A lot of business owners are looking for ways to maximize the life of their tools. Doing long production runs can be a major burden on machinery and you need to keep your spindles turning as much as they possibly can without breaking down or losing efficiency. This is a topic on many machinist’s minds, so here are three important tips to help increase your CNC tool life:
1. Use the Correct Feeds and Speeds
Using the correct feeds and speeds is an important place to begin. If you haven’t already got one, acquire a Feeds and Speeds Calculator (they’re easy to find on sale). It’s simply the best way to keep feeds and speeds at appropriate levels.
2. Keep Your Deflection Under Control
Deflection is a killer for endmills, sometimes in ways that are hard to anticipate, and especially with carbide endmills. This is due to the fact that they are rather brittle and cannot be easily bent as with HSS endmills. The majority of machinists are not aware how much deflection they’re coping with until it gets out of hand. Using a good Feeds and Speeds Calculator will help a great deal by telling you exactly how much deflection your parameters can be expected to generate. A top of the line Feeds and Speeds Calculator will allow you to optimize cut parameters well within acceptable deflection limits.
3. Do not Recut
It’s difficult to adequately emphasize the importance of not recutting chips. Be sure your coolant is set up correctly in order to get rid of them. Flood coolant can sometimes turn into “dribble” coolant. This is because some machines don’t have full enclosures. Use mist for these kinds of machines, otherwise, the dribble will cover the chips obscuring them from your view.
For professional equipment repairs or cnc repairs, contact the team at Northline Industrial today!