today i went to install the new cutters and my friend had a new set of factory matched cutters there also ($300)
we installed mine first and they cut really well on high speed except an odd pattern in the finish, you could not feel it but it was visable. the slow cut was really good but takes 40 minutes.
i was too curious so i installed the factory cutters, they did not do as well as mine on fast or slow but i kept noticing the same pattern still. so checking the machine further i found a chunk out of the drive belt. i put a new belt on and the pattern was gone but the finish is still not as good as my set i made. the round inserts do a lot better on aluminum with the high rake angle. the speed of the cutter head is still too slow for a really good finish on aluminum so the last thing i'm going to add is another set of pulleys to move the head speed up 4x and bring the slow cut speed down to 10 minutes add mist coolant and i should be dont. i'll post finish pics when done. then he just flips the lever and changes the belt to switch from cast to aluminum. as far as my friend is concerned he is happy now but i know i can make it better with a little more work.
at least the cutter problem is solved and a new set of inserts from mitsubishi are $20 including shipping.
there isnt much interest in this topic but for me it wasnt fixing the machine as much as making 12 holders exactly the same. I'm not a machinist so making something perfectly the same was the challenge them working as I designed them to was nice also. i got a lot better understanding of cutter geometry that i could have never gotten without a friend who is himself an automotive machinist, trusting me a novice to fix his machine.
steve