No, not the latest food fad.
Most of the machining I've done has been on aluminium. Last night, armed with my new MikeyModel™ HSS bit, I tossed some 5/8" steel rod (Home Depot's finest) on my Sherline lathe and had at it. With a bit of experimentation I was able to take off a consistent .015 and get a decent finish. It was definitely noisier than working in Al.
The chips coming off were of the long loosely curled type. One edge was ragged and the colour was a lovely blue. I know the blue means that the chip is taking the heat away, which is good, but I wonder if it means there's too much heat being generated. I also don't care for the rotating razor sharp rat's nest. Not sure what the ragged edge tells me; well it doesn't tell me much, but maybe it does for someone more experienced.
I'm going to try some more experiments if I can get some time this evening, but I thought to shorten the experimentation time by asking those more knowledgeable than myself.
What should I try first?
Most of the machining I've done has been on aluminium. Last night, armed with my new MikeyModel™ HSS bit, I tossed some 5/8" steel rod (Home Depot's finest) on my Sherline lathe and had at it. With a bit of experimentation I was able to take off a consistent .015 and get a decent finish. It was definitely noisier than working in Al.
The chips coming off were of the long loosely curled type. One edge was ragged and the colour was a lovely blue. I know the blue means that the chip is taking the heat away, which is good, but I wonder if it means there's too much heat being generated. I also don't care for the rotating razor sharp rat's nest. Not sure what the ragged edge tells me; well it doesn't tell me much, but maybe it does for someone more experienced.
I'm going to try some more experiments if I can get some time this evening, but I thought to shorten the experimentation time by asking those more knowledgeable than myself.
What should I try first?