The 5-axis roughing pass I always skipped is now my default

I used to run shallow stepdowns on every pocket because I thought it was safer. Last month on a stainless job, I tried a 0.08" depth with a 0.5" feed per tooth and it cut cycle time from 47 minutes to 31. The finish was rougher but the semi-finish pass fixed it in one go. What changed my mind was watching the tool wear evenly instead of chipping on the corners. Now I rough fast and leave 0.02" for cleanup. Anyone else run aggressive roughing and deal with chatter on thin walls differently?

1 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

1 Comment

miles_grant3515d ago

Man that cycle time drop is no joke, 31 minutes vs 47 is a massive win. Ive been burned trying to push feeds on thin wall stuff before too, ended up scrapping a part cause the chatter got so bad. Sounds like you found the sweet spot though, leaving that 0.02" for cleanup makes total sense and lets the rougher do what it does best. Good on you for sticking with it and watching the tool wear instead of just guessing based on sound or feel.

2