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The old guy who trained me said never run a finish pass dry, I still do it on aluminum
He was adamant about it and I respect him, but on 6061 with a sharp 3 flute I get a better finish at 8000 rpm with a light air blast than I ever did flooding it. Ran 40 parts last Tuesday and the surface came out like glass. Anybody else break the 'rules' on purpose and get away with it?
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daniel_walker6d ago
The "never dry" rule comes from old timers running HSS tooling where heat buildup would kill the edge in seconds. With carbide and 6061 you can get away with air blast because the chips carry most of the heat out and the material is gummy enough that coolant just makes a mess. If you're getting glass finishes at 8000 rpm and the tool life holds up, keep doing it, but watch your cutter after a few hundred parts to make sure it's not wearing faster than you think.
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kelly2586d ago
Man, @daniel_walker, you saying coolant just makes a mess on 6061 is news to me, I always figured it was helping. So how are you checking tool wear after a few hundred parts, just eyeballing the edge or actually measuring it?
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