SX2P

Good Morning

I'm new on here & this is my first post, so hopefully have put this in the right section.

I own an SX2P & was wondering what is the largest endmill I can safely use in this machine?

I currently run up to a 16mm (gently) but was wondering what everyone else uses for facing larger surfaces?

I note that some people use small fly cutters if so what size?

Would it also be safe to use Arc-Euro's 25mm Dia. Indexable End Mill R8 (060-282-00258)?

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer, Steve.

For flattening the tops of material a 16mm is probably as large as you want to go as it becomes less economic to pay more for larger cutters and just wear the end away. For side cutting then there is little to be gained in going up to a larger cutter as you won't gain rigidity considering the rest of the set up and the need to run the larger cutters slower will take the motor out of it's power band unless you go with solid carbide milling cutters.

Fly cutters will work but do need to be kept sharp they are also relatively slow to remove metal as you only get one cut per rev where you will get more with fluted cutters. They can also be a bit harsh on the drive train as unlike with a milling cutter you will get long periods of no tool engagement which can "knock" as the single cutter comes round each time. Something like these, the middle size 25mm head, swinging about 35-40mm dia would do

We have a few members here who use the two insert 25mm insert mill on their X2 size machines, if you do go down that route then I would suggest using the APKT inserts meant for non ferrous metal on all materials as they are sharper and put less strain on the machine. They won't cover quite such a large area as a flycutter but with twice a smany cutting edges and being able to run higher spindle speeds due to carbide will make quicker work of a job.

Both the flycutter and the insert cutter you would not want to take off more than 0.5mm per pass.

Remember that if the tram is out then the larger the diameter cutter the greater the chance of getting a concave surface so you really critical parts it can be better to make multiple passes with a sharp small 3 or 4 flute cutter of say 6mm dia

Edited By JasonB on 11/09/2023 07:04:36

Hi Steve,

I run a 30mm dia. cutter with the APKT inserts that Jason mentions, on my old Sieg X2. It works as long as you take light cuts.

Thor

The problem is if you use an 6mm cutter and something goes wrong it goes ping

If you use a 16mm cutter and something goes wrong the weakest point in the chain will go ping, (hopefully it shoves the workpiece out the way)

Smaller stuff can zip along at higher feeds and with less threat to your equipment if you automate the feed

You can charge along with a consumable weak point in the system

Edited By Ady1 on 11/09/2023 10:39:28

Thank you all for your individual advice, much appreciated.

I generally only machine non-ferrous materials (hence going as large as a the16mm end mill).

I'll take all of this into account before I decide.

Thanks again, Steve.

The largest cutter I have ever used on my SX2P is 50mm diameter with 4 APKT1604 inserts, but never at more than 2/3rds of its diameter and then only with modest depths of cut. I use this just to initially clean up the surface, I machine mostly aluminium.

I know that the column on my machine has a slight lean in the Y axis, so if I want a flat surface I use an 8mm diameter cutter and step across between 2 and 4 mm, depending on how flat I want the surface to be. You have to feed in the right direction so that the trailing edge of the cutter does no dig in and cause a more rippled surface.

You just need to not try not to force the machine too much, usually you can tell by the sound it's making if it's happy or not.

Neil