Can HSS endmill mill down Chinesium tool steel?

[darkzero]

Will, do you have a recommendation or have had good luck with any particular ones?

Not really, I don't stick with any particular brand name if that's what you are asking. I just buy whatever is USA made & haven't had any bad experiences with any of the ones I have bought. I have heard that Chinese carbide endmills are pretty decent compared to the quality of many Chinese HSS end mills. I haven't tried any myself though. Mainly cause I don't want to wait for shipping from China for an endmill & I don't use metric sized end mills.

 

[stioc]

I linked a carbide end mill in post #4 (the 6mm for $4 works great):
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32798922280.html?spm=2114.search0604.3.37.1dea3b11dh1gHT&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_6_10065_10068_10130_10547_319_10059_10884_317_10548_10887_10696_321_322_10084_453_10083_454_10103_10618_10307_537_536,searchweb201603_52,ppcSwitch_0&algo_expid=aab84b0b-cf84-425c-8cdd-fa24cb5fb6a7-5&algo_pvid=aab84b0b-cf84-425c-8cdd-fa24cb5fb6a7

Thanks, I saw that and I actually added it to my cart but my most recent order from BG and Ali took almost 4 weeks to arrive even with the priority shipping. So I was hoping to grab something locally.

Not really, I don't stick with any particular brand name if that's what you are asking. I just buy whatever is USA made & haven't had any bad experiences with any of the ones I have bought. I have heard that Chinese carbide endmills are pretty decent compared to the quality of many Chinese HSS end mills. I haven't tried any myself though.

OK thanks! I was wondering if you were suggesting the indexable ones or just the regular endmills.

 

[darkzero]

OK thanks! I was wondering if you were suggesting the indexable ones or just the regular endmills

Oh no not indexable, just regular end mills. I just have a RF-45 style mill, I prefer regular end mills over indexable end mills. I do have a 1" 4 flute indexable end mill but I don't use it much. I use 1/2", 3/8", & 5/16" end mills the most & sometimes 9/16". I do have a few 5/8" & 3/4" end mills but I never use them.

 

[Buffalo21]

If the difference is small, Shars sells an 250-101-XL tool holder for 5/8" tools on an AXA QCTP. The floor of the slot is slightly lower than the standard AXA tool holders.

Good post

I just measured the bottom flange on the 250-101XL tool block, its approx .402”, the standard 250-101 tool block’s flange is approx .435”. I measured 6-8 of the standard blocks, all of them fell in the .433” to .435”, so the .435” was about average. On the 6 XL blocks, I checked, ranged from .400” to .404”, so .402 was about average.

 

[stioc]

Good post

I just measured the bottom flange on the 250-101XL tool block, its approx .402”, the standard 250-101 tool block’s flange is approx .435”. I measured 6-8 of the standard blocks, all of them fell in the .433” to .435”, so the .435” was about average. On the 6 XL blocks, I checked, ranged from .400” to .404”, so .402 was about average.

Thanks for that info, it's very helpful! It sounds like I'll still need to mill down the shank since it sits about .08 off.

 

[ericc]

I had a similar problem. The tool could be cut with a file, barely. But, the cheap Chinese end mill sets just bounced off, and made the mill (a Jet Bridgeport clone) shake horribly. Probably a combination of mill and tool not being up tot he challenge. I fabricated a small vertical (or maybe it should be called axial) flycutter with a cobalt bit in it. Spun it slow and fed it very carefully, and it did the job. One cut dulled the bit, but I could sharpen quickly on a grinder. This is really a one time deal, and this is not the pro way to do it, but at least it worked.

 

[John TV]

I dulled several different cutters then tried a carbide straight "burr" tool. Very small cuts and slow feed but worked great. A mess to clean though with tiny needle like chips. Just an alternative. John, Minnesota


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[pontiac428]

You could always mount the work to a face plate on the lathe and work it that way. It's similar to using a fly cutter, but you can do it in the lathe with a heavier cutting bit. Reason I'm mentioning it is a single point can do lot better than an end mill on hard materials using small hobby-grade machines.

 

[matthewsx]

I did something like this with my belt sander, just took of a little at a time and quenched with water.

Maybe not strictly orthodox but it worked for me.

John

 

[mikey]

I would do as John York and Will said. Check the tool holder with a file and if it cuts, you can use an end mill to cut it down to size. I've trimmed down 1/2" Seco and Iscar tool holders with a simple HSS Co end mill to get them on centerline. They were hard but not that hard and HSS Co handled them with no issues.