Evan Jones Thorne, who served as associate editor of Cutting Tool Engineering magazine through February 2017, holds a bachelor’s degree in English and communications from Northern Illinois University. Evan joined Cutting Tool Engineering in October 2013.
As children, we likely all learned the hard way that drastic temperature changes cause objects to change size—whether it was leaving a soda in the freezer too long to get it cold or breaking your turtle's terrarium by cleaning it with hot water after it had been resting on the cold ground (sorry, Mom and Dad!).
Machine shops can be dangerous places, but a combination of planning, housekeeping and the proper safety equipment reduces the risk of injuries, audits and lost time.
High-speed machining is an amorphous term, but can generally mean anything from 10,000 rpm to, at least theoretically, 500,000 rpm or higher. At high speeds, even the slightest toolholder movement or runout can drastically reduce tool life, spindle life, surface finish and part quality.