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Tried faster feed rates on aluminum and got a better finish
Everyone always says slow down for a good surface finish on aluminum. I was running 6061 at about 30 IPM with a 1/4 end mill and getting those chatter marks no matter what. Pushed it up to 50 IPM on a whim and the finish came out glass smooth. Chip load theory says it should work but nobody talks about it. Has anyone else found that going faster actually cleans things up better than babying the cut?
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riley5813d ago
Wait, have you talked to my buddy Mark about this? He was fighting the same exact thing on his little home mill, running 6061 with a 3/8 end mill and getting that nasty chatter no matter what he did. He tried everything, slow feeds, different stepovers, even swapped coolant brands just hoping for a miracle. Then one day he accidentally left the feed rate at 80 IPM from a previous steel job and said the chips came off like little ribbons and the finish looked like a mirror. He legit thought the machine was broken at first. Now he swears by pushing feed rates way past what the old machinists taught him, says you gotta let the tool actually cut instead of rubbing the material to death.
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