Presented here is avideo of a SideLok long-edge milling cutter from Valenite LLC, Madison Heights, Mich.,machining Ti6Al4V at a cutting speed of 150 sfm, a feed rate of 4.5 ipm, a WOCof 0.375" and a DOC of 1.5" on a 30-hp HaasV65 CNC mill. The key technology of the SideLok systemis the co-location of the fastening system in the normally unused chip gullet space.

This provides the advantage of increased insert density in a tool.In many cases, this can increase the overall feed rate by as much as 100 percent, according to Valenite. When machining wind turbine components, as wellas aerospace and other applications requiring a narrow width and large axialDOC, there is a substantial productivity gain because of the increased feedrate. The time and costs associated with machining large components, such asthose for the wind energy industry, are therefore significantly reduced,Valenite reports.