End milling, side milling, angle milling or cutting gear hobs. It doesn't matter the machine operation; you need rigidity, precision and control to mill safely. The quality of your machine, your blades, and your saw arbors matters.
Machine Rigidity
The more rigid the machine the more accurate the cuts. Weight is a general indicator of the rigidity of your machine. Generally, the more weight the better. Another factory in rigidity is the amount of contact space between the moving and stationary parts. The more the better. Same for spindle size. A larger spindle is more rigid than a smaller spindle. Vibration is not your friend.
Cutter Selection
Precision and control are also affected by the tool you pick as your cutter. Parts of the cutter are as follows:
Pitch. The angular distance between the teeth and is determined by the number of teeth.
Cutting Edge. This is the edge that faces forward on the tooth. The cutting edge on the tooth that does the actual cutting. The more teeth you have, the higher feed rates you can use.
Land. The land is the space behind the cutting tooth angle.
Rake Angle. The rake angle is the angle between the face of the cutting edge and the center line of the cutter. This angle defines the actual cutting edge. The chips are evacuated from the work piece from along the path of the rake angle. Helical cutters have a helix angle of 45° to 60° and provide a smoother more vibration free cut.
Hole Diameter. Pay attention! This is the where the cutter mounts to the arbor. The size of the hole diameter determines the size of the arbor you need.
Slitting/Slotting Saw Blades. These tools are just very thin versions of a milling cutter. They have the parts described above for all cutters. In addition, they come in various thicknesses. Always use the thickest blade possible for maximum rigidity. Thicker blades behave better than thinner blades. When you set up for cutting, you will need to enter the number of teeth, the cutter diameter, the blade thickness and the cutter material (HSS or carbide).
Saw Arbors
After going through the trouble to make sure you have the right machine and the right cutter for precision and control you need to make sure the saw arbor is part of the game plan as well. The wrong arbor will have your cutter weaving, wobbling, and staggering like a sailor on leave. It's not pretty and it's dangerous.
The Tool Company sells a variety of
saw arbors to give you the precision and control you need to hold your cutter firmly and safely. The deep low profile caps give you extra support exactly where you want it. You get less slippage too.
Ultra precision saw arbors give you even more precision and control. Sold individually or in sets, The Tool Company has the saw arbor for you. Order your saw arbor today.
