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- Jan 22, 2011
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All depends on how much polishing you want to do. Naturally, the finer a finish pass you make, the higher grit polishing you can start with. About the best you can actually machine won't be a mirror. On a typical manual lathe, you are limited primarily by spindle speed to the point you cannot use any "supertools" that require outrageous sounding surface speeds. You can try alternatives to carbide, such as cermet, ceramic, CBN, but your results may only be marginally better as cut.
Also a big factor is the particular alloy. Some may respond better, or faster to polishing. I'd say the softer alloys, while maybe being harder to cut a smooth finish on, would obviously polish faster (and damage, scratch, etc.) that some of the harder alloys. There are a few things to consider when searching for the optimum choices here.
Also a big factor is the particular alloy. Some may respond better, or faster to polishing. I'd say the softer alloys, while maybe being harder to cut a smooth finish on, would obviously polish faster (and damage, scratch, etc.) that some of the harder alloys. There are a few things to consider when searching for the optimum choices here.
