Electric drill can be used not only for drilling holes in various types materials. Few people know that with the help of this instrument You can do milling work not only on wood, but also on metal. To carry out such work, you will need a special metal cutter. We will find out further what types of metal cutters for drills exist, and how effective the use of this tool is.

The set of metal cutters for drill includes the following attachments:

• end;
• disk;
• end;
• cylindrical;
• shaped;
• corner

End attachment

1. Often the most popular types for electric drills are end cutters. It is through this type of attachment that the flat surface of the workpiece is processed, thereby removing a layer of metal of the required thickness.
2. Disc nozzles are equipped with cutting teeth located both on the side and on the end. This version of the cutter is used when it is necessary to form grooves or grooves on the surface of the material being processed.
3. Cylindrical models are used in cases where processing of flat areas of metal base products is required. Cylindrical ones, in turn, are divided according to the shape of the edges into straight and helical.
4. The end one is necessary in order to process deep grooves. Such products have cutting edges, both on the side and on the end.
5. Shaped nozzles are used for processing uneven surfaces.
6. Angle cutters have a complex design, so they are used to work with inclined planes and corner grooves.

Cone shaped

Shaped and angular models of drill attachments are used in extremely rare cases. The above types of cutters differ according to the types of tasks they solve. Tools are made from abrasive materials, which allows them to be used for working with metals of various alloys. The design features of cutters are the presence of a tail section and a working area. The tail part is fixed in the tool chuck.

Characteristics of cutters

Metal cutters used for drills have characteristic distinctive features. Some of them, such as cylindrical ones, resemble a drill. Teeth or cutting edges can be located on the side and end parts. The teeth also come in backed and pointed shapes. The latter option has a significant drawback, since both edge surfaces are flat. Backed cutters are popular.

The backed tooth shapes are not afraid of frequent sharpening, unlike pointed teeth. They can be used to perform long-term milling work on metal. Pointed types can be used for a tool no more than 1-2 times, since with each subsequent processing their shape changes. Backed types are the most reliable and durable, which is why they are widely used.

It is important to know! It is not recommended to use a drill as a permanent tool when carrying out frequent milling work with metal, since this tool will not last long.

Ball shape

The main parameters when choosing cutters for a metal drill are:

• Shank diameter.
• The quality of sharpening of the product.
• Material of manufacture.
• The shape and type of cutting edges, depending on the workpiece.

It is best to purchase such attachments in a set, as it will cost much less. The disadvantage of the products in the set is their average quality, so if you need a high-quality attachment, it is better to purchase separately and only of a certain brand.

It is important to pay attention to the integrity of the nozzle, since they can also be assembled. Prefabricated options are less reliable, but also cheaper, so it is recommended to purchase one-piece options.

How to use a drill with an attachment correctly

The practice of using a tool as a primitive milling machine originated quite a long time ago, from the moment of the invention of this tool. For more reliable and efficient processing metal materials It is recommended to make a milling machine from a drill with your own hands. You can even resort to making cutters with your own hands, which can be used exclusively for processing plastic and other materials. As a basis for a homemade cutter, you can take a wheel from a lighter.

It is important to know! It is not recommended to use the tool in your hands with the attachment, since the slightest incorrect movement leads to damage to the cutter or the tool being torn out of your hands.

The optimal solution to avoid damage to the attachment and get a satisfactory result is to make a machine from a drill with your own hands. When using a drill as a router, the following disadvantages should be taken into account:

1. The drill has low speed compared to a stationary milling machine. This will affect the quality of the cut that will be made in the metal workpiece.
2. The tool shaft bearings are not designed to withstand such a load vector, so the drill will not last long if used frequently.
3. The electric motor is not designed to operate for a long time, so it is important to give it a rest.
4. If the tool uses a plastic gearbox, then a different load vector will lead to accelerated wear.
5. A collet chuck, even of the key type, is not able to withstand lateral loads, so it is possible that the attachment may fall out of the tool during operation. It’s not hard to imagine what this could lead to.
6. Unsafe work. If a homemade machine is wooden structure, then it is not recommended to process metal with a milling cutter. This can cause the drill to break out during operation, especially when using disc attachments.

It is possible to work with a tool as a milling cutter, but it is important to think about the rationality of such actions, as well as about your safety. In conclusion, it should be noted that the safety of milling work on homemade machine does not depend on the quality of purchased attachments. In this situation, all consequences will be on your conscience.

Each manicure cutter performs one stage of hardware nail treatment. The nozzles have a certain relief, dictated by their point of application, the purpose of use, each of them cannot be equivalently replaced by a device of a different shape.

Modern nail treatment

– this is the treatment of the nail plate and periungual space, performed with the help of rotating cutters. A hardware manicure is performed without cutting tools - scissors, nippers, trimmers.

Uneven “biting” of unwanted skin around the nail during trimming manicure leads to snags and damage to blood vessels. Electrical nail treatment using cutters is different:

• Low traumatic: with proper pressure, the nozzle cuts off the horny scales without injuring the viable layers of the cuticle with capillaries;
• Forming an even line of the nail hole in one touch;
• The ability to polish and smooth the cuticle, which a trimmed manicure lacks.

Types of cutters for manicure and their purpose

Preparatory stage for hardware manicure

Includes removing artificial coating (top coat, gel polish, gel, acrylic for extensions) and drying the working surface. At this stage, carbide or ceramic materials. Description of cutters for hardware manicure:

Processing of pterygium and ridges

Which cutter to remove cuticles at home:

How to remove rough skin

Materials for nozzles

• Ceramic cutters for hardware manicure. Ceramics are used to remove rough skin from nail folds and are faster than other materials when removing artificial turf. The nozzles can be used at low rotation speeds (up to 30 thousand revolutions).

Ceramic cutters

• Carbide types of cutters, used for grinding cuticles and side ridges. At the preparatory stage, they file off the gel polish for a long time, but with a low probability of damage to the nail plate. This group includes budget steel cutters without notches.

Carbide cutters

• Diamond fixtures contain natural or artificial diamond chips. Budget attachments for beginners. Products with natural particles are used for pedicures, processing rollers, with artificial ones - when cutting off gel coating.

Diamond coated cutters

Top 5 indispensable attachments for beginners

The list of manicure cutters for beginners includes:

1. Due to its structure, the drum cylinder can replace other cutters. His side surface works like a spherical nozzle, the edge - like a truncated or inverted cone.
2. In the arsenal of any master there should be an attachment that penetrates under the side rollers - a needle with a diameter of 1.2 to 1.8 mm.
3. A pointed cone is the golden mean between a cylinder and a fissure attachment. The most convenient cutter for processing rollers.
4. Universal attachment for grinding the nail plate and cuticle – low abrasive corundum cutter or silicone cap.
5. Ceramic corn cutter with fine serrations for sawing artificial materials, polishing the rough skin of the rollers.

Milling cutters for professionals

• Ball-shaped diamond cutter. Beginner users have difficulty working with it, because such a manicure cutter often touches the nail hole when processing the cuticle. The nozzle has different degrees of abrasiveness and a working surface diameter of 23, 25, 27, 31 or 33 mm. Small-diameter cutters are used to process rough, dry cuticles; a large ball is used for final grinding of the periungual space. The master chooses an attachment based on the characteristics of the client’s nails.
• Ceramic “corn” with large notches. If the power of the manicure device is insufficient, the nozzle vibrates, heats up, and damages the nail plate. The cost of the cutter is more than 900 rubles.

Product rigidity

Abrasiveness is the ability of a nozzle to grind down the material with which it comes into contact. The property of the product is given by particles, the diameter of which dictates the degree of rigidity of the instrument and the area of ​​its application: nail plate, leather or artificial material.

The particle diameter and abrasiveness of manicure cutters are determined by the colors of the belt on diamond and ceramic products.

• Black color indicates super coarse products. There are two belts on the mega-coarse nozzles. The products are used for filing extended nails; the cutter should not come into contact with natural nails and skin. For professional use only.
• A green belt indicates a coating of coarse crumbs. The product is used for cutting down artificial turf and rough skin on the arms and legs.
• A cutter with a blue belt and an average chip diameter is designed for working with cuticles and rollers. The most common degree of abrasiveness.
• Red indicates small particles. The cutters can come into contact with the natural nail plate and skin.
• Yellow – extra-fine particles that give minimal abrasiveness to the sawing surface. The scope of application of the nozzle is similar.
• The white belt is a product that polishes the nail.

Combined manicure

Manicure with one cutter using auxiliary tools is not completely hardware, therefore it is called combined.

His technique is simple: the cuticle is lifted not with a needle instrument, but with a pusher, excess skin around the nail is cut down with a pointed conical cutter. To process the pterygium and polish the nail, use a soft polishing file.

How to choose cutters for hardware manicure

• Basic cutters, without which it is difficult to perform a hardware procedure, include a cylinder, a cone, a needle and a grinding attachment.
• Beginning craftsmen should give preference to affordable diamond-coated attachments. Ceramic products are more wear-resistant and expensive.
• At home, you can get by with tools of 4 types of hardness: a white grinding attachment, a red one for removing pterygium, a green one for filing cuticles and rollers, and a blue one for filing artificial surfaces and removing gel polish.
• Attachments with a black belt are not compatible with home manicure devices with speeds up to 30 thousand/min: large notches rotating at low speed can damage the nail plate.
• Pay attention to the service life of the product: beyond this, the cutter will not last at a decent level.
• Products marked with the “T” symbol are durable due to their titanium coating.

Final choice

To fully treat nails at home, you do not need to have attachments of all shapes and degrees of abrasiveness. Just pay attention to the basic tools with popular parameters:

• Red, blue, green belts indicating rigidity;
• Cone-shaped, cylindrical and needle-shaped;
• Material: diamond-coated metal, carbide or ceramic.

After mastering the basic tools, it is easier to determine the requirements for the missing cutters.

The cutter is cutting tool, with the help of which a manual milling machine or a stationary unit performs surface treatment various materials(wood, plastic, metal). Since the equipment is designed for rotational movement, its basic shape will be disc-shaped or cylindrical. At the same time, the cutting edges of the tool can have a rather intricate shape. Hand milling cutters are divided into several types. The most common among them are for wood processing. At the same time, wood cutters also have their own classification. Let's consider what types of cutters are intended for processing wooden surfaces, and how to choose them correctly.

If needed select groove any depth and width, then a groove cutter is ideal for this purpose. Its design allows this operation to be performed both on the face (face) of the part and on its edge. A groove cutter is mainly used when joining parts into a tenon. Also, using attachments for a wood router that follow a ruler, you can cut even grooves of any width.

Shaped

Allows you to attach a groove certain forms, similar to braces. The tool not only selects grooves inside the workpiece, but also changes the shape of the edge ribs. When making a complex pattern on the surface of a workpiece, a straight cutter (groove) is first passed through it. In the future, this simplifies the alignment of the shaped equipment.

The following pictures show the main types of slotted router bits.

Structural

After processing the workpiece with this equipment, a groove similar to a trapezoid is obtained ( dovetail) or an inverted letter “T”.

This method of connecting parts is considered one of the most reliable, since the tenons are pushed into grooves of the same shape, and they cannot be separated by any other method.

V-shaped fillets

Although the word “fillet” refers to a semicircular notch or groove, V-cutters also fall into this category. The tool allows you to select not only vertical grooves, but also grooves at a certain angle. Also, a fillet cutter is often used for decorative carvings and changing the geometry of edges in furniture production.

Fillet

They have a rounded cutting part. If you look at the groove after it has passed through the section, it will resemble letter “U”.

The cutter is used for decorative finishing edges and ends of wood products, creating complex patterns on the face of the workpiece or various fillet recesses (grooves) on the face of the product and on its edges.

Direct

This is the simplest tool, shaped like a cylinder. The groove obtained in the workpiece has a rectangular cross-section.

The equipment is most often used with plunge routers.

Straight groove (finger) cutters are used if you need to select a rectangular groove with a clean bottom, for example, for inserting door locks and hinges.

Edge cutters

In most cases, edge cutters have thrust bearing. Thanks to it, it becomes possible to guide the tool along the template, processing the edges and edges of the workpiece.

Half-rod

The tool creates semicircular protrusions on the edges of workpieces.

If you use a half-rod cutter in combination with a molding or fillet cutter, you can make hinged joints. Rods are also made using a half-rod tool. round section. In this case, the workpiece is processed on both sides.

Curly

These figure cutters are also called multidisciplinary. Depending on the tasks, the master can use part of the equipment profile or use it completely. In the second case, you will need to install the tool in a unit that has a power of at least 1600 W.

Fillet

Designed to give the workpiece ribs an internal radius or to make grooves with a circular cross-section.

Fillet cutters are equipped with one or two bearings, eliminating tool distortion.

Conical

Using cone cutters you can:

• chamfer the edge of the workpiece;
• decorate the edge of the tabletop;
• create an angular cut on the edges of the workpiece before gluing them (polygonal-shaped products can be obtained).

Folded

Applicable for quarter samples and grooves of rectangular section. Thanks to the thrust bearing, the rebate cutter can be used on both straight and curved workpieces.

To adjust the groove depth, thrust bearings of different diameters are used.

Mouldings

Moulder cutters allow you to obtain an arched, straight, or shaped edge on a workpiece. Working with any part of the same equipment, you can:

• round the edge of the part;
• get a rebated edge;
• make a semi-rod protrusion;
• get edge with sponge;
• make decorative processing of the ribs, for example, making window frames.

You can also create ornaments using molding cutters. complex shape there are wooden parts on the edges and ends.

The equipment in this series can also be double, as shown in the following figure.

On double cutter The distance between the elements can be changed in accordance with the thickness of the workpiece. Thanks to two elements, the workpiece is processed in one pass, simultaneously on both sides.

Direct

A straight edge (overrunning or end) milling cutter is used for finishing the ends of a workpiece or creating perfect angle 90 between the face of the part and its edge (end). The bearing can be installed at the top or bottom of the tool.

When the bearing is located at the bottom, the template is fixed under the workpiece, and when top position- over the workpiece.

In addition to the facing function, the equipment with the upper bearing can be used as a groove tool and cut a rectangular groove on the workpiece face, of course, using a template of a certain height. The diameter of the bearing is usually equal to the diameter of the tool, meaning it is flush with the cutting edge. But in some cases it is changed to a smaller or larger diameter in order to expand the capabilities of the equipment.

The corn cutter is also an edging cutter. Its main purpose is to grind and align the edges of the workpiece according to the template. Thanks to the special arrangement of the knives (in a spiral), it is ensured easy chip removal and smooth running of the tool.

Combination cutters

Splicing workpieces is considered most effective if combined equipment is used. These types of cutters consist of both tenon and groove elements: thanks to this design, the equipment produces both profiles in one pass. As a result, the area of ​​the edge intended for gluing increases, which has a positive effect on the strength of the connection.

Framework

Frame cutters are compound tools. All cutting elements are installed on the base, and the master can place them in the desired order. Set cutters have the following components:

• base;
• cutting elements;
• bearing;
• washer;
• fixing nut.

When changing the location of the cutting elements, it is not necessary to remove the shank from the collet of the unit. It is enough just to unscrew the fasteners located at the bottom of the equipment, and all its elements are removed. Thanks to collapsible design The tool overhang remains the same, and re-adjustment is not required.

Tongue-and-mortise

The kit contains 2 cutters, one for making a groove, and the second for a tenon.

Tongue-and-mortise cutters have a mirror-identical profile of the cutting elements, thanks to which the processed parts are joined as accurately as possible.

The only disadvantage of this equipment is that the grooves and tenons are made with different cutters, which have to be changed and again their offset relative to the base of the unit must be adjusted.

For the manufacture of lining

Milling cutters for making lining are similar in their operating principle to a tongue-and-groove tool, but with the only difference that when connecting parts, a V-groove between them to simulate timber. To make the connection, a set of 2 elements is also required.

Universal

After passing the tool, 2 planes are obtained, completely compatible with each other, having a groove and a tenon. Both of the latter are located at an angle to each other.

A microtenon cutter is also used to splice parts.

The equipment can be used both for longitudinal splicing of workpieces (in the manufacture of panels) and for end splicing of parts.

For corner jointing of wood, equipment from a series of combined ones is also used, which makes it possible to prepare joints at an angle of 45 degrees.

It should be noted that the same combination cutter is used to process workpieces that need to be joined. The original design of the equipment allows you to achieve maximum quality joining parts, and also saves significant time, since there is no need to change tools.

Apply a tool in the manufacture of panels, namely for decorative processing of the edges of parts. All equipment has a thrust bearing fixed at the bottom. A cutter with a bearing can process not only rectangular workpieces, but also shaped ones. You should know that paneling tools have a diameter of 50 to 70 m, so in order to use them effectively, you must have a device with a power of at least 1500 W. For a household router, processing panels with this type of equipment will be an impossible task.

For making doors using a manual milling cutter (meaning kitchen facades) you will need to purchase a special set consisting of three elements.

The set contains the following facade cutters: one panel cutter and two accessories for furniture trim (profile-counter-profile).

Horizontal

Used for pre-treatment panels. To form a tenon for insertion into the frame groove, additional processing of the edge will be required.

Vertical

Most often, vertical figurine cutters are used for making plinths.

Horizontal double-sided

This type of equipment greatly simplifies manufacturing process, since in one pass of the tool a connecting tenon and part of a panel of a certain configuration appears on the edge.

In addition to the above types of equipment, many craftsmen also use homemade cutters. They are usually standard plumbing drills, sharpened in a special way. You can learn how this is done at home from the video.

Criteria for choosing a cutting tool for wood

When choosing wood cutters for a manual unit, you should pay attention to the following equipment parameters.

Shank diameter and size

It should be taken into account that some foreign manufacturers cutters can indicate the diameter of the shank in inches. In most cases, if a collet clamp is installed on the unit, then there will be no problems with installing the equipment, of course, provided that the diameter of the collet matches the diameter of the shank.

It is important to know that the collet of a hand-held unit is not the jaw chuck of a drill into which you can clamp a tool different diameters. Inner diameter the collet must strictly correspond to the diameter of the tool shank. Difficulties may arise if you buy equipment with a 1/2ʺ (12.7 mm) shank and try to insert it into a collet with a 12 mm diameter. At the same time, a shank with a diameter of 6 mm will be clamped in a collet at 1.4 inches (6.35 mm) without any problems.

Before purchasing a cutter, especially an expensive one, read the instructions for the unit and find out which collet is installed on it.

Shank length rigging is also of great importance. Not all of them have elongated shanks, and sometimes their size is not enough to use the tool, for example, when expanding deep grooves. Also, long shanks of the equipment may be needed when securing the unit under the table. In this case it is customary to use cutter extension, which is clamped in the collet of the unit.

Blade material

This important criterion when choosing equipment. The product can be made of high-speed steel (HSS) or carbide (HM). Blades from high speed steel Can easily cope with soft wood of low density. But these cutters are not suitable for processing hard wood. In this case, they can be replaced with equipment with carbide blades.

Location of cutting elements

The blades on the tool can be positioned vertically, that is, parallel to the axis of the shank, or at a certain angle to it. Vertically located the blades work like a plane and cut wood more than they cut it. Therefore, if the blades are a little dull, they will leave marks on the surface they treated, which will have to be sanded.

Blades located at an angle to the tool axis, they work much cleaner and do not form chips.

Stone cutters

To process artificial stone with a milling cutter (manual), you can use traditional types of cutters designed for wood, but only with carbide blades. There is one nuance here: artificial stone is a composite material containing tiny abrasive particles. Therefore, no matter what carbide material the cutter is made from, it will only be enough to process no more than 10 linear meters of stone workpiece. Further, dull blades will not provide the required cleanliness, for example, of the bonded surfaces, which will affect the quality of the connection.

Therefore, professionals advise using the best cutters from well-known manufacturers such as Festool, Leuco, Titman, Leitz, Dimar. The service life of cutting tools manufactured by these enterprises is 5-10 times higher than that of conventional carbide tools. With “branded” equipment it is already possible to process from 60 to 100 meters of composite.

Cutters for wood and stone are similar in appearance and even have the same names. Some of them are very often used for stone cutting operations. But there are cutters specially designed for processing composite products.

Using this stone cutter you can create drip edges on kitchen (toilet) sinks and composite countertops. Typically, complete bead formation occurs in 2 passes of the tool.

There is also a modification of the cutter “anti-overflow”, which has a thrust bearing.

This tool is designed for preparing surfaces before splicing. The cutting part of the equipment has a wavy profile.

Using the equipment, a groove is selected, which is subsequently intended for inlaying with composite materials.

This set is used to repair damage to the surface of artificial stone products. The set contains 2 elements. One makes the cork, and the second makes a hole for it.

You can also use cutters from CERATIZIT for processing composites.

This diamond cutters, which are distinguished by their wear resistance. They are made by sintering several layers of diamond chips. The multi-layer coating allows you to extend the service life of the tool, since during its operation new layers of abrasive appear to replace worn-out layers.

Metal cutters

There is no specially created metal equipment for a hand router. Typically, craftsmen use equipment designed for machine tools with a suitable shank diameter. Most often, end mills are used on hand-held units to create grooves. But you should know that the router is a high-speed machine, which is not very suitable for end cutters. Therefore the metal must be removed minimal layers, a few tenths of a mm thick, and several passes. The following photo shows a spiral cutter for metal.

You can also install on milling cutters burrs of various configurations, which can easily handle steel, cast iron, stainless steel, brass and even titanium. But since they most often have a small shank diameter (6 mm), an adapter will be required for installation in an eight-mm collet.

Burrs for metal come in the following types.

1. Disk. You can make all kinds of cuts and process grooves.
   
   
2. Conical (60°). Used for countersinking holes.
   
   
3. Conical with reverse taper. The equipment is used for grinding grooves, processing sharp corners of the workpiece, removing welds in the corners of the product, processing hard to reach places holes.
   
   
4. Conical with rounding. Used for processing joints, cleaning welds, and processing planes.
   
   
5. Conical pointed. The tool can handle sharp corners, joints of parts, and also perform milling in hard-to-reach places.
   
   
6. Oval. They process and expand holes, and also align welds in the corners of parts.
   
   
7. Flame-shaped. Thanks to its universal shape, the tool is used for creating fillets, as well as for processing them.
   
   
8. Spherical. The tooling can be used for machining holes, creating semicircular mates and machining grooves.
   
   
9. Spheroconic pointed. You can process honey with planes connected at an acute angle.
   
   
10. Spheroconic rounded. Mates with internal radii are processed.
    
    
11. Spherocylindrical. You can process edges, profiles, welds, radius grooves. This equipment also removes chamfers and burrs and prepares the surface for welding.
    
    
12. Cylindrical with a smooth end. Used for processing contours, seams after welding, edges, for chamfering and deburring.
    
    
13. Cylindrical with teeth. Equipment with teeth on the end is used for the same purposes as equipment with a smooth end. Only this type The tool can work simultaneously in two planes at right angles.

Accessories for hand router

The main task performed by various devices for this unit is expansion functionality devices. Some of the accessories are included with the device, but other attachments for the router must be purchased separately or made by yourself.

This device is available in standard any router.

The stop allows you to make straight cuts on workpieces. The edge of the workpiece or the guide rail is used as a basic guide.

The tire acts as a guide along which the device stop moves. Using this device, they produce straight-line milling of workpieces.

This device is attached to the sole of the unit and allows you to produce radial milling and cutting out circles.

Grooving

For making grooves for a certain width, use the router attachment shown in the following figure.

The width of the groove is adjusted by one platform. In this case, a straight groove cutter with an upper bearing is used.

Copier

To transfer any complex ornament or pattern special devices are used for the workpiece - copiers (pantographs).

The copier works as follows:

• the workpiece is placed under the unit installed in the pantograph;
• the ornament or pattern that needs to be copied is placed at the required distance from the copier;
• The pantograph pointer is set to the initial position, after which the unit engine is turned on;
• all movements of the pointer along the pattern are accurately transmitted to the router, and it cuts out a copy of the required pattern on the workpiece.

The copy sleeve is needed, first of all, to protect the template from the impact of tool blades. In addition, the copying ring, moving along the edge of the template, transfers all its shapes to the cutter, which processes the part located under the fixture.

If the hole in the template exceeds the dimensions of the sole of the device, then it can be installed on a platform of suitable dimensions.

This simple device allows you to cut transverse and longitudinal grooves in cylindrical workpieces (turned table legs, pillars, balusters).

To make tenons for box connection, straight or dovetail, use a tenoning device.

The use of this attachment allows you to produce tenons with equal distances between them, so that the parts are connected in an ideal way.

Tenon-groove device

The tongue and groove connection is the most common in carpentry.

To make this connection, there are special devices called pantorouters.

Despite the apparent complexity of the design, this machine can be easily made with your own hands according to drawings, which are abundant on the Internet.

By installing a manual unit in the table, you get stationary mini machine. With its help, it is convenient to process small and long parts that cannot be clamped with clamps. Ready-made ones are available for sale milling tables, specially designed for securing hand-held milling machines. Below is a table produced by the Corvette company.

But as practice shows, most craftsmen prefer to make milling tables with your own hands, since their design is not complicated. The table for the router can be made from thick plywood or chipboard with a thickness of 16 mm or more.

If you cut an isosceles triangle, for example, from plywood, and attach it to the sole of the router, as shown in the following figure, you will get a simple device for processing door panels.

This overlay allows for additional decoration of already finished doors without disassembling them, without the use of templates.

How to sharpen a cutter at home

Sharpening of a cutter should be carried out only after complete removal of carbon deposits and contaminants from its body and cutting elements. For these purposes, it is better to use a special cleaning liquid (shown in the figure below).

Apply the product to the cutting parts of the equipment and wait a few minutes for it to dissolve the carbon deposits. Then you should take a regular toothbrush and thoroughly clean the blades of any remaining dirt. After cleaning, you can begin the sharpening process itself. To carry out this operation at home, you will first need to purchase set of diamond stones, differing in grain size.

For rough sharpening, bars with larger grains are used. But the process of straightening blades should always be completed by polishing with the finest abrasive.

To sharpen a cutter, follow these steps:

• Place the block on the edge of the table and moisten it with water. If necessary, fix the device;
• lay the equipment on the block so that its cutting edge is in contact with the block along its entire length;
• move the cutter along the emery with smooth movements with equal pressure, periodically wetting it with water;
• Make the same number of movements for each blade of the rig so that the edges are stitched evenly.

If the equipment prepared for sharpening has a thrust bearing, it must be removed before starting the process.

Of course, if there is such an opportunity, it is better to submit the cutter for sharpening to a specialized workshop, where it will be restored using precision equipment. This procedure is inexpensive when compared to the cost of diamond stones.

Professional advice on selecting cutters for a CNC machine from experienced machine operators.

Introduction

For different operations, it is important to understand and have different cutters used on CNC routers. This article provides an overview various types cutters
So let's take a look different types cutters that are used in machine tools.

Note: If you are using a CNC router, you will be able to use most of the cutters described, with the exception of large ones that are not suitable for high rotation speeds, for example, face mills.

End mills

End mills

The most commonly used cutters are end mills. They come in different sizes, shapes, have different coatings and are made from different materials. We will describe the main ones.

Carbide cutters or high speed steel cutters

First of all, you should pay attention to the material from which the end mills are made. As a rule, it is carbide or high-speed steel, although more exotic materials, such as powder metal, are sometimes used.

For most shops, the question of whether to use carbide or HSS cutters seems silly. Carbide cutters are always better, right?

It turns out that a lot depends on the material to be cut, as well as the maximum spindle speed of the machine and some other factors.

If you are working with soft materials, for example, aluminum, and the spindle will not reach the recommended speed for a carbide end mill, it may make sense to use high-speed steel end mills.

For small machines with a spindle speed of less than 6,000 rpm, I generally recommend using high-speed steel for cutting aluminum for cutters larger than 1/2" in diameter, and tungsten carbide for smaller diameter end mills. This saves on the cost of larger end mills (which can be used with an indexable insert and tungsten carbide inserts) and take advantage of the strength of small cutters.

End mill sizes

End mills are available in different metric and imperial sizes. Even tiny micro-mills can be used for machining small surfaces. A surprising fact about end mill sizing is that the diameter tolerance for most end mills is not specified accurately. If your job requires precision, you may need to test cut the cutter to determine its actual diameter. You can also directly measure the diameter, but test cutting is a more reliable method.

Micro cutter

How many grooves?

The number of grooves (approaches) of an end mill directly depends on the material to be cut and the capabilities of your machine. The most common options are 2, 3 or 4 passes. Generally, no more than 3 grooves are used with aluminum. The reason is that aluminum shavings are larger than other materials and are relatively tough. The grooves guide chips as the end mill plunges into the material. 2 and 3 flute cutters have plenty of space for chip removal. 4-flute cutters easily become clogged and chips get stuck, which almost always leads to jamming and breakage of the cutter.

For most other materials, 4 grooves are the norm. You can use as many grooves as you like; they act as a kind of "spindle amplifier". For a given spindle speed, 4-flute cutters allow feed rates twice as high as 2-flute cutters, resulting in better surface quality. A larger number of cutting edges stabilizes the cutter - more edges in constant contact with the material, less chatter at the stages of “tearing off the edge - cutting into the material.” 3 grooves were developed as a compromise between using 2 or 4 grooves on aluminum. The 3 flutes have enough space to remove chips from any aluminum alloy, except especially tough ones, and, at the same time, they can feed approximately 50% faster than a 2-flute at the same spindle speed.

Other designs are much less common. End mills with more than 4 flutes are great for increasing productivity on tough materials like titanium where the spindle simply can't turn very fast.

Single Flute End Mill

Center cutting or not?

Most 2 and 3 flute end mills are center cutting. Some cutters with 4 flutes are not center cutters. A center cutting end mill can cut straight into the material, vertically. Off-center cutting end mills have a depression in the middle without a blade, so they can cut a very short distance before cutting into the material necessarily in a horizontal plane.

Center cutter - on the left, non-centre cutter - on the right

The only serious reason for purchasing a non-centre cutting end mill is its low price. I prefer to use only center cutters, so cutting with a non-centre cutter seems much more difficult to me.

On the other hand, there is an opinion that end mills should never (almost never) cut vertically into a workpiece. This is the heaviest load for an end mill; cutting at an angle or in a spiral is much softer. With this in mind, perhaps sometimes a non-centre cutter may be preferred.

Single and double end cutters, cutter overhang

Single and double end end mills are available on the market:

End mill (with two ends like 2 cutters in one)

For a little more money than the cost of a single end mill, and much less than the cost of two single end mills, you can buy a double end mill. When one end gets dull, you can simply flip it over in the tool holder and have a brand new bit ready to go. Typically, the end mill breaks on the underside, which cannot always be turned over. Therefore, such cutters can significantly reduce costs if you mainly dull them and do not break them.

Cutter overhang and bend

This brings us to the important concept of “departure”. Tool overhang - distance from the tool holder to the end of the cutter:

Cutter overhang

The longer the reach, the less durable the tool. The more it protrudes, the more it bends under the cutting forces. Here is an exaggerated image of this phenomenon:

Although it may seem smart to buy the longest cutter possible because you can use it for a wide variety of applications, it is not The best decision. Shorter end mills are stronger. Save long end mills for those times when you simply have no other choice!

We will observe a similar situation with twist drills.

End mill coatings

The right coating can incredibly improve the performance of an end mill (or other cutting tool, such as a twist drill).

There are many different types of finishes, some of which are simply beautiful, some of which are quite exotic and expensive. Choosing a coated cutter is a choice of cost versus benefit. If your machining operation would greatly benefit from the added performance of a premium coating, purchase an end mill with this coating.

Face mills, high helix cutters and other shapes

Just as the finishes on cheap and expensive cutters can vary greatly in quality, cutter shape also has a big impact on performance.

Manufacturers praise a variety of forms, but you should choose experimentally. Some things are less controversial, some are barely noticeable. To start, buy a decent quality end mill rather than go for fancy shapes. When even a small improvement in quality promises real money, try premium cutters and see how they suit you.

Two cutter shapes that will be useful from the very beginning are rounded corner end mills and high helix end mills. The first type of cutters have a small radius at the corners of the edges, therefore they give a better surface and are less prone to scuffing. These are two very serious advantages.

Cutters with a high pitch (i.e. low helix angle) helix can significantly improve chip removal in materials like aluminum:

Roughing end mills (grinding cutters with chip breaker)

Rough cutters have slight serration on the cutting edges. This serration is called a "chip breaker" and serves several useful purposes. Firstly, as the name suggests, it breaks the chips into small chips and simplifies their removal (the chips are easily washed out by the coolant and do not get stuck in the grooves, especially useful for aluminum). Secondly, such teeth are less susceptible to rattling. All these serrations produce many vibrations that overlap each other and do not add up to one common ringing sound. Mills with a chip breaker are not very expensive and can greatly increase productivity, because... feeds and penetrations for such cutters are higher than for finishing cutters

Ball end mills

When we talk about end mills, it's important to remember that they are often used in "2.5D milling." This is a type of processing in which Z, or the height of the surface of the product, changes in steps, not smoothly, i.e. consists of projections, recesses and pockets, the surface of which is usually smooth horizontal planes. This feature is observed in a huge number of parts, but in those where it is not observed, you will use real “3D” processing, and for this you will need a ball end mill.

Injection molds often require 3D processing

The spheres create wavy irregularities, the size of which depends on the diameter of the sphere, the cutting depth and the pitch between successive passes:

Wave-like irregularities from the sphere

Indexable Endmills and Face Mills

End mill with indexable inserts works in a pocket

Large end mills can remove a lot of material, but they are also very expensive. The machining industry quickly realized this and offered milling cutters with replaceable cutting inserts as an alternative. IN tools with indexable cutting inserts cutting edges are removable tungsten carbide inserts. There are such tools on the market, but in this review we will limit ourselves to end and end mills.

For efficient roughing, it is convenient to have an end mill with a diameter of 15-25 mm. Solid cutters of this size are already quite expensive, but at the same time, this is a fairly small size for a typesetting cutter. Roughing can be done with a stacking end mill and finishing can be done with a solid end mill. Depending on the application, it may also make sense to use very large end mills with indexable inserts. In general, this is a compromise between the capabilities (rigidity) of your machine, the strength of the workpiece material and the total cost of owning a fleet of compositing tools and inserts.

End mills are also used in conjunction with stacking end mills. They are called that because milling can be done with the entire end. They differ from end ones in that they process a large flat surface, usually the upper part of the part.

Standard face mill with 90 degree inserts

Twist drills

The ubiquitous twist drill was probably the first cutting tool that each of us once began to use, well, for example, in a hand-held electric drill. While end mills are only available to machinists, twist drills are found in the home of almost every DIYer.

But everything is not as simple as it seems at first glance. Statistics show that holes make up the vast majority of all operations performed on CNC machines. In addition, the material removal rate of twist drills is very high and is usually superior to that of end mills. Sometimes it may make sense to drill a lot of holes and then machine the grid between the holes using an end mill.

Like end mills, twist drills come in a variety of sizes, finishes, materials and lengths.

Twist Drill Dimensions

Twist drills come in a greater variety of diameters and sizes than end mills. However, this is not surprising given the prevalence of hole making operations and the difficulty of using a single drill for holes of different diameters, whereas end mills are much more flexible in this regard.

In addition to metric and inch sizes There are also special sizes, such as numbers and letters.

High Speed ​​Steel, Cobalt and Tungsten Carbide + Coated or Uncoated

If you need the strength and toughness of tungsten carbide to quickly process tough materials, there is no alternative. Otherwise, just buy a full set of HSS or cobalt drill bits.

Coverage or lack thereof is a matter of taste. Coatings can be useful, although not as much as in end mills, perhaps because most twist drills are not made of tungsten carbide.

Screw cutting machine and short series length

The length of the twist drill can vary. Most non-professionals use short series twist drills. Here's how they differ:

The long series screw drill has the same diameter, but is much shorter than the short series drill. It is also more durable.

Because they are shorter, they are also much stronger. The hole produced by such a drill will be more accurate, and you will be less likely to break the drill. Most machinists prefer to use twist drills for screw tapping machines precisely because of these advantages.

Large diameter drills

Standard twist drill sets only go up to 14mm in diameter. To drill large holes, you can use cutters with a conical or reduced shank (in the West, similar drills are called Silver-Deming drills).

These drills have a 14mm shank and larger flutes. The shank is small so it fits standard drill chucks.

What I would also like to say. First, a standard jaw drill chuck is not very accurate, and for CNC machining we will often use a collet chuck instead. Secondly, large twist drills require powerful spindle, so make sure your machine can handle a large drill bit.

Parabolic grooves for deep holes

Drilling really deep holes is a difficult task. Once the hole is deep enough, it becomes very difficult to remove chips while continuing to drill. If chips accumulate and block the flutes, the twist drill will break in the hole, which is always a difficult problem to fix. An innovation that greatly helps when drilling deep holes is called "parabolic flutes." These types of drills are more expensive than regular twist drills, but they can produce significantly deeper holes and are well worth the purchase if your operations require such deep holes. The depth depends on the diameter of the twist drill.

On the cutting edge

You'll be using twist drills a lot, and there's nothing more annoying than a dull tool. If you manage to sharpen a drill, it can serve you for a long time. Drill grinding machines are available in different price ranges. Alternatively, you can sharpen the drill bits by hand using a whetstone.

Point and center drills

These are a special type of drill, but their scope of application is quite wide. Theoretically there is no point in using center drill on a milling machine. Centering drills are designed to create holes at the end of the workpiece, for a quill on lathe. Their secondary "guide" tip makes them thinner than point drills. However, most operators will happily take them if they are handy and use them as spot drills.

Point drill - right, center drill - left

This type of drill does not have flutes that are too long. They are only used to mark small recesses before starting the twist drill. You don't always need to mark the hole.

Drill with mechanical fastening of polyhedral inserts

Considering how often our machines must produce holes, and the advantages of indexable insert tools for end milling and face milling, it is not surprising that drills with multi-edge inserts are available. They are generally best used for larger holes. It is not necessary to know more about them at this stage. Just remember them and how they can make your job easier.

IN Lately The demand for special devices (milling cutters) for nail care has increased. If previously such equipment could only be found in a beauty salon, now the range of milling cutters has expanded, prices have dropped noticeably and any woman can afford to perform a hardware manicure or pedicure at home. So that your fingers are always flawless appearance, it is quite enough to perform the procedure several times a month. Using a nail treatment machine is very easy and there is no need to sign up for training with a professional. You can master the technique of hardware manicure at home by studying video lessons and a step-by-step master class with photos. An inexpensive router up to 10,000 rpm is suitable for home nail care. Direct the handle of the device from the center to the edges, keeping the angle of inclination of the nozzle at 45°.

In addition to the machine itself, the kit for hardware manicure includes cutters. These are special attachments that are easily fixed on the rotating head in the handle of the router. Milling cutters have different shapes and sizes, are made of different materials, and differ in the degree of abrasiveness. According to their purpose, they are divided into the following groups: for processing the free edge of the nail and giving it shape, for grinding the surface of the nail plate, for polishing nails, for removing keratinized cuticles, for removing rough skin around the fingers, for grinding corns and calluses on the feet (attachments for pedicure). If the machine model you choose includes a minimum number of attachments, then you can always purchase a set of cutters you need for the milling machine.

What cutters are needed for high-quality hardware manicure? A home set for a milling machine can be supplemented with miniature attachments that can be used to easily process the sinuses of the nail folds and other hard-to-reach areas of the skin on the hands and feet. If you need diamond tips with a fine abrasive to correct the cuticle, then when processing a thick layer of keratinized skin or shaping extended nails, you need to use ceramic cutters with a coarse abrasive. Using silicone attachments, you can quickly remove the remains of dead skin and polish your nails for shine. Hardware manicure is one of the safest procedures for home care for nails. If your nail plates are very brittle and often peel, if the skin around your nails is very delicate and is constantly injured during trimming manicures with well-sharpened tools, then be sure to buy a router with a set of different cutters.

♦ TYPES OF ATTACHMENTS FOR THE MILLER

A detailed description of the functional features of cutters for hardware manicure and pedicure will help you choose suitable options attachments for your machine. First, let's look at the types of cutters that differ in the material they are made of.

▪ Ceramic (baked);

▪ Diamond (sprayed from natural or artificial stone);

▪ Metal (made of hard alloys or steel);

▪ Combined (silicon-carbide).

CERAMIC:


Usually these are hard and rather large attachments for a milling machine, with which it is convenient to process thick and dense nails, rough calluses and corns, and overgrown keratinized cuticles. Ceramic cutters with varying degrees of abrasiveness differ in color: dark brown and black - up to 400 microns, white - up to 200 microns, pink and blue - up to 100 microns;

DIAMOND:


These attachments are made in two ways: during the electrolysis process, fine chips are applied to the base (precipitated); Diamond dust is mixed with a special glue and subjected to heat treatment during connection with the base. Diamond-coated cutters very delicately remove the stratum corneum from the thin cuticle, clean the nail ridges from dry skin and smooth out the thinned nail plate. The abrasiveness of diamond bits can be determined by the shade and number of notches, as well as by the color of the base;

METAL:


Made from hard alloys and high-quality medical steel. Carbide and tungsten carbide tips can be used to treat artificial nails, old corns and calluses. Particularly popular are cutters made of alloyed medical steel, which do not turn dead skin into dust, but remove thin layer shavings. Metal nozzles differ in their notch pattern. For example, cutters for manicure and pedicure with a cross-shaped notch quickly remove dead skin, and with an oblique or straight notch it is convenient to give the nail plates the desired shape;

COMBINED:


These are disposable silicon carbide caps that are inexpensive and very easy to use. Combined attachments are suitable for performing home hardware manicure for both beginners and professional craftsmen. The hardness of such caps can be determined by the number: for polishing - 280-320 grit, for correcting the free edge - 80-100 grit, grinding - 150 grit.

♦ SHAPE OF NOZZLES

To make it easier to determine which cutter is intended for what, pay attention to the color and shape of the specimen. It is also important to determine whether the attachment you choose is suitable for your router. In addition to the working tip, the cutter has a shank, the length of which must correspond to the length of the clamp of the device handle. Check that the cutter is inserted all the way, fixed and held tightly in the socket.

Cylindrical.


A universal option, which is usually included in a set for hardware manicure and pedicure. The cylindrical nozzle is convenient for correcting the shape of the nail, treating side ridges, and removing the top layers of gel polish or other coating;

Trapezoidal.


Outwardly they resemble a finely porous sponge. Using trapezoidal cutters, they level the surface of the nails, polish the cut of the free edge, remove jags, polish small calluses on the fingers;

"Drums".

These are cylindrical nozzles with a high-grain working surface. Used to correct thick nail plates, to polish rough skin, to correct the nail growth line between the white and pink areas;

Ball-shaped (burs).


Using a bur, you can perform the most delicate treatment of hard-to-reach areas of skin on the arms and legs. The nozzle with a ball at the end easily smoothes the surface of the nail with small cracks and stripes, painlessly corrects the cuticle line, treats the nail ridges, and cleans the nails from a thin film of pterygium. Together with spherical attachments, needle-shaped and pointed fissure cutters are used to treat delicate periungual skin;

Cone-shaped (polishing).


Polishing attachments rounded at the end are made of soft, elastic materials: silicone, felt, felt, cotton. With the help of such caps, the surface of the nail plates is polished to a shine. Silicone tips are quite durable, easy to sterilize and can be used until the working surface wears off. Cone-shaped nozzles differ in degree of hardness and during polishing of nails they are changed, starting from the hardest and ending with the softest. Such attachments are coated with polymer to polish the nails to a beautiful gloss.

- click on the photo and expand all types of cutters for hardware manicure with descriptions

♦ STERILIZATION OF ATTACHMENTS

It is advisable to sterilize all cutters not only before starting the procedure, but also after. Before processing the attachments special means, delete from them greasy spots and dirt, holding it under the stream running water and then wipe with a lint-free cloth.

You can get rid of microorganisms on nozzles using heat treatment. If you do not have a special sterilizer, then you can place attachments (without plastic holders) into hot water and boil for about 10 minutes. After sterilization, place the cutters on a clean terry towel until they are completely dry, and then place them in clean sealed bags.

You can disinfect metal cutters in the oven, preheating it to maximum temperature. Place the cutters on a sheet of clean foil in a baking tray. You can clean ceramic and metal attachments from dust using a brass brush.

♦ HOW TO MAKE STERILIZATION SOLUTION

It is not necessary to buy a special solution to disinfect the nozzles, since you can sterilize them with a homemade antiseptic.

Pour 100 ml of 70% medical alcohol into a glass jar, add 10 g. borax and mix gently. After this, add 30 g to the solution. potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate). Place the cutters in the jar and lower the jar into a steam bath for 15-20 minutes.

♦ SERVICE LIFE OF MILLS FROM VARIOUS MATERIALS

Each set of cutters for hardware manicure often comes with a description. technical characteristics and recommendations on the service life of replacement tools. But if you don’t do a hardware manicure at home very often, then the attachments may last longer than the period specified in the description. At least once a month, inspect the working surface of the attachments from your home kit and, as necessary, replace worn-out copies with new ones.

√ With diamond or sapphire coating.
The spray layer becomes thinner over a long period of time when used at home. If you regularly clean such cutters from dirt, they will serve you for more than 3 years;

√ Made from alloys or medical steel.
Very durable attachments that will last you more than 5 years;

√ Ceramic.
Designed for operation for one to one and a half months. But they often remain suitable for home use for 3-4 months;

√ Silicone.
Silicone polishers will last for several years;

√ "Sand" and "emery" caps.
These are disposable attachments, the period of use of which is limited to one procedure.

♦ HOW TO DO A HARDWARE MANICURE AT HOME

Step-by-step instruction

♦ VIDEO LESSONS FOR BEGINNERS