Single flute carbide cutters

[JAZZCNC]

will it give better finish to the work too?

Well with out knowing what finish you get it's hard to say but I dont have any complaints. I very rarely cut less than 1mm Doc often it's 1.75mm @ 1100mm/min 10-12000rpm and still get a nice finish. Even when I'm being greedy and cutting upto 3mm Doc the finish is ok but it does wear the cutters quicker so found the best balance is around 1.5-1.75mm mark.
If I need fine finish then I just use a finish pass of 0.2mm and moderate feed rate.

Really you will need to play with your machine for the best balance regards ideal cutting speeds as every machine is differant but don't be affraid to let rip.!. . . You'll know when you've hit the sweet spot by the sound and the nice stream of chips flowing off the cutter.! . . . When a single flute is cutting sweet it's like taking a piss after you've been busting for hours.!! . . . Strong flow and nice Arghh sound. :rofl:

[Jonathan]

4 flute end mill doesn't leave much space for chips at all, so they're going to get re-cut / rub etc causing the poor finish you describe. 0.3 DOC at 350 mm/min is pretty pathetic ... as Jazz said you should be able to get a lot more than that.
On my router, which compared to a mill isn't very rigid, I've been using 1.2mm DOC (sometimes 2mm for short periods) at 700mm/min and 12000rpm. Clear the slot of chips and put some cutting fluid in it before the cutter gets round.
Since your max spindle speed is 2700rpm, not 12000rpm, you want to reduce the feedrate roughly proportionately for the single flute cutter to get the same chip load and increase the depth of cut.

The video I posted earlier in the thread should give a reasonable idea of what it looks/sounds like. Finish is generally good - here's an example where I didn't do a finishing pass as such. 23mm thick if I recall correctly:


And another with a different grade of aluminium (showing how grade can make a big difference):

[cooliced]

Thanks for the replies guys. ive hated watching the slow shitty speeds ive been running.

Gonna get some on order

[HankMcSpank]

. . . When a single flute is cutting sweet it's like taking a piss after you've been busting for hours.!! . . . Strong flow and nice Arghh sound. :rofl:

I often wondered what the mist setting in Mach3 was for ;-)

[cooliced]

that took about hour n half

[cooliced]

dont suppose anybody has one of these spare i can buy, china are gonna take forever to get here and i wanna get cracking on!

PM me

[Jonathan]

dont suppose anybody has one of these spare i can buy, china are gonna take forever to get here and i wanna get cracking on!

PM me

I can send you one at cost (eBay price divided by number in listing plus postage) - will PM you.
You'll soon be wanting more.

[JAZZCNC]

Yep I just bought 5 will PM Ya.

[cooliced]

thank you very much

Stu