Machining

Watch Sandvik Coromant Co.'s CoroMill 365 cutter mill an engine blockmade of compacted graphite iron in this online complement to our September CTE cover story.

The debut episode of Cutting Tool Engineering magazine's Grinding Doc Video Series fields a question from a shop wondering about the relationship between coolant velocity versus the flowrate. Dr. Jeffrey Badger, the host of the video series, takes a look at the coolant issue.

Talking Shop August 2009 column

The creation of a part program for a CNC machine tool usually starts with a part drawing or model that contains the part material, geometry and tolerances.

Dear Doc: I grind small parts with intricate geometries. I'd like to get a handle on what kind of Ra values I'm generating and if the grinding process changes I'm making are improving or worsening the surface finish. I was told to purchase a profilometer. Is this the best route to go?

Combination tooling, custom fixtures and creative solutions help Apex Precision thrive.

Understanding tool geometry and selecting the right tap for different workpiece materials can help take the anxiety out of tapping operations.

Check out this brief video from Kennamental Inc. showing a side-by-side comparison of an HSS tap vs. a solid-carbide tap. The video accompanies CTE's August cover story on selecting the right tap for different workpiece materials. The split-screen video demonstrates the significant productivity advantage of the first solid carbide tap specifically engineered for tapping steels.

In today's market, a machine shop often has millions of dollars invested in machines. Typically, a hefty amount is also committed to payroll. For a shop to be profitable, these two assets must work together efficiently.

Eagle Machine Inc., in Abbotsford, B.C., frequently takes on challenging jobs, such as modifying a diving bell for deep-sea submarine rescues or designing and machining a set of solid aluminum wheels for an 800-mph land speed car based on an F-104 jet aircraft.

Unlike lathes, which have been around for thousands of years, milling machines are less than 200 years old. Because they require much more power than hand-driven lathes, the introduction of milling machines had to wait for the invention of industrial water and steam power.

Machine tool users can access the information contained in a stability lobe diagram to greatly increase productivity.