Types of cutters for metal: what types are there and their purpose

1. Design and operating principle
2. Classification of cutters: by what parameters
3. Types of cutters for metal
4. Classification of cutters according to some characteristics
5. Nuances of choice
6. Storage and operation rules
7. Wide range of milling machine capabilities

During milling metalworking, it is important what type of metal cutter the master has chosen. In the article we will talk about the numerous varieties and features of their use - both a beginner and a professional will need this for repetition.

Design and operating principle

This tool is widely used on modern equipment to create a cut of any shape on a workpiece. This is a fairly optimal device that allows you to make holes, grooves, and also remove excess steel.

The tool unit is created from a durable tool alloy with maximum precision. To fulfill the parameters stated in the specifications, processing is used with an end tool with a large set of teeth - cutting inserts adjust the parameters to 1 micron.

Structurally, the cutter has several sharp working edges. Inserts are often made from diamond, ceramic and carded wire for durability.

The structure consists of:

• • Parts to work with.
• • Tail.
• • Center hole.
• • End teeth and grooves between them.
• • Necks in the middle.

Each tooth has, in turn, a front and rear surface, a cutting edge.

The operating principle is that the tool rotates quickly. At the same time, the workpiece moves. Upon contact, the top layer of steel is cut off mechanically under the influence of pressure.

Cylindrical cutters

Horizontal milling equipment uses cylindrical cutters with straight and helical teeth. Accordingly, carbide cutting edge plates will have the same appearance. Straight cutters are used for machining narrow surfaces. The screw teeth have a smooth stroke, which provides more accurate processing parameters.

Cylindrical cutter

If it is necessary to process a part with a tool inclination angle that creates maximum pressure on the axis, in order not to damage the part, twin cutters with counter-directed teeth are used. This allows you to evenly distribute the load on the axle. During the cutting process with a double cutter, the cutting edge of one element is overlapped by the edge of the counter element. Thanks to this, there is no hint on the finished part that it was processed not with a single tool, but with a composite tool.

Types of cutters for metal

Usually, with versatile activities and numerous tasks, the milling machine operator has a complete set, and he himself knows perfectly well how they work. But newbies need to do a little review.

Disk

They are a disk with teeth. In this case, the cutting edges are either on one side or on both, depending on the purpose. During the metalworking stages (from roughing to finishing), the size of the notches may change. Carbide tools are used under difficult cutting conditions, when it is very difficult to remove chips from the work area. When to use this type of cutter:

• • for trimming edges or sawing;
• • for cutting grooves;
• • for chamfering, etc.

Accordingly, among the disk ones you can find cut-off, slotted and other subspecies. Let's talk about some of them that have design differences.

Double sided

The teeth of such discs are equipped with two cutting edges - a classic one on the end part, and also on a straight surface. This modification is more expensive and more productive.

Tripartite

Even more dangerous teeth - now they are equipped with three blades, that is, on each side - along the edges, at the ends and on top.

Grooved

There is only one edge, located on the working surface. The tool is suitable for not very deep and precise sampling of steel. It can be with a different number of teeth and depth of recesses. One common name for this type of cutter is dovetail. Why? Because the cutting zone has the shape of a truncated cone, like the feathers of a swallow.

End

From the name it is already clear that such a tool works with its side part. It is the ends of the cylinder (of different widths) that are equipped with blades that process the plane of the metal workpiece. The part is installed, respectively, perpendicular to the steel part.

Very often they come with removable plates, which saves the milling machine consumables. This is possible due to the overall massiveness of the structure. The advantages include:

• • Ease of working with flat elements, sheets and stepped surfaces.
• • High metal processing speed.
• • Smooth process.

Cylindrical cutters for metal - what are they?

Shape: cylinder. Quite a massive tool that is convenient for processing planes. This is the main type of equipment for both classic mechanical and CNC machines. The site has a large selection of milling equipment with a numerical control panel. A modern modification allows you to increase the speed and productivity of one workstation, as well as reduce the risk of errors due to the human factor.

Cylindrical tools can have different tooth shapes.

Direct

Less sought after and versatile, even rare. It is good and convenient, but for a very narrow profile of work: the equipment should be located parallel to the headers, and the metalworking area itself should have easy access and a flat surface. In general, such ideal conditions are rare - these are only narrow planes.

Screw

The most multifunctional, universal and, accordingly, in demand. The cutting lines do not go straight, but along a twisted spiral. The specified tilt angle may vary. Depending on the selected faces, virtually any selection can be made - on various parts. Peculiarities:

• • High effort during operation.
• • Possibility of using double tools when the edges are in opposite directions - this reduces the force acting on the edges.

A separate type of cutter is the “corn” cutter, which is used in the processing of ledges and the creation of grooves and their grinding. They look interesting.

Corner

This is a truncated cone that has sharp outer edges and tooth ends. The main purpose of use is metalworking of corners and uneven surfaces, removal of rectangular chamfers. They are also used to make chip flutes and many additional operations. The cutting edges are made with an inclination, which allows you to achieve any working angle. Let's see what subspecies there are.

Monolithic

The second name is all-metal. Their essence is that the entire structure is made of one durable material. An additional improvement is the presence of annular grooves, which allow the formed chips to be easily removed.

Soldered cutting plates (crowns)

Everything is simple here, the tips are selected and then soldered to the base. The teeth themselves are made of hard alloys; there are many modifications of them; crown teeth are common.

For pre-treatment

These are cutters that are not highly accurate, but are designed specifically for rough cutting of a large volume of metal at once.

For the final stage

They have smaller, shallower carbide teeth with other strong abrasives added. They should not be confused with grinding. The goal is to achieve maximum purity in metalworking.

With cylindrical shank

The tail part is not a working part, it does not interact with the workpiece, but serves for reliable fastening in the base fasteners. When the tail is created in the shape of a cylinder, that is, a barrel, the possibilities are quite limited - movement can only be carried out at one angle, so only straight surfaces are processed.

Why do you need cutters with a conical shank?

This modification has much greater freedom of action only due to its adaptation to tilt. Due to this, they are more common, especially when equipping CNC machines. Modern high-tech equipment can be ordered on the website.

End

They are also called finger-shaped because of their neat external type - an elongated cylinder that resembles a finger. Their main purpose is to insert grooves, create recesses, and work with contour ledges. They are very well suited for metalworking of two perpendicular planes. They are divided similarly to angular ones into:

• • monolithic or with replaceable plates;
• • different shapes of shanks;
• • degree of processing – from initial to final.

Shaped

Suitable for the production of chamfers and turning of broaching shaped parts. If they are short, then usually milling is not used, but broaching is used. The appearance of the equipment is interesting - two circles with notches. There are several varieties.

Sharp sharpening

The second name is pointed. Their cutting edge is clearly visible and can be easily re-sharpened. They are easy to adjust if necessary.

Backed instruments

They are very convenient for processing closed grooves, chamfers, and edges. Their cutting knives protrude slightly beyond the main disk, so they are difficult to sharpen.

What hob cutters are there for metal?

This is a multi-bladed tool. Its purpose is to cut gears and splined shafts that have an involute profile. Metalworking involves point-to-point contact of blades with a surface.

Solid and prefabricated

Monolithic tools are made entirely of tool alloys - they are stronger and more reliable. But the second modification is different in that you can change the tips, and also replace them if damaged, making sharpening more convenient.

Single-pass and multi-pass

This is the number of turns that are on the hob cutter. The more there are, the higher the performance, but the accuracy begins to wane. Therefore, a large number of passes are used mainly only for rough finishing.

With ground and non-ground teeth

Simply put, this is the degree of serviceability. The higher it is (fine processing), the better the grinding occurs. While the roughing, roughing, intermediate and even finishing stages are tools that are not designed for grinding.

Core drills

They are used to create holes. You can use the classic spiral variety, but in terms of accuracy they are 4 times inferior to the option under consideration. Their purpose is for CNC machines.

You can hear the name burr. This is a similar accessory, but it is attached to a hand-held electric drill and performs a similar function.

Keyed

A convenient small cylinder with very smoothly arranged turns of cutting edges on the working part. The peculiarity is that there are special recesses that are designed for easy removal of chips.

Conical

Or conical ones. They have the shape of a truncated cone and are suitable not for straight sections, but for rounded parts. One of the varieties is finger-shaped.

Spherical

Not the most popular, they are used in single-pass metalworking in order to create fairly high-quality grooves and shaped ledges. Small blades are located on all sides of the working area.

T-slot cutter

This shape is necessary when creating recesses in the head of fasteners or when preparing shafts with splined joints. Sometimes they are called a fungus; indeed, they have a similar configuration, but upside down.

Prefabricated

This is a very convenient and versatile tool kit, which consists of a base and several holes for fastening the necessary cutters. On the one hand, this is extremely effective; you can combine a lot of functions in one handpiece. But, like any universal thing, it is inferior to a highly specialized one.

End mills

End ones are used for processing parts that need to be given a complex relief with convexities, smooth streamlined transitions from one element to another and concave surface lines. End mills are produced with cylindrical and conical shanks.

End mills

An end mill is used to form deep grooves, shoulders and contour recesses on the body of parts. The main cutting tools of this group of tools are the edges of the teeth located on the cylinder. In this type of work, auxiliary end guards serve to protect the bottom of the groove. The cutter diameter chosen is 1/10 mm less than the required groove width.

Cutting tools are used for milling machines in manual and semi-automatic control modes, equipped with a CNC system and milling and copying equipment. The tapered shank provides greater rigidity of the spindle attachment. Thanks to this, the creation of a complex outline of an object is carried out in compliance with the error inherent in the design of the machines on which this cutting tool is used.

End mill production video

Externally, the end ones resemble a large-diameter drill. But only a small portion of end mills have a cutting element on the bottom of the head. The main processing edges are located on the edges of the tool spirally twisted around the axis.

Application

• processing of the end or side outer plane;
• creating a shaped contour of a part from a rectangular or flat workpiece;
• boring holes created with another metal tool to the required size.

Classification of cutters according to some characteristics

Of course, the above distinctions (by configuration, purpose) are not the only ways to distinguish between equipment. A real milling machine operator has such a large assortment of products that he will not be able to sort it out without difficulty. What other reasons are there for classification?

Different number of visits

The following are considered standard:

• • Single pass.
• • Two-way.
• • Four-lead.

But there can be any number of turns.

The fewer entries, the larger the allocated area for the grooves. The peculiarity of working with such a tool is that at each moment only one specific cutting edge affects the workpiece. This has a very positive effect on creating a product at high speeds and speeds, as it allows waste to be removed smoothly.

This is also relevant when carrying out activities with soft metals and other substances, for example, plastic or PVC, acrylic. They are also used for roughing and roughing procedures, when quality and accuracy are not the most important indicators.

Multi-pass ones are used when working with materials that have a hard and brittle structure. The movement will be smooth, without shocks, because several teeth touch the surface at the same time.

Chip removal type

Everything is simple here - the waste flies either upwards, which is the direction all milling operators are accustomed to handling, or downwards. The first option is most convenient if grooves or a blind hole are created, since metal does not accumulate there. But there is also a minus - part of everything “flying out” can land again on the working area and interfere with good cutting. The second option, accordingly, has narrower capabilities, but is more recommended for some types of work.

Angle cutters

Corner is necessary to create an angular groove and the edge of an inclined or beveled plane. On single-angle cutters, the cutting blades are located vertically, along the conical body and at its end. 2-corner ones are distinguished by the location of 2 cutting edges on interacting adjacent bodies. Most often, these cutters are used in the production of milling tools.

Angle cutters

The small corner one belongs to the end group; it is equipped with a shank. The thickness of its cut is uneven - the minimum value is at the axis of rotation, the maximum value along the diameter of the created circle is at the cutting tip of the tooth. Changes in the cutting angle are reflected in uneven heating of the tool, which quickly disables it. Thinning the teeth one at a time will reduce the heat. To extend service life, it is advisable to round the top of the teeth.

Cut-off cutters

Unlike end cutting, cutting is used for processing only in a straight line. Disc cutters are used to separate the completed part from the overall piece of material. If necessary, disc cutting machines can be used to cut grooves and grooves; they can also make a through cut on a universal milling machine or equipped with CNC. Disc machines are designed for machining cast iron and medium-hard steel.

Cut-off cutters

Machine markings

Short designations consisting of letters and numbers indicate different technical characteristics, purpose, and manufacturer of the units. Markings are divided into two groups:

1. Marking of serial production machines. The first digit indicates the group, the second the type. The letter after the first two digits indicates a modernization of the design. Next, the operational parameter is indicated by two numbers. After it, the CNC type is indicated in one letter with a number. The last letter with a number designates the CNC computing device.
2. Marking of specialized installations. The first two letters indicate the abbreviated name of the manufacturer. After it, the main operational parameter is indicated in three digits. The modification is further indicated by a letter. The last letter and number indicate the CNC computing device.

After such markings, separate symbols may be added that indicate technical characteristics. A more accurate decoding can be found in the tables available on the Internet.

Spline cutters

Spline or worm are used for cutting teeth on the shaft or gear of a gear transmission or spline connection along a side profile. Spline cutters are a whole group of tools with a different arrangement of teeth around the circumference of the disk or only on a cylindrical surface. They also differ in the method of fastening the cutting elements.

Spline cutter