Cutting narrow blind slits in aluminum
Cutting narrow blind slits in aluminum
(OP)
Hi,
How are narrow blind slits typically cut in aluminum, such as those found in beam couplings? (ie http://www.ruland.com/ps_couplings_flexible.asp). What are the general guidelines for these types of features in terms of ratio of width to depth, achieveable tolerances, etc?
Thanks in advance,
Mark
How are narrow blind slits typically cut in aluminum, such as those found in beam couplings? (ie http://www.ruland.com/ps_couplings_flexible.asp). What are the general guidelines for these types of features in terms of ratio of width to depth, achieveable tolerances, etc?
Thanks in advance,
Mark





RE: Cutting narrow blind slits in aluminum
RE: Cutting narrow blind slits in aluminum
You can run the depth all the way to the mandrel, just don't get crazy with feed, and yes, you need lots of coolant, pressurized is preferred. If you start to recut chips or get chips sticking to the saw teeth, things will go downhill very quickly. Run your coolant concentrate at about 1-1/2 times to double of recommended for operations like this.
It is better to have enough ideas for some of them to be wrong, than to be always right by having no ideas at all.
RE: Cutting narrow blind slits in aluminum
I agree also with coolant concentration. It is a HUGE deal for some operations. We chased a tapping issue in Al and fixed it with a higher ratio.