Tormach Superfly Cutter On 1hp Machine?

Mike,

Again, thanks for your feedback. I’m trying to make up my mind between a Superfly and a face mill. I like the prospect of facing a work piece in one pass. I’m a raw beginner on the mill and won’t be doing any production work, so I don’t NEED speedy material removal like Tormach touts for the Superfly. But, it’s more fun to go to the corner mini-mart in a Ferrari (I wish) than in a Chevy Tahoe (I got), right? The Superfly costs less than a Ferrari, and has fewer inserts to mess with than a face mill, so I have ordered one (Superfly, not Ferrari). Thanks again.

Tom
 
I'm afraid I've given a negative impression of this tool but that wasn't my intention; I wanted to give you an honest one. Flycutters are not finishing tools; they are stock preparation tools that produce a flat surface quickly. In that regard, the Superfly does this well.

Let us know how your tool works out, okay?

Mike
 
i bought just the cutter not the whole superfly set up. made my own flycutter holder to hold the superfly bar and insert. Inserts from China, Korloy, get a box of 10 for the price of 2 inserts from Tormach. This tool screams thru aluminum with a mirror finish if you nod the head a thou off so no drag on back cut. For the 50$ I have in it I like it, would it work as well on a bed mill where head can not nod I don't know. In Hot Rolled garbage steel I took a .007" cut 2.5 IPM, 1200 rpm, nice tan chips, not a mirror finish more like a shaper finish using shear tool, looks ground and very smooth, but not mirror. For the bucks I like it.

cheers
michael
 
mikey said:
I'm afraid I've given a negative impression of this tool but that wasn't my intention; I wanted to give you an honest one. Flycutters are not finishing tools; they are stock preparation tools that produce a flat surface quickly. In that regard, the Superfly does this well.

Let us know how your tool works out, okay?

Mike
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Will do, Mike. Be aware that if I don't like it, it's all your fault, but if I do like it, I'm a genius.

Tom
 
Doubleeboy said:
i bought just the cutter not the whole superfly set up. made my own flycutter holder to hold the superfly bar and insert. Inserts from China, Korloy, get a box of 10 for the price of 2 inserts from Tormach. This tool screams thru aluminum with a mirror finish if you nod the head a thou off so no drag on back cut. For the 50$ I have in it I like it, would it work as well on a bed mill where head can not nod I don't know. In Hot Rolled garbage steel I took a .007" cut 2.5 IPM, 1200 rpm, nice tan chips, not a mirror finish more like a shaper finish using shear tool, looks ground and very smooth, but not mirror. For the bucks I like it.

cheers
michael
Click to expand...

Dang, Mike. It took me almost a month to get my column trammed and now you tell me to nod the head? :bawling:
I can see how that would work, though. Glad it works for you - I have to play with it some more. I hope I can get it to work as expected but we'll see.
 
Wreck™Wreck said:
If you really need to bang out parts on a knee mill a B52 inserted fly cutter is the bees knees. Uses common cheap TPG 32 inserts and is balanced, when run at the max spindle speed it will fling chips across the shop.

http://www.kristitool.com/b-52.php
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Thanks for the heads up. Never heard of the B-52 fly cutter before. Cuts to a shoulder, too! If I can't get what I need out of that Superfly I'll give this one a try.

b52cutter.gif
 
I received my Superfly today. I wiped the oil off, assembled it with the same insert that Mike referenced above for aluminum, slapped it in a 3/4” R8 collet, stuck a piece of 1”x2”x4” aluminum block in the vise, 2” side up, and set the spindle speed to 1400 rpm. First pass was .005” DOC, slow feed, probably 4 or 5 ipm. Was my first experience with a fly cutter. I was astounded at the finish it left. Not quite mirror, but close. More like Mike’s pics in post #7 above.

Next pass was .010” DOC at same speed and feed with same result as the first pass. I eventually worked my way up to .035” DOC, 2000 rpm, 13 ipm. The finish looked the same as the first cut. My 1 hp mill wasn’t even breathing hard. The guy on youtube is right, the Superfly is a chip slinging maniac. I had shrapnel all over my shop room.

I squared up the rest of the block at .010” DOC, 2000 rpm and 13 ipm. When I get time, I’ll play some more with the DOC and feed. Bottom line… I like it, I like it! It’s nice to face a 2” wide bar in one pass vs the 4 passes it took with a 3/4” end mill. Thanks to Mike for being my guinea pig and testing his Superfly on a 1 hp machine. I owe you a beverage of your choice, Mike.

Tom
 
I guess you're a Genius now, right? Glad it worked out for you, Tom.

I think the finish is what it is. I don't know what other guys are getting but a mirror finish is a mirror finish and that is not what I'm getting. I'm going to go precision tram my vise and see what that does.
 
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