I’m attempting to mill 6063-T52 Extruded Aluminum. It is .125 thick. I tried a 1/4" two-flute spiral bit at 17,500 RPMs at 30" per minute with no success. That speed and feed rate were recommended on a chart from Shapoke. It was a disaster. I’ve ordered a single flute bit. Any recommendations would be welcome and appreciated. I’m running a Woodworker X-50 with a 2.2KW water-cooled spindle.
Here are some recommendations for cutting aluminum…
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@WLDORPFELD did it melt? That’s a chip load of 8 tenths (0.0008”)! I’d slow down the spindle speed quite a bit and/or increase your feed rate.
I would try a slightly smaller chip load than what’s recommended in this chart.
Are you cutting straight thru in one pass? If so, you could try to step down by 1/16 or 1/8 per pass.
@WLDORPFELD I have successfully performed several cuts with the Amana 51454 O flute bit in 6061 aluminum. The pic here shows my settings. I’m using the router with no coolant, so you could have a faster feed rate, but keep in mind 6063 is a bit softer than 6061 and will ‘gum up’ easier when it heats up. The Amana O Flute is the best bit I’ve found to cut aluminum.
