Hi,

the big issue with anodised aluminum is that is very soft and tends to stick to the endmill which will break it within seconds.

So it is primarily a question of the right tool:

  • Single flute bit designed for aluminum. Preferably polished or with a suitable coating to prevent built up of aluminum on its surface. There are large differences between a high quality endmill designed specifically for aluminum from a quality supplier and just a random chinese end mill.
  • Suitable coolant. You don't need to flood the piece - but something like a spray mister will definitively help a lot.
  • But whatever you do - the tools will wear down relatively quick because Aluminum oxide (the anodised layer) is extremely abrasive.


Secondarily the machine:
  • Stiff with no backlash. Otherwise the quality of the cut will look bad and the tools will break prematurely due to vibrations.
  • Spindle with little runout and constant RPM. Again cutting edge quality and tool life.


The machine you've linked to will most likely be unsuitable for aluminum (I see unsupported rails, a strange spindle and do not expect much of the rest). You should expect to pay at least 2-3 times as much.

Christian