Machining

Midwest Industrial Tool Grinding Inc. (MITGI) expanded its standard line to include more than 280 thread mills. The tools are available uncoated or with an AlTiN coating. The line includes single-flute, NPTF full-form straight or helical, NPT full-form straight or helical, UN full-form straight or helical, and metric full-form straight or helical thread mills. Specials can be ordered.

Leistritz Advanced Technologies Corp. designs cutting tools to fit any spindle in any machine tool. It offers tools for end facing, profile form turning, endmilling, step drilling, thread milling and key seating. According to the company, this high level of expertise and specialization is available to manufacturers seeking to enhance productivity in the aerospace, automotive and medical fields.

G.W. Schultz Tool Inc.'s HGW series tools are available with four, five or seven flutes and are for machining high-temperature alloys, tool steel and most stainless steel alloys. Designed for high-efficiency machining, the nACo-coated tools are suitable for full slotting, climb milling and dry cutting with a high feed.

Sandvik Coromant Co. says the GC4305-grade insert maximizes metal-removal rates, shortens processing times and enhances component quality when turning steel. It is made of a heat-resistant cutting material that is suitable for dry machining, which is ideal for automotive part manufacturers that seek to avoid the stresses tools experience as a result of temperature fluctuations.

Cobra Carbide Inc.'s ADDER universal endmills have a 40° helix and a variable-flute geometry. According to the company, the endmills enable chatter-free milling in hard, ferrous materials and impart fine surface finishes. The coatings reportedly allow users to dramatically increase feeds and speeds, take deeper DOCs and extend tool life.

Mikron Corp. Monroe provides cutting tools from 0.004" (0.1mm) to 0.25" (6.0mm) in diameter for machining stainless steel, titanium, chrome-cobalt and high-temperature alloys. These include the CrazyDrill Twicenter with through-coolant ducts for centering, the CrazyMill Cool through-coolant milling cutter, the CrazyMill Chamfer deburring tools and the CrazyDrill Inox drill, which is available with or without through-coolant.

Iscar Metals Inc. offers Heli IQ Mill inserts for numerous milling applications across a variety of industrial sectors. The three helical cutting edges reduce cutting forces and power consumption, according to the company. The inserts are now available in cermet for machining medium to hard materials, are peripherally ground for milling stainless steel, and are ground sharp and diamond-polished for cutting aluminum.

Seco Tools LLC offers PCD05- and PCD20-grade PCD-tipped milling inserts for its Turbo 10 cutter bodies. The inserts are suitable for cutting aluminum, titanium, polymers and fiber-reinforced composites. When used with carbide inserts, the PCD-tipped inserts act as wiper inserts in fixed pockets.

Heimatec Inc.'s line of 1:4 live tool speed multipliers enable tools to reach a maximum speed of 24,000 rpm. They are available for all popular live tool lathes. The speed multipliers are provided as axial or radial drilling and milling heads, with either internal or external coolant.

Zoller Inc. offers the »pomBasic« inspection device. The »pomSoft« image-processing software measures the geometries of drills, milling cutters, countersinks and now saw blades.

Okuma America, Charlotte, N.C., recently introduced the MU-4000V, a 5-axis vertical machining center said to be ideal for 5-axis multi-sided machining within the aerospace and die/mold industries. The MU-4000V reportedly offers high-speed, process intensive machining combined with turning and 5-axis multitasking machining.

Diamond burnishing is ideal for a variety of parts and ductile metals under 40 HRC, including steel, stainless steel, aluminum and cast iron. A cast iron shaft which started at a preburnished 67 Ra microinch surface finish yielded a 10 Ra microinch finish with a 0.0005" material compression in a single pass at 750 sfm.