A Lathe tool question.

[Stigian 1,234]

Good morning all, I wonder if any of you fine engineering chaps can help me out.

I have been looking around on Fleabay for some new lathe tools and I keep seeing Indexable cutting tools..

Such as this Ebay link

And this... Ebay link 2

My question is er... are they any good?

Do the cutting tips last longer than the more old fashioned cutting bits?

Do they cut better?

And most importantly.... Are they more accurate?

Any advise on this would be much appreciated

Cheers Guys.

[n1defan 47]

Carbide tipped tool do last longer than hss steel and will cut harder materials. Depending on the material they cut a lot better than hss. As far as accuracy that depends on the operator. I use carbide more than hss. I would buy the first set I like that style insert better. Good Luck

[tophatbufflo 2]

carbide is great but interupted cuts (a 4 speed mainshaft) will fracture the carbide usually ruinging the cabide-I use brazed tips from HF cheap and easily replaceable-boring bar types availble don't know about over the pond though

[MalMac 1,328]

Like was said before, carbide are great for long uninterrupted cuts but they hate inconsistency and vibration. Also depending on the app sometime cost can become an issue. Just my opinion.

[JimD 3,345]

Stig, we use that type of insert at work on a lathe every day. The key is speed and feed. Since you will be the feed on manual lathe, you will quickly learn how to control the tool. RPM's will be an experiment. You will need a holder that fits your tool rest on your machine, so check the size of the insert holder to make sure it fits in you machine. I think you'll find you like the inert setup much better.

Jim

[Stigian 1,234]

Hi guy's, thanks for all the advice and sorry it's taken me so long to reply.

As far as accuracy that depends on the operator

I was scared someone was going to say that Tom

I use brazed tips from HF cheap and easily replaceable-boring bar types availble don't know about over the pond though

They are available over here via good ol Fleabay, that's where I buy mine from

I should really buy a new boring bar though!

Like was said before, carbide are great for long uninterrupted cuts but they hate inconsistency and vibration. Also depending on the app sometime cost can become an issue. Just my opinion.

Lol, yes i have managed to er... "take the edge off" some of my carbide tips while turning down wheel hubs form lumps of square block, the the tip handled turning steel bar with ease.

Cost is an issue which is why I ended up buying a really cheap set of brazed on carbide tip bits... I guess you get what you pay for as the quality was er... rather bad!

At least I can stick em on the bench grinder to cut usable tips

Stig, we use that type of insert at work on a lathe every day. The key is speed and feed. Since you will be the feed on manual lathe, you will quickly learn how to control the tool. RPM's will be an experiment. You will need a holder that fits your tool rest on your machine, so check the size of the insert holder to make sure it fits in you machine. I think you'll find you like the inert setup much better.

Hi Jim, thanks for the advice

I'm finding that lathe work is a bit like welding, the more I do the better I get

Boring seems to work best with a medium machine speed and lots of coolant, turning bar for me works best at a high machine speed and no coolant.

I will give the Index able cutting tools a whirl when money allows :thumbs:

[chris11 184]

Carbide is great but you do have to sharpen it with a diffrant stone too.

[Stigian 1,234]

I just use a bench grinder then cool the tool in a tub of cutting fluid Mr President :thumbs: