Tips for cutting 1050 aluminium

[Davek0974]

Have you got coolant/air/lubricant in there ??

You will get nowhere without it at all on ally.

I am trying to use these exact tools as well but in 2mm and 5mm sizes.

So far i have busted 5 of them including a 5mm!

Have a read through my thread just below ;)

[magicniner]

You stuck the thin material down with carpet tape, right?
Otherwise as you break through your cutout scrap can move around and scrap you, the part or your tooling.
I us a 16mm ally plate to stick down to then clamp the plate to the bed, works great for cut-outs on thin stuff,

- Nick

[Davek0974]

Or, cut/drill all the holes, program a pause in CAM, add some screws through a couple of the holes into the spoil board and then cut the outside.

[magicniner]

With copious air for chip clearance and no lube I have profile cut aluminium parts 20mm thick with hand sharpened budget 1/8" single flute carbide cutters so I doubt it's your cutters,

- Nick

[d4cnc]

Ok guys, thanks.
Yes, I think I underestimated the workpiece holding part.. At the moment, I've got 4 screws in the corners of the 400mmx200mm sheet and 2 screws in the middle. However, definitely will tape down in the future too.


I'll keep those settings for now then, change to coventional milling (I'm using climb) and do full 1.5mm doc tomorrow. (after securing it better)


I've got air on via a 24l compressor at about 30psi through 2x 1.5mm nossles directly blowing on the cutter, then a vaccuum cleaner connected right there too. No lube however.


So it's possible to get an ok finish on this aluminium?

[JAZZCNC]

So it's possible to get an ok finish on this aluminium?

Yes no reason why can't get perfect finish but get your self can of WD40 and give cutter several squirts while cutting. It will help with finish and chip sticking.

Always Try to direct the air so it's blowing chips away from direction of cut otherwise you are blowing chips back into path of the cutter which get re-cut and this affects finish.

[sinnsvak]

I use a 6040 and my most used cutter is also 3mm single flute carbide. However, I turn it from 16000 to 18000 rpm around 300mm/min when I slot up to 3mm depth, and 400-500 mm/min when doing full depth (5-10mm) outside contours. I dont think the speeds you posted first would even work on my machine.

I also think a mister is necessary, I use alcohol because I also have a fan that draws the fumes outside.

[d4cnc]

I have two air nozzles at around 90 degrees blowing towards the vacuum cleaner nozzle.. so I was hoping that would be ok no matter which direction the cutter was moving.. I guess it would vary in effectiveness depending on what direction it cuts..


I've got some Draper cutting fluid here that I can use.. or is WD40 more recommended? I can pick some up this evening.. Off to get some carpet tape now. Is that the recommended tape? Ideally I'd like to put it straight on the MDF spoil board if possible? Or shall I get some spray adhesive?


@sinnsvak - are you using single flute? Which aluminium grade are you using?

[sinnsvak]

Single flute all the way with 6040 machines. Tried others, but my machine cant handle it. I think the grade Im cutting the most in is 6082, but I also have some unknown 5mm plate which is very sticky, but the speeds also work well on that.

Each machine, especially our type, varies so much in quality that we probably get different optimal speeds and feeds. I know the settings I posted is right for my machine because:
#1 the finish is great
#2 the sound when it cuts is like music to my ears
#3 the cutters last forever. (been on the same cutter since november, and cutting aluminium 10-20h a week.

WD40 is good stuff, but it is more messy than alcohol, which I get for free from work.


Cutting is one part of this, but fixturing sometimes takes the longest time to figure out. Try different methods and go with what works for you. I often use screws into the spoilboard to keep things in place and flat.

[Boyan Silyavski]

Its like Dean says, you are rubbing it. Quite clear from the photo.