Hi guys- Just wondering if anyone can recommend feeds and speeds for some of the typical bits for cutting various types of wood (soft ply, structural ply, and hardwoods).
I'm running the 1.5kW Spindle with a screw drive machine.
The bits I'm using are:
6mm 2 Flute Straight Cut Bit
6mm 2 Flute Compression
3.175mm 2 Flute Straight Bit
Also interested in Upcut and Downcut bits.
Hi Jass & others - Hope you have sorted your F&S's its an old post but a common question. You will need to learn about chip load or feed/tooth. This is called Fz in tooling cataloges. The eqn is Feed/rpm/no of teeth and its the size of the "bite" that the machine takes each tooth. If we look at your 1600mm/min @20k with 2T this is a Fz=0.040mm which is a very small chip, dust really. This size chip is really a rub and is probably wearing out your tool faster then its cutting. You need a bigger chip. For plywood I aim at 0.2mm so thats 4000mm/min/10000rpm/2=0.2mm. I use 1F bits so 4000/20000/1=0.2mm bite size. Once you find the best chip size stick with it. The bigger the chip the better but its limited to the torque availbale at the spindle and the gullet clearance of the tool (plus the stiffness of your machine). A steady stream of chips out of the tool is ideal. Now DOC is a function of the force available at the tool. So twice the depth requires twice the force (or power of the spindle is another way to look at it) Once you get your Fz right stick to it as thats the parameter that you should control. Then go as deep as you can. Using deeper DOC means you get better life out of the tool as well. Have fun everyone Peter
Hi All- Just an update-
I've had a fair bit of success with the CNC3D 4mm x 22mm x 4mm straight cut 2 flute bit. I've been running it at:
1600mm/min @ 20k with 3.8mm DOC for solid Oak
1800mm/min @ 20k with 4.0mm DOC for Birch and F17 hardwood ply
2200mm/min @ ~18.5k with 4.2mm DOC for soft plywoods. (I think I could go faster/deeper).
I haven't gotten around to testing the 6mm endmill's limits yet, but will post when I have more info.
Note that I'm using the CNC 3D 1500x1500 screw drive build with NightHawk controller and 1.5kW spindle, and using Fusion 360 for my CAM.
hi jasshrie, We recommend checking out the "FS Wizard" app on the apple and Samsung app stores. It's got a pretty detailed database of feeds and speeds for a variety of end mills. depending on your machine you may need to dial speeds and feeds down by 20% at first to keep things safe. I hope this helps!