JULY 2019 | Manufacturing Today http://www.manufacturingtodayindia.comCUTTING TOOLS
TURNING & MILLING
30
MILLING AND TURNING HAS COME A LONG
way from merely being up on machines and running
them on objects. According to a science website,
circumstantial evidence for early tools rose years
ago. Scraps of animal bones dated to around 3.4
million years ago bear slice marks that seem to be
intentional.
Materials of tools too have evolved. From steel, it
has come a long way to diamond coating and some-
where along the way carbide, ceramic, cemented
carbide and several others were a part of the cut-
ting tools. However, certain materials exhibit poor
machineability due to their low thermal conductivity,
potential for adhering to cutting tools and the pres-
ence of abrasive particles within the alloy structure.
L Krishnan, MD, TaeguTec India, says, “Machin-
ability of different materials vary based on compo-
sition, grain structure and heat treatment. Realising
this, several years ago, ISO classification according
to application grouped them under six broad catego-
ries: P/M/K/N/S/H.”
Each category would mean the following:- P: for long chipping material like steel
- M: Stainless steel and similar materials
- K: For cast iron and short chipping materials
- N: Non-ferrous
- H: Hard materials
- S: Super alloys
Over the years, cutting tool manufacturers have
upgraded basic tool materials and its capabilities.
This together with advanced CVD & PVD coatings
give customers adequately large number of options
for machining different types of materials. Krishnan
adds, “Industrial sectors like aerospace and medi-
cal are relatively new and growing segments in thecountry. Materials, machining strategies and the
types of machines used like 5- or 6-axis machines
are often similar. However, some parts/components
in the medical industry remain relatively smaller than
what is normally seen in aerospace industry. Cutting
tool materials together with appropriate geometry
and cutting parameters help customers to optimise
machining results and productivity.”
Applications like medical, aerospace,
oil and gas, are likely to use difficult-to-
cut materials. To help customers, Tun-
galoy has launched many grades and
chipbreaker geometries to ensure that
customers get good tool life and produc-
tivity. Jay Shah, MD, Tungaloy India,
says, “We have launched new grades
like AH8000 series in turning and milling
along with suitable chip-breakers that are
working well at customers end for such
applications. Besides this, we also help
customers establish parameters on their
CNC machines for the same.”
Speaking about the solutions that LT
Tools India has, Vivek Kumthekar, GM,
sales and CoC head, milling & thread-
ing, LMT Tools India, says, “We are
prepared to handle the customer’s re-
quirement of difficult to machine materi-
als. Our DHC Hardline range of endmills
is specially designed to handle CoCr
material. HSCline H endmills and taps
are part of our standard programme to
machine hard materials. We also offer
indexable milling tools in different geom-
etries and grades for such materials. For- LMT Tools India -
DHC Hardline - LMT Tool India -
HSCline H
THE TIGER.TEC SILVER
GRADE FOR ISO S
MACHINING LIKE
WSP45S, WSM35S AND
WSM45X COME WITH
DIFFERENT COATING
AND PROTECT
INDEXABLE INSERTS
AGAINST WEAR.
2 3“If a worn-out tool
worth Rs 3000 is used
for machining one
extra job then there
is a possibility of the
work getting rejected
or leading to low
productivity.”- Vivek Kumthekar