As easy as one-two-three? Milling aluminium intelligently

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International Metalworking Companies

Together, they supply a dynamic, comprehensive line of precision carbide metalworking tools. These companies produce a wide range of carbide inserts, carbide endmills and cutting tools, covering most metal-cutting applications. IMC also provides engineering and manufacturing solutions to major industries throughout the world. Many innovative products, designed specially for customer requirements, have made the IMC a world leader in major manufacturing industries such as automotive, aerospace and die & mould production. The group includes over 130 subsidiaries today, operating in over 60 countries.

Iscar has been introducing a myriad of new products, each one aiming for the three P's: higher Productivity, Profitability and Performance:

New grades and coatings to enable cutting tools to machine faster, run cooler, resist built-up edge and last longer.

New geometries to reduce cutting forces, save energy, improve chip control and provide more edges per insert.

More versatile multifunction tools to support the "complete machining" trend on CNC mill-turn centres.

Stronger self-clamping designs on stationary tools, enabling them to withstand heavy-duty interrupted cuts.

Influencing productivity with an optimised chip flow

Iscar’s ECR-B3-R-C family of 3-flute, solid carbide endmills are designed for rough machining at high MRR. The innovative endmills have serrated cutting edges that divide wide chips into narrow chips that are easily evacuated. Inner coolant channels directed to each cutting edge enable the delivery of uninterrupted coolant flow to the cutting zone. These two design features, in combination with polished flutes, significantly improve chip evacuation abilities, allowing considerably increased productivity. The serrated edge that chops the chips also enhances vibration resistance, and together with the relieved neck of the endmill contributes to stable cutting under high tool overhang conditions.

Why does the ECR-B3-R-C family have three flutes and no more? In milling aluminium, chatter and unwelcome vibrations that are generated during the cutting process are a factor of primary importance. Various researches and metalworking practice show that a three-flute configuration is the optimal design for 90° solid carbide endmills for machining aluminium. In high-efficiency milling, this arrangement ensures a flute volume that is necessary for chip flow, whilst it does not increase chatter. The majority of the endmills for use on aluminium are based on this approach and Iscar’s ECR-B3-R-C is no exception.

At the same time, the desire to increase the productivity of endmills led to the launch of an innovative 4-flute Iscar design. Chatterfree ECA-H4…CF is a family of endmills that provides an extra flute to help increase MRR for both roughing and finishing operations. Although a 4-flute structure, these endmills have impressive vibration dampening abilities thanks to the inclusion of a non-equal flute helix and the variable angular pitch of its teeth. Also, Iscar’s tool designers succeeded in creating a core diameter and the cross-section area of a flute, similar to the already existing 3-flute endmills of the same diameter from the ECA-H3 family.

The die & mould and aerospace industrial sectors need small-size milling tools for the precise machining of 3D surfaces. A newly introduced family of solid carbide ball nose endmills, EBA-B2, with polished flutes and a diameter range of 1-6 mm, is intended precisely for these kinds of demanding applications. The family extends the lower range of the 8 to 25 mm diameter Multi-Master MM EBA replaceable ball nose heads.

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The Multi-Master family of assembled tools, comprising shanks of different configurations and a great variety of replaceable cutting heads, is ideal for milling aluminium, especially in applications requiring the high overhang of a tool.

Long-reach solid carbide endmills are produced from expensive carbide rods of considerable overall length. Despite the small fluted part of an endmill being directly involved in cutting, after tool wear or a sudden breakage, the whole expensive rod needs to be thrown away. This is a serious economic disadvantage. In contrast, in such cases, Multi-Master users only need to replace the cutting head.

To conclude, it is fair to say that milling aluminium is easy, if performed intelligently! Apply an efficient cutting strategy and use Iscar’s correctly chosen milling tools for successful results.

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