b'Give and Take MacArthur said the majority of toolsto last the longest and give you the with less than 10% cobalt have amost wear resistance.submicron grain size.to lead the market or beat the com- Because aluminum is easy toPlaying Flutespetition, youre not going to be atmachine, youre taking 149-kW (200- When milling aluminum, the num-a low surface footage or low chiphp) cuts and removing 70-plus lbs.ber of flutes on a tool is critical. Wal-loads unless the material or the part(32-plus kg) of material per min- ther said a three-flute tool is com-dictates it. It depends on how cleanute, which generates a tremendousmon and effective for performing the material is in the casting. amount of force, he said. So youconventional roughing and semi-MacArthur agreed that 305 m/ want the toughest tool thats goingfinishing. Two-flute tools, however, min. is a nice starting point when machining cast aluminum with high silicon content but said a starting suggestion is unnecessary when cutting wrought aluminum.On the wrought side, we are un-limited, he said. We have custom-ers taking a 1"-dia. (25 mm) tool atEnhance your cost savings goals with rotary 33,000 rpm, which is a huge amount of surface footage. tool reconditioning services from StarA tool well suited to cut aluminum- Star and other tooling manufacturers productsstarts with its substrate. An end- Edge Preparation and Coating selections user can apply an HSS tool, but car-bide cutters generally are needed- Trouble shooting available on your requestto boost removal rates and extend- Serviced and reconditioned in the U.S.A.tool life. Parker recommends a car- - Ask about our pick-up and delivery programsbide grade with less than 10% co-balt because it tends to stick to a tool when exposed to a high level of heat, resulting in built-up edge and dulling upsharp cutting edges. But a tool with too little cobalt might be too hard and therefore too brittle.While a low-cobalt-content tool is fairly hard, to handle the high amount of horsepower needed to effectively cut aluminum, the toolDeep Hole Drills Fixed Pocket PCD Retip and Resharpening alsomustbesomewhattough. Thats where grain size plays a role. contributorsLMT Onsrud LP800-234-1560www.onsrud.comOSG USA Inc. Solid Carbide Form Tools Solid Carbide Drills800-837-2223www.osgtool.com For pricing, sizes or to request a quote, give Star SU a call or visit ourwebsite:RobbJack Corp.844-342-0222 248-474-8200 www.star-su.comwww.robbjack.comctemag.com/cteguide.com31Aluminum.indd 31 6/15/20 6:07 PM'