer stands. Bring your fixture, some material and your CAD files down and I'll run a couple of loads of your part on my machine so you can see how well it will do what you want it to do.

I love my PCNC 1100.

[WOTDesigns]

I definitely will. Going to test a few tweaks to the design, but i will be looking forward to heading down there in a few weeks. Thanks again!

[TurboStep]

Scott, you say that the removal rate for the Glacern face mill was lower but I'd nevertheless be interested in the speeds and feeds you used in order to better compare the results.
Thanks, Step

[Scott_M]

TurboStep
The first thing the testing revealed was that power drops off rapidly with heavy cuts when the VFD is under or over 60 Hz. ( Emphasis on Heavy Cuts ) So most of the testing was done at 2500 rpm in high range on my 1100. ( about 68 Hz ) The recommended starting point for the inserts was 1500sfm with a .010" chipload. With a 2.5" cut diameter @2500 that is 1636 sfm. I ran cuts at increasing intervals of .010" and 10ipm.
With a .030" doc the glacern nearly stalled at 60 ipm if the cut was an inch longer it would have. With the Super Fly I made it all the way to 100 ipm and then tried it again at .035 doc @ 100 ipm it was just approaching the red but showing no signs of stalling. The heaviest cut I could take with the Glacern was .060" deep at 30 ipm for a MRR of 4.5 cu. in.

If you have the Glacern I bet it would perform better on the Tormach with only 1 insert in it. The Glacern is a nice tool, I took it to a friends shop and we ran it on a big VMC and it threw chips about 25 feet. BIG Chips, I don't remember the numbers but we were taking .25" deep cuts and going fast ! But that is with a 10-15 hp spindle.


Scott

[SCzEngrgGroup]

TurboStep
The first thing the testing revealed was that power drops off rapidly with heavy cuts when the VFD is under or over 60 Hz.

That is not technically correct. ALL VFD/3-phase motor systems are nearly constant torque below motor base speed, and constant power above motor base speed, within limits. At very low frequencies (typically below half of base frequency or so), the response becomes non-linear, and torque starts to fall off. This means that as you reduce RPM below base speed, you also reduce power, since power is a function of both torque and RPM. The constant power characteristic above base speed means that torque falls linearly off with increasing RPM. Vector drive VFDs extend the constant torque range lower down, typically to 10% of base frequency or less. The Tormach has a vector drive VFD. So, likely in your case, you were power limited below base speed, and torque limited above base speed.

Regards,
Ray L.

[bevinp]

Himmy,
Very informative. Thanks.
I do have one question.... what is the base speed of the Tormach Series III VFD?

Bevin

[Scott_M]

Himmy
Yes I realize that. You will notice I said "Heavy Cuts" I was pushing these cutters to near stall speeds and feeds. And wanted to give it the maximum power available. And the testing clearly showed that was within about 10 Hz on either side of base.

Bevnip
The 1100 motor is a 4 pole motor rated for 1715 rpm @ 60 Hz producing 1.1 KW ( 1.5 HP )

Scott