Mindworks

Step Bore Finishing Systems

Open
Engis Corporation

Cutter Types (Mill)

Mill in the Shop

Milling cutters are cutting tools typically
used in milling machines to perform milling
operations and occasionally in other
machine tools. They remove material by
their movement within the machine or
directly from the cutter's shape.

Milling Machine Tooling

Overview
Various types of mill cutters:
Tool/Step Description

Milling Cut t ers (excluding end mills): Used for a variet y

of operat ions from facing st yles (squaring and
smoot hing faces), as well as cut t ing angles and shapes,
as well as grooves and slot s.[1]

Milling Cutters

Slit t ing Cut t ers: Used for cut t ing a narrow slit int o
mat erial, not used for removing lot s of mat erial.

Slitting Cutter

Gear Cut t ers: Used for cut t ing t eet h int o st ock t o make
a gear.[2]
Gear Cutter

End Mills: End mills are t ools which have cut t ing t eet h at
one end, as well as on t he sides, t hey are used for a
variet y of t hings including facing an edge, and cut t ing
slot s or channels.[3]

End Mills
End Mills:
An endmill is a type of milling cutter, a
cutting tool used in industrial milling
applications. It is distinguished from the
drill bit in its application, geometry, and
manufacture. While a drill bit can only cut
in the axial direction, a milling bit can
generally cut in all directions, though some
cannot cut axially. End mills are used in
milling applications such as profile milling,
tracer milling, face milling, and plunging.
Mill end:
Tool/Step Description

This is a flut e diagram. It shows what a t wo flut e, t hree

flut e, four flut e, six flut e, and eight flut e mill end looks
like from t he bot t om. Then, t he arrows show t hat you
want t o go t o t he right when cut t ing a harder mat erial
and cut t o t he left t o t ake off more chips.

Flute Diagram

There are many t ypes of End Mills t o choose from, and

wit h each st yle t here are a variet y of mat erials including
High-Speed St eel, Cobalt St eel, and Carbide. There are
also many opt ions for how many flut es t here are ranging
from 2 t o 8 normally. Last ly, for each st yle t here are
roughing and finishing end mills.[4]

End Mill Type

Roughing End Mills: Leave a rough finish but cut much

fast er t han t he finishing end mill. It is recommended t o
use one of t hese t o st art wit h, and t hen move t o a
finishing one.
Roughing End Mill

Finishing End Mills: Leave a nice finish on t he st ock you

are working wit h..

Finishing End Mill

Square End Mills: Used for milling a perfect ly square

corner at t he bot t om of your channel.[5]

Square End Mill

Ball End Mills: Machine rounded det ails int o your st ock.[6]

Ball End Mill

Rounded Edge End Mills: Rounded edges on t he t ips of

t he flut es reduce chipping and lengt hen t he life of t he
 t ool. Also known as corner radius end mills, t hey work
well for making molds. Use on cast iron, cast st eel, and
heat -t reat ed st eel. Somet imes called Bull Nose End
Mills.[7]

Rounded Edge (Bull Nose) End Mill

Tapered End Mills: Machine angled slot s in dies and

molds. Also known as t aper degree end mills.[8]

Tapered End Mill

Drilling End Mill: A 90° point angle t urns t hese end mills
int o drills for slot t ing, side milling, beveling, and
profiling.[9]

Drillin End Mill

 Chamfer End Mill: Make beveled and angled cut s wit hout
t he need for hand deburring. Two flut es provide bet t er
chip clearance, while four flut es produce a finer finish.[10]

Chamfer End Mill

Corner Rounding End Mill: Round off sharp corners on t he

edge of your st ock[11]

Corner Ronding End Mill

Concave Radius End Mill: Machine rounded, out ward-

curved edges int o your st ock[12]
Concave Radius End Mill

Convex Radius End Mill: Machine hollow, inward-curved

edges int o your st ock.[13]

Convex Raduis End Mill

Cutters:
Various types of mill cutters:
Tool/Step Description

Used for cut t ing Woodruff keyseat s and ot her precise

not ches in shaft s, as well as slot s.

St raight -t oot h cut t ers work well on high-carbon st eel

and cast iron. Carbide cut t ers are made of premium sub-
micrograin carbide for fast , smoot h cut s. St aggered-

keyseat cutter
t oot h cut t ers have an alt ernat ing right - and left -hand
helix for efficient cut s in mild st eel, aluminum, and brass.
[14]

Narrow-Widt h Keyseat Cut t ers: Used for cut t ing narrow

Woodruff keyseat s. [15]

Narrow width keyseat

T-Slot Cut t ers: Used for milling T-slot s in machine t ool

t ables, indexing t ables, and ot her work holding surfaces
and product s.

Not e: Before using t he cut t er, mill a slot in t he work

surface so t he neck of t he cut t er can ent er t he cut . [16]

T-Slot Cutter
 Dovet ail Cut t ers: Machine slot s for component s t hat
require a sliding fit .[17]

Dovetail Cutter

Bevel Cut t ers: Make uniform bevel cut s in your st ock.[18]

Bevel Cutter

V-Slot Cut t ers: A single pass cut s a V-shaped slot . Also

known as double-angle milling cut t ers, t hey can also mill
not ches, serrat ions, angles, and chamfers.[19]

V-slot Cutter

St aggered-Toot h milling Cut t ers: Wit h peripheral and

side t eet h, cut t ers remove chips for consist ent cut t ing
widt h. Cut t ers are for deep slot s and ot her applicat ions
 requiring maximum chip clearance. Also known as side-
milling cut t ers, t hey have alt ernat ing right - and left -hand
helical t eet h t o remove more met al at higher
feeds/speeds t han st raight -t oot h cut t ers. The keyway
let s you int erlock t wo or more cut t ers of t he same
diamet er so you can cust omize t he t hickness of t he
cut t er t o mat ch t he slot widt h you require.[20]

Staggered-Toother Milling Cutter

St raight -Toot h Milling Cut t ers: Cut t ers are t hinner, have
more t eet h, and leave a finer finish t han st aggered-t oot h
cut t ers. Use for t hin slot s and plunge cut s.

Straight-Tooth Milling Cutter

 Large-Diamet er High-Speed St eel Face Milling Cut t ers:
Used for facing a piece of st ock. They are also known as
shell cut t ers, t hese t ools have a large diamet er for face
and side milling.[21]

Large-Diameter High-Speed Steel Face Milling

Cutters

Large-Diamet er Replaceable Carbide-Insert Face Milling

Cut t ers: These cut t ers remove met al 2-5 t imes fast er
t han comparable high-speed st eel face mills as shown
above. All cut t er bodies accept oct agon, round, and
square carbide insert s.[22]

Large-Diameter Replaceable Carbide-Insert

Face Milling Cutter

Square Tool Bit Flat -Surface Cut t ers:These are used

wit h square t ool bit s for machining flat surfaces.
Compared t o st andard end mills, t hey make wider cut s,
produce less vibrat ion, cut t hin mat erials easily, and can
be run at fast er speeds. [23]
Square tool bit flat

This is a Fly Cut t er; Works well t o t ake of mat erial in one
pass on a larger surface, t his t ool can be hard on t he
machine when working wit h hard met als because of how
far away t he cut t er is from t he cent er of t he t ool.

Fly Cutter

This is a Carbide Face Mill; it does not make as large of

cut s as most fly cut t ers, but leaves a very nice finish,
and is fast er t o cut wit h.

Carbide Face Mill

Slit t ing Cut t ers: These cut t ers do not have side t eet h
which make t hem a good choice for t hin slit t ing and
 slot t ing jobs. They are ground concave for free cut t ing
t hrough your st ock.

To det ermine how many t eet h your cut t er should have,

follow t hese guidelines: 1. Always have at least t hree
t eet h in t he cut . 2. Use more t eet h for t hin and hard
mat erials. 3. Use fewer t eet h for soft mat erials and
larger sect ions. [24]

Slitting Cutter

Gear Cut t ers: Used t o creat e a gear. Det ermine t he

cut t er number you need based on t he number of t eet h
in your gear. The cut t er number has t o do wit h t he pit ch
of t he cut , and t here are many opt ions.[25]

Gear Cutter
Mill cutting speed and feeds
Mill Speeds:
Tool/Step Description

As shown, t he speed increase as t he mat erial becomes

soft er.[26]

shows speed for materials

As shown, t he speed increases as t he t ooling mat erial

becomes st ronger.[27]

speeds for materials

Cutter Material Identification

/ Selection:
High Speed Steel (HSS) tooling is Shiny in
color, and relatively light in weight. Carbide
tooling is dull in color and relatively heavy
compared to high speed steel. HSS is used
for general purpose milling of both ferrous
and non-ferrous materials. Carbide
provides the user with the ability to run
faster with less tool wear
Tool/Step Description

Carbide is st iffer (doesn't deflect as much) and is bet t er

for hard mat erials but Carbide plat ed t ooling can chip
easy, whereas t he more expensive solid Carbide t ooling
is more durable.[28]

Carbide

Cobalt st eel is more resist ant t o heat and abrasion t han

high-speed st eel.

Uncoat ed end mills are for general milling of alloy st eel,

carbon st eel, and cast iron. [29]

Colbalt Steel

Coat ed end mills last longer and can be run at higher

feeds/speeds.[30]
coated end Mill

Long-life TiN (t it anium nit ride) coat ing is good for use on
alloy st eel, aluminum, and plast ic. Max. working
t emperat ure is 1100° F. Color is gold.

Titanium Ntiride

Ext ra-life TiCN (t it anium carbonit ride) coat ing has bet t er
wear resist ance t han TiN coat ing, making it a good
choice for t ough-t o-machine mat erials such as duct ile
cast iron, st ainless st eel, aluminum, and plast ic. Max.
working t emperat ure is 750° F. Color is blue-gray.

Titanium Carbonitride
 Super-life TiAlN (t it anium aluminum nit ride) coat ing is
t he best for very high feeds/speeds and high-
t emperat ure applicat ions. Use t o mill cast iron, st ainless
st eel, nickel-based alloys, and t it anium. Not for use on
aluminum. Max. working t emperat ure is 1470° F. Color is
purple-gray.

titanium aluminum nitride

Centercutting and Non-

Centercutting Endmills
Milling tools are either center cutting or
non-center cutting. Center cutting mills can
plunge straight down into material, while
non-center cutting tools cannot. Notice
that the cutting edges of the center cutting
end mill continues to the center of the tool.
The center of the other has a small hole at
the center. Non-center cutting end mills
require a pilot hole, ramping or helical
motion to plunge into material. the way
you can tell the difference is the teeth of
some cutters do not go all the way to the
center of the end face.

References
1.
http://www.efunda.com/processes/machini
ng/images/mill/end_mill_types_1.gif
2.
http://www.unitedcuttingtool.com/Image/ge
ar_cutter.jpg
3. http://www.paragon-
supply.com/data/Images_Additional/endmil
ls.jpg
4.
http://www.hsmworks.com/docs/cncbook/
en/end_mill_nose_types.png
5. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=myskma
. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=mysoyc
7. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=myspa4
. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=myspt7
9. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=mysq3o
10. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=mysqme
11. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=myss1y
12. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=mysscs
13. http://www.mcmaster.com/#end-
mills/=myssnx
14. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mys3pw
15. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mys6sg
1 . http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mys77f
17. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mys8nq
1 . http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mys9q9
19. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mysajd
20. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mysbj7
21. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mysc97
22. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=mysdpm
23. http://www.mcmaster.com/#standard-
milling-cutters/=myseut
24. http://www.mcmaster.com/#slitting-
saws/=mys1om
25. http://www.mcmaster.com/#gear-
cutters/=myry0d
2 .
http://its.fvtc.edu/machshop2/speeds/rpm
calc.htm
27.
http://its.fvtc.edu/machshop2/speeds/rpm
calc.htm
2 .
http://www.directindustry.com/prod/vertex-
machinery-works-co-ltd/solid-carbide-end-
mills-40770-607572.html
29. http://www.the-carbide-end-mill-
store.com/uploaded/images/products/790-
6-Uncoated.png
30.
http://www.endmill.com/images/coated_to
ols_5.jpg
Retrieved from
"http://mindworks.shoutwiki.com/w/index.php?
title=Cutter_Types_(Mill)&oldid=11180"

Last edited 6 years ago by Tesk0491

Content is available under CC BY-SA 3.0 unless

otherwise noted.