Tool Post Holder

I hope you do well with the sharpening!

--Plunge milling works even better in steel as it minimizes the pressure on the cutting faces. Give it a try, It is really a great way to go!
Another way I just thought of: If you take very shallow cuts, you preserve most of the helix, and can conventionally mill the entire slot. something like .010 depth. (just spit ballin')

all the best!
 
The other point not mentioned above is that slotting at full width is rather hard on endmills in general. Taking two passes with a smaller diameter end mill, so that only one side is engaged at a time, is a much less troublesome approach.

Also, do the plunging with a twist drill, not an end mill. I'd definitely drill at least both ends, and chain drilling down the center of the slot will definitely make things easier.

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I always find 2 or 3 flute end mills better for full width slotting.

Stu
 
2 flute end mills (slot drills in Brit-speak) are definitely better for slotting. Much more room for chip evacuation.

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Hi Mick,

I also watched Tom's video and noted that he was climb milling as he was going around the sides of that cutout. Now its possible he did that deliberately in order to get a good finish, however climb milling is not recommended on a light weight machine with badly adjusted gibs and some backlash. You will get the effect that you described of rattling back and forth as you were cutting.

I personally have not tried plunging into the work as shown in that video. But next time I need to remove a large amount of metal I will try it and see if the technique is useful to me.

I also touch up the ends of my milling cutters ! I built John Morans, "Four Facet" drill grinder some time ago and found that with some small adaptations I could use it to sharpen the cutter ends. I haven't made anything yet to sharpen the flutes, although I have purchased another diamond wheel for this purpose.

I was a little disappointed to hear that you have chipped the corners of a couple of cutters. Usually this is caused by re-cutting chips caught in the bottom of the slot, as is the line in the side wall of your slot. If you examine the flute edges carefully, you might find a tiny chip in the flute edge.
It is important to brush the slot clean after each run so re-cutting is greatly reduced.
 
I brushed the slot clean after each pass because I had read about the problems caused by chips getting re-cut. I use a tooth brush to clean away the chips. I have one for the lathe and one for the mill/drill. I find that a tooth brush seems to work well for cleaning away chips.
 
I've been using these 'norman' toolposts for years. It's much quicker if you attach a handle to tighten them. I made a few light duty ones with 1/2" steel and a welded on toolholder, the leftmost one is extended to get close to the spindle.

Get some of these 6mm carbide roughing end mills for cutting the slots. They are almost indestructibletoolposts.jpg and only $5 each.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/16m...lgo_pvid=4f821837-2fe6-4737-856a-4566617d09f7
 
This is actually a Norman tool post system and a commercial version used to be made by Myford here in the UK. There is more info on the 'lathes UK' website and also here;

http://www.toolsandmods.com/lathe/mini-lathe-qctp

I first used this design 40 years ago and I am currently making a set for my new small Warco (Weiss) lathe as the Norman is vastly superior to a 4-way on small lathes where access and room are at a premium.
 
Hi Guys,

I vaguely remember that ! There was something with the threaded disc under the tool block.
It stood out because the tool holder was angled forward and out towards the chuck.
 
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