In Lewis Carroll's 1860s classic tale, near the start of her grand adventures in Wonderland, title character Alice found herself growing smaller and smaller after drinking a mysterious liquid.

Alice's journey may have been the stuff of fantasy. But the goal of getting into smaller and smaller spaces has taken a very real step forward with the release of the CrazyMill Cool P&S by Switzerland-based cutting tool manufacturer Mikron Tool SA Agno.

The CrazyMill Cool P&S enables users to drill and mill into slots and pockets in extremely small spaces. The diameter range is from 0.39" to 0.236".

The tool, which is the latest product release in the CrazyMill line that Mikron introduced in 2009, is specifically designed to machine stainless steel, titanium, superalloys and chromium-cobalt alloys. In addition, it is suitable for cutting cast iron, nonferrous metals, steel up to 40 HRC and plastics.

The design of the CrazyMill Cool P&S enables one tool with a diameter as small as 1mm to combine vertical plunging, groove milling and finishing. Image courtesy of Mikron Tool

Users are able to combine drilling and milling in one tool. In that regard, it combines high-speed cutting with high-performance milling. For example, the tool can vertically drill up to 1 diameter deep and then move laterally for milling into solid material. This versatility makes the tool ideal for milling grooves and pockets, such as keyways (feather keys) found in drive shafts.

The bit's head section gathers the chips while drilling, removing them sideways through the flutes. The geometry design stabilizes the drilling process and allows for vibration-free vertical plunging. Eliminating the
vibration also protects the integrity of the cutting edges.

The 3-flute CrazyMill Cool P&S integrates coolant supply ducts in the shank. The ducts, which number from three to five depending on the mill's diameter, enable a constant coolant stream to flush chips from even the tiniest spaces while keeping the cutting edges from overheating. This process doubles tool life while leading to higher metal-removal rates, according to Hans Liechti, manager at Mikron Corp. Monroe.

The tools are made from an ultrafine-grain tungsten carbide that was developed especially for the tool. "Our goal was to have a carbide that was extremely tough and resistant to temperature changes," he said.

Mikron's creative team faced a couple of key challenges in developing the CrazyMill Cool P&S. "To begin with, we were combining the drilling and milling in one tool," Liechti said. "As a result, we had to address not only heat-related issues but also wear-related issues."

Part of the solution came from the high-performance eXedur SNP tool coating. "The coating provides resistance to the heat generated by the drilling; it also provides resistance to the wear generated by the milling," he said.

"The eXedur SNP coating is particularly suitable for finishing operations," Liechti added. "More specifically, it prevents material buildup and sticking at the cutting edges. At the same time, it helps with chip removal."

For more information, contact Mikron Corp. Monroe, Monroe, Connecticut, by visiting www.mikrontool.com or calling (203) 261-3100.