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chopping carbide endmill shanks?


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I forget if I've asked about this already but I searched and couldn't find it.  What do you guys do to chop a bit off the shank of a carbide endmill when you need to choke up on it further than the holder will allow?  I got one of these:

https://www.mscdirect.com/product/details/44290195?item=44290195

I put it on a mini chop saw and tried chopping an old 1/2" EM.  Got about 2/3 of the way and then it shifted and blew up the wheel.  I'm ordering another to try again; I could put it on an arbor for the mill spindle and hold the cutter in a 5C collet maybe.  That would be more rigid and let me run coolant.  I'm thinking there has to be a quick and easy solution besides dropping thousands on a cutter grinder; this has to be a solved problem.

Thanks

 

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I always just used to use a surface grinder and a wheel similar to what you bought with a mister blowing on it.  IMHO, every shop needs a surface grinder, bridgeport, and at least a small manual lathe.  If you have a lathe, I would use that before I used the mill.  Mount the tool in the toolpost and wheel in the spindle.

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2 hours ago, 5th Axis CGI said:

Not a good idea sir. You risk sending spider crack down the other way. Edm is about the best way to do this. Any other way you run the risk of damaging the substrate structure of the carbide.

I totally agree EDM is the best method.  Knock on wood it hasn't bit me yet.  It's also rare that I've had to do it and have only done it in a pinch.  I also do not have access to an EDM so my options are limited.  I generally plan ahead and order specials if I need them.  Sometimes though, the customer will drop a bomb on you at 4:50pm on Friday and needs it to keep the steel mill running on the weekend shift so you do what ya gotta do.  I'd also rather try my luck scoring and breaking than with a cutoff wheel.  I try my best not to inhale any carbide dust as it's a carcinogen.

Side note, score it all the way around and put upside down in a collet so that it breaks clean across.

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3 hours ago, Leon82 said:

I wish the shrinkers had a thru hole instead of the stop, or the option for either.

 

Most tools are 4 or 6 inches long or 5 if you find an oddball.

 

For example a cid 3/4 long endmill has about 3.2 loc but will stick out 4" from a haimer holder when it's bottomed out

Check out maritool. Hole all the way through.

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Yes!  Some grinding company sells a little bench top unit with an ER32 fixture that is meant for cut offs. It was like $3500 and I sent it back the day I opened it. POS.

I was just searching for this before I logged into this forum to see what was going on. Big market because of the shrink fit issues. Idk why shrink fit / tool grinders aren't in sync on this....

 

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21 hours ago, dstryr said:

Idk why shrink fit / tool grinders aren't in sync on this....

That is industry as we know it...  Rarely does everyone get in sync near the level of potential that they have.

 

21 hours ago, dstryr said:

Yes!  Some grinding company sells a little bench top unit with an ER32 fixture that is meant for cut offs. It was like $3500 and I sent it back the day I opened it. POS.

If I were to build something I would want it to cut off and break the corner, not create a mess, and be easy to configure / operate.  Auto operation would also be nice, that way it wouldn't have to be super quick, but you could load it and walk away and work on something else while it cuts.  Otherwise it would likely be a colossal waste of time.

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Does anyone use the stop screw in the back off shrinks anyway? We remove the screw and drill the back out clearance so the cutters can go in for miles.

Obviously will not work on larger holders but up to 12mm works fine

Doesn't affect the performance of the shrink in any way

Also makes removing broken cutters easier :)

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