Was dead set against using a 5 flute for aluminum until I tried one on a job last week

Always figured 3 flute was the only way to go for aluminum. Picked up a 5 flute YG-1 on clearance for like $18 just to see what the fuss was about. Ran it on a 6061 part with a .250 DOC and 6000 RPM and the finish came out way better than I expected. Less chatter, no built up edge. Anyone else been converted on a tool they wrote off?

3 comments

3 Comments

victorh811mo ago

Wait, you got a YG-1 for eighteen bucks? That's the real shocker here. I haven't seen a decent endmill that cheap in years.

taylor.reese1mo ago

Has anyone checked if their machine just needed a different chip load to wake up? I had a stubborn vibration issue on aluminum with my usual tools. Switched to a five flute with a much slower feed rate than the book said, and it suddenly cut like butter. Sometimes the tool isn't the problem, it's the recipe you're using it with.

the_wendy1mo ago

But what if the tool really is the problem sometimes? I've seen cheap cutters just fall apart no matter what you do with the feed, like that YG-1 victorh81 mentioned. Sometimes you just need to spend a bit more to get something that actually works.