[GregGleason]

I would like suggestions for bits to cut aluminum. The bit needs to be 0.125" in diameter and will be mounted on a router in a router bench. There are no plans for any cooling other than blown air. The aluminum is 0.125" thick and I believe is 6061. The milling length will always be 6 feet or less. The expectation is to perhaps mill 5 to 10 of these per month.

My first question is what kind of bit I should I buy?

The next question is what kind of RPM and feed rate should I go for?

Also, I'd rather err on the side of quality (wind up with more quality than necessary).

Greg

[BAMCNC.COM]

ZRN coated 1/8" high helix endmill.

[GregGleason]

Thanks.

I looked up the bit you suggested and I found this:

ZrN Coated 1/8 3FL Carbide End Mill 38 Deg Helix .563 loc .250 Shank MariTool

[Noob]That bit is showing 800 SFM. So a feed rate to cut at 0.5" per second is well within that, correct?[/Noob]

Greg

[BAMCNC.COM]

http://zero-divide.net/index.php?page=fswizard

[GregGleason]

Thanks. That was helpful!

Greg

[BAMCNC.COM]

Now that you have this info, come back here when your testing it for help.

[GregGleason]

Will do.

I'm thinking of doing two passes. One at 1/16" depth, and then the second pass to cut it.

Greg

[BAMCNC.COM]

You will need a finish pass

[crob09]

I would like suggestions for bits to cut aluminum. The bit needs to be 0.125" in diameter and will be mounted on a router in a router bench. There are no plans for any cooling other than blown air. The aluminum is 0.125" thick and I believe is 6061. The milling length will always be 6 feet or less. The expectation is to perhaps mill 5 to 10 of these per month.

My first question is what kind of bit I should I buy?

The next question is what kind of RPM and feed rate should I go for?

Also, I'd rather err on the side of quality (wind up with more quality than necessary).

Greg

I just use a carbide 2-flute end-mill, usually I stick with 1/16" and feed .25mm per pass. The cutting bit will take more but forcing the tooling threw the work seems silly to me, it wears out the tooling and it's hard on the machine.
Here is an example of what I use ... 50 Piece Micro Machining Carbide Endmill Kit | eBay :cheers:

[GregGleason]

You will need a finish pass

Thanks. I didn't think that was necessary, but since I'm very new I will take the advice.

I just use a carbide 2-flute end-mill, usually I stick with 1/16" and feed .25mm per pass. The cutting bit will take more but forcing the tooling threw the work seems silly to me, it wears out the tooling and it's hard on the machine.
Here is an example of what I use ... 50 Piece Micro Machining Carbide Endmill Kit | eBay :cheers:

I wasn't aware of these used end-mills. I'll keep that in mind for future projects.

Greg

[louieatienza]

If you're using a router, which runs best at higher RPMs I'd suggest you try using a single edge spiral-"O" flute bit... There's a guy named drillman1 on eBay that sells Kyocera ones for less than $4 each, and they work very well. If you can drop your RPMs down (I use a SuperPID speed controller) a 2-flute would work well, though I almost never run an aluminum job completely dry, even with a coated bit.