Tried a slower feed rate on aluminum and got a mirror finish by accident

I was running a 6061 part last Wednesday on my Haas VF-2 and decided to drop my feed from 40 IPM to 20 IPM just to see what would happen with surface finish. I was using a 1/2 inch carbide end mill with a 0.03 stepover. The part came out so smooth I could see my face in it, no polishing needed. My boss walked by and asked if I used a new tool, but nope, just slowed it down. Now I'm wondering if I should run all my aluminum finish passes around 18 to 22 IPM. Has anyone else tried dropping feed way below the normal ranges and got better than expected results?

2 comments

2 Comments

victor_butler5027d ago

bet you were getting some serious tool deflection at 40 IPM without realizing it. the slower feed lets the carbide actually shear instead of push, that's the real difference.

the_john26d ago

dunno if it's really that deep, seems like plenty of guys run 40 IPM just fine with the right DOC @victor_butler50.