584,862 active members*
5,451 visitors online*
Register for free
Login
IndustryArena Forum > Other Machines > PCB milling > Which bits to use for PCB milling?
Page 9 of 10 78910
Results 161 to 180 of 186
  1. #161
    Join Date
    Jul 2019
    Posts
    4

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi, I use a 10° x 0.1mm V-Bit. You have to make sure to get the right board for the tools you have or else it will dull out the bits. For example I was using FR-4 board which ended up dulling the bits. So I used FR-1 boards with these tools and I got very thin, clean circuits. I got the circuits to go as thin as 0.5-0.6mm width. This is the link to the bits I have: https://amzn.to/2McX8je

    If you want to see the end result using these bits and a cheap CNC router, check out my YouTube video of the process of making a PCB from start to finish. I am almost done editing part 2 of the video where I apply UV solder mask to protect the board.
    Here is the link to my video: https://bit.ly/2G9fo9l

  2. #162
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Posts
    232

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Here is a useful PCB milling guide: https://www.inventables.com/projects...e-pcb#overview

  3. #163
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,
    I have started a new mill project. I'm not unhappy with my original own-design mill but it has faults, some easily correctable and some not.
    I have the funds (temporarily) to build a bigger, faster more rigid mill and that is what I've decided to do.

    To date I have the 20mm THK rails and heavy duty cars in hand (three sets), they are new-old stock and in perfect condition.
    I have just taken delivery of three sets of 32mm (5mm pitch) C5 THK ground ballscrews with double nuts and FK25's at each end. They are used but appear
    to be in perfect condition.
    Last night I ordered and paid for three Delta 750W B2 series servos and drives, one with a brake for the Z axis.

    I have engaged the services of a local foundry to cast the beds. I was going to make my own pattern and have them make the molds and pour them.
    As the beds are VERY simple for which only one pattern is required, I have elected to have them make the pattern also. They have their own pattern makers
    whom are no doubt WAY more familiar than I about casting in general and the preferences of this particular foundry.

    I am anticipating each of the beds will weigh 115kg as cast but after fettling. I was given guidance of $5 NZD per kg as cast which suggests the cost,
    excluding the pattern, of $1725 NZD ($1085 USD).

    The frame that mounts the beds at right angles is still under development......I'm thinking it may be a four piece mold, but hopefully without cores
    but with an as cast (fettled) weight of 300kg. The pattern making and mold making could add substantially to the cost so I'm guessing around
    $3000 NZD ($1900 USD). I'm thinking that the frame will be in SG iron, toughness and stability. The beds will be in plain grey iron.

    Craig

  4. #164
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Posts
    89

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi Craig,

    Well, you have already told me about this but interesting to get some more details ... Good luck with the project

    Now I know that you are doing more things with your mill but considering the topic of this thread "bits for PCB milling" it nevertheless makes me smile considering that this several hundred kilos CNC mill will also be milling PCBs with just 0.5mm (I think it was, right?) end mills. I reckon it will be stable enough for this to work out fine

    Cheers,

    Jesper

  5. #165
    Join Date
    Aug 2014
    Posts
    232

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Quote Originally Posted by evalon View Post
    Hi Craig,

    Well, you have already told me about this but interesting to get some more details ... Good luck with the project

    Now I know that you are doing more things with your mill but considering the topic of this thread "bits for PCB milling" it nevertheless makes me smile considering that this several hundred kilos CNC mill will also be milling PCBs with just 0.5mm (I think it was, right?) end mills. I reckon it will be stable enough for this to work out fine

    Cheers,

    Jesper
    I have two commercially built PCB mills, based on substantial cast iron "torsion box" designs, they weigh 1000kg each and have beds of only 600mm x 470mm, which is effectively halved because each Y axis has two 60,000rpm spindles working in unison. Weight is clearly considered a good thing when dealing with such fragile tooling.

  6. #166
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    If you are gong to use end mills of 0.5 mm diameter, you have better not have a TIR of 0.2 mm!
    Good solid mills are to be praised.

    Cheers
    Roger

  7. #167
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,
    when I first started becoming interested in CNC it was specifically to mill PCBs. I thought if I was going to buy/build a machine then I would
    want it to be capable of more than just PCBs......I wanted to cut metals and steel/stainless included. Of course a machine that can cut ferrous metals
    has to be ten to one hundredfold more rigid than a PCB milling machine.

    What happened in fact is that the design and building of a CNC mill became the hobby project. As Roger points out accurate, high resolution,
    rigid, very low TIR mills are just as useful for PCBs as they are for metal cutting work.

    My first mill is still going strong but I want to use the knowledge/judgement that I have acquired as a result of my previous mistakes/misappreciations.

    Craig

  8. #168
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Posts
    48

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi RCaffin,

    Indeed, but must say these end mills are expensive comparative to 30° 0.1mm V bits from Amazon these are very
    affordable and disposable too.

    You may want to see this,

    https://www.cnczone.com/forums/pcb-m...44316-cnc.html

    and scroll to post #15.

    Cheers,
    Hanspeter.

  9. #169
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi Hanspeter

    Yes, some of these tiny end mills are expensive. I would reply that you get what you pay for.

    Yes, you can use those inexpensive carbide V-bits too. I have found that some of them are not ground al that well though. The tip might be 0.1 m wide (which gives a 0.2 mm groove in theory, but the tip was more than that off-centre. The shank had very little TIR in my spindle, but the tip - cut a bit wide.

    In addition, I found that the V-bits tended to leave a lot of burr at the sides of the cut, which made for a lot of finishing work. I had to polish off the burs while not pushing any copper back into the groove, to create short circuits.

    After making a number of PCBs, I found that having a 0.5 mm wide groove was not all that bad. It significantly reduced any shorts from stray copper whiskers, and it made soldering much easier. There was so much less risk of bridging the groove with solder. To be sure, if the PCB used small surface mount chips with small gaps between the legs, I might have to reduce the width of the groove, but for a lot of my work I try to only use DIL chips, in sockets. That makes maintenance much easier.

    So - I use both.
    Attachment 442426
    This is modified V-bit: I had made the tip a bit wider and honed the edge. The PCB is for optical isolation, and is in use.

    Cheers

  10. #170
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Posts
    48

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi RCaffin,

    I totally agree with you.

    I had times to return these cheap V bits as the tips range from 0.1mm - 0.3mm for a 0.1mm bit.

    Perfectly understand the Chinese aren't meticulous, for every 20 bits you buy, you may return 6.

    The thing is I find them disposable and at the same time they do quite give me some life.

    My reason for opting 0.1mm V bits it compensates for spindle runouts. If you see my milled PCB elsewhere
    the track spacing ~0.25mm.

    I must add that feed rate also contributes to burr at the edges of the track, reducing the feed rate should resolve
    the issue. I hardly end up with burrs.

    My PCB's are all SMD since 2010.

    Cheers,
    Hanspeter.

  11. #171
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    reason for opting 0.1mm V bits it compensates for spindle runouts
    Chuckle! Yeah, that works.
    I do use SMDs - but I need a head-mounted magnifier for them these days. That PCB I showed was SMD.

    Cheers
    Roger

  12. #172
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,
    I mostly use 0.5mm two flute endmills. They have a superior cut quality by comparison to engraving bits. This means of course the smallest path between isolated
    tracks/pins is 0.5mm, in fact I have standardised on 0.6mm which still allows for SOIC surface mount ICs.

    Occassionally when I require finer pitch ICs I will use an engraving bit and I recently got some from the same supplier as my endmills and they have proven
    to be very good indeed.

    https://www.ebay.com/itm/60-DEGREE-M...72.m2749.l2649

    They are not cheap, in fact double the price of the 0.5mm endmills!! They have however outlasted the cheap Chinese engraving bit I have used previously by a factor of five.
    They are made by Kyocera Microtools, there are NO rejects!

    Craig

  13. #173
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    A very good brand, Kyocera. I buy some cutters and single-point thread mills from them.
    The particular bits you referenced look very solid.

    Cheers

  14. #174
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,
    I must say that I was concerned the the rather broad include angle of the tip (60 degrees) would cause an overly wide kerf that would interfere with the
    fine (0.2mm) intertrack spacings. That has not proven to be the case. The broad included angle has meant that the tip of the tool is very much more robust
    than the 30 degree tool I had used prior to getting the Kyocera tools.

    The 30 degree Chinese tools supposedly had a 0.1mm tip width. What happens in practice is that the tip breaks very early in the piece so that that actual tip
    width becomes a rather uncontrollable 0.2-0.3mm. The broken tip produces a poor cut.

    The 60 degree tips have, or rather I allow, a 0.2mm width, and it is consistent. I have 8 hours cutting on the first of the several I bought and its still producing a good cut
    and the same 0.2mm kerf.

    For less demanding (0.6mm inter-track/inter-pin spacing) I still prefer the 0.5mm endmil beacuse of the cut quality and they are cheaper, about $4.60USD or $5.00USD
    including shipping. If I don't break them, which is thankfully less common as my procedures improve, I swap them out after 10-12 hours cutting on the basis of cut quality.

    Craig

  15. #175
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    The broad included angle has meant that the tip of the tool is very much more robust than the 30 degree tool I had used
    Ditto. Although I am happy with the 45 or 30 degree ones.

    What happens in practice is that the tip breaks very early in the piece so that that actual tip width becomes a rather uncontrollable 0.2-0.3mm. The broken tip produces a poor cut.
    They do break easily, don't they!
    I touch up the broken ends with a diamond T&CG or (more often) with a diamond lap.

    the 0.5mm endmill because of the cut quality and they are cheaper, about $4.60USD or $5.00USD including shipping.
    Really? Where?

    Cheers
    Roger

  16. #176
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,

    the 0.5mm endmill because of the cut quality and they are cheaper, about $4.60USD or $5.00USD including shipping.
    Really? Where?
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/38247476389...72.m2749.l2649

    This guy has been my favorite supplier for small carbide tools. A year or two back he had these same 0,5mm two flute Kyocera endmills on special for $2.65USD each, I got 30....but wish I'd bought 100 at that price.
    Having said that I see that they are listed at $38USD for 10 which is still pretty good value.

    Check out the Raptor's from Destiny Tools, best endmills is stainless I've ever encountered.

    Craig

  17. #177
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Ah - CarbidePlus. Already on my preferred supplier list. But thank you.

    Have you tried CarbideChiu on ebay? Very happy with his services as well. He has done custom endmills for me in the past.

    Cheers
    Roger

  18. #178
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi Roger,

    Have you tried CarbideChiu on ebay?
    Yes I have and prices are good, service is good but I've had better tools. Its not so much that his tools are bad but the name brand tools
    are better.

    For example the 1/8 Raptor four flute tools that I referred to in my previous post. They use variable helix and the TiAlN coating is stuck like 's****t to a blanket'
    and does a better job. Whether it could be considered better value is another question, but sometimes value for money is less important than performance, and any
    tool that does well in stainless is in that class.

    Another gem are the Di-Boride coated tools for aluminum by Harvey Tools. They are eye-wateringly expensive by comparison to other uncoated aluminum tools,
    but if you have some real 'sticky' aluminium like 5000 series, or worse 1000 series, they are worth their weight in gold.

    Craig

  19. #179
    Join Date
    Jun 2010
    Posts
    4252

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Di-Boride? I will research that one.
    Thank you.

    I have been milling 5082 sheet Al successfully, using a kero/olive oil mist. While watching closely.

    Cheers
    Roger

  20. #180
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    4282

    Re: Which bits to use for PCB milling?

    Hi,
    di-boride is as slippery in aluminum as it gets.

    You may have noticed that many specialist carbide tools for aluminum are uncoated.

    The normal coatings on carbide tools are TiN or TiAlN, both are tri-valent in nature. Guess what....aluminum is a tri-valent metal and
    so the aluminum has an 'affinity' with a tri-valent coating. Enter di-boride, a quad-valent (four-valent??.....one-more-than-three-valent??
    ...two-less-than-hex-valent??) and its 'as greasy as a butchers prick' as my grandmother used to say!

    I tend to use flood-cooling. I'm not convinced that the oil is as significant as the flood washing the chips out of the cutzone. Having said that
    I have still had Built-Up-Edge in 5083 aluminum with flood cooling. Thats why I tried di-boride...and was impressed.

    Craig

Page 9 of 10 78910

Similar Threads

  1. Milling bits
    By genesiospinola in forum Community Club House
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 08-01-2013, 12:47 PM
  2. CNC Milling Bits
    By continentaldia in forum News Announcements
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 07-09-2012, 07:25 AM
  3. milling bits
    By pauley in forum Want To Buy...Need help!
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: 07-05-2012, 01:46 PM
  4. PCB Milling bits
    By reiyuki in forum PCB milling
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 09-14-2008, 06:31 PM
  5. milling bits
    By pike88 in forum WoodWorking Topics
    Replies: 4
    Last Post: 09-24-2007, 06:02 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •