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Lathe Tool holder - alternative to Stellram - Thoughts please ?


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I have always bought Stellram Tools and inserts, found them although spendy to be superb, and the inserts relaible and easy to get

having had some cheap tool holders that 1 year later inserts seem impossible to get.

I now need a radius tool and radius inserts I looked at the Stellram catalogue and was going to order either a

PRSNR/2020K09 OR A SRDCN1616H06 - but - for some very odd rersaon Stellram do not do either of these tool holders

(they do just about every other one they make :( ) in a 12mm tool holder.

So, with Stellram being not possible, what other holders / makers / shops would you recomend please ?

If you can even link to a Radius Cutter than would be even better

Nige

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As a turner by trade..I've found a question I'm good at!!!!

2 years ago we were almost exclusivly Sandvik at work. With the onset of the recession we did some looking around for cheaper inserts that still did what we wanted. A lot of the general stuff we use now is Kenametal, tips are cheaper and yet just as good, they also, a lot of the time, fit the Sandvik holders too.

The manufacturers of inserts we use now are, in no particular order, Sandvik, Seco, Mitsubishi, Iscar and Kenametal. We used to use Mircona too, but we've given up on them as we felt that they weren't keeping up with their rivals in terms of functionality and flexability. Stellram we only use for milling, finding them to be too expensive for turning inserts.

As a source of inserts, I at home have always used JB Cutting Tools of Sheffield. Whilest I can't confirm, I'm told Jenny Blackwell is a former Sandvik sales rep, who decided to set up on her own as a source agent for model engineers, like me. She can supply all the Sanvik inserts, plus others on occasion, and is quite happy to send via post. Personally, I've always found her to be super value for money, and customer service excellent. At the moment I believe she's at the Meridienne Exhibition Centre for the Midlands Model Engineering Exhibition, unfortunately I'm too busy too go.

What sort of turning do you normally do? On producition standard turninf we're using 95/80 tips, 0.8 rad for roughing and 0.4 rad for finishing. These tips are immensly strong by comparision. Only when we are 'digging in' will we use a 95/55 insert where the greater rear angle is useful. Both style inserts are readily avaliable from all the mentioned manufacturers, and often, although not always, are interchangable between holders.

Also, it is entirely possible to buy 16, 20, 25 and 32mm holders and mill them down to 12mm...in fact, you should see some of the special tools we've cut and welded!!

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I totally agree with Mr Parrot! Most of mine are from the same manufacturers. Unlikely as it might seem however, the tool I use most often is made by Glanze, a brand sold by Chronos - purveyors of cheap c**p! The tools came with my Lathe and have been surprisingly good. Their tips are a bit expensive - but kennametal ones bought on eBay seem to fit.

What I'd like to find is a good parting off system. At the moment I use one which uses 2.2mm wide inserts, but it's not very rigid and the tool holders are too easily damaged when the insert makes a bid for freedom!

Si

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I'm afraid parting holders are something we all struggle with in truth...I've seen lots of promotional videos from companies about high speed parting and durability and everything, but whenever we actually come down to it we dont get the results they say we should.

Probably the best I've found yet is an Iscar blade and holder, one of the lathes in my section has been using it since I joined the company in 2005, as a machinist then and now section leader. We've had to buy new blades since then dont get me wrong, its not that good, but against the mircona offerings its light years ahead, and against the Sandvik options, the tips do seem to be sturdier.

Our standard parting tip width is 3.0 or 3.1mm, we don't use narrower as they just dont have the tip life.

I have a Greenwood Tools parting tool somewhere, Q-Cut I think it was called, has an insert about 2mm thick. That was another case of a promotional video showing a lathe turning at 500rpm and parting at a feedrate of somewhere in the region of .06 per rev, no coolant. Come to try it though and it wasnt having it. I was cutting disks of En1A at the time, 1.25" diameter 1/8" thick. Try as I might, they bounced all over the place, couldnt get a surface finish on them...the tools we use at work now with a keen tip in give a finish often enough not requiring facing up, depending on the job of course! My ol' Boxford is a very hardy and rigid machine, there's not much chance my problems were related to slack in the toolpost/topslide/crosslide/saddle/spindle bearings!

JB probably wont answer on monday, the midlands show is on until tuesday, guess she'll be home wednesday...I dont know if she has a mobile with her.

Glanze I've no experience of, I did breifly look at them on Chronos' stand at the show a year ok, 'fraid I didn't pay much attention because it was on Chronos' stand!

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One thing I tried - which worked pretty well was to clamp a piece of regular saw-blade in the end of a toolholder such that the x axis pushed it against the job. It gave almost no vibration, although the faces needed a but of tidying up. I used this to make a washer from EN24 which had defeated the parting tool.

I'll order an Iscar set and see how it does!

Thanks for the advice,

Si

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Remembered!

The blade is ISCAR Self Grip SGFH 26-3, its also got 09078 on it but I don't know what thats there for. The inserts we use generally are GFN3 IC328. I've used them on everything from En1a, 3b, 8, 16, 24 Stainless' in the 300 and 400 series, and into the nimonics, 75, 80 and 90. They obviously dont last as long in the tougher stuff, but Ive always found them to be as good as can be expected - I've done production runs in the thousands in En16, T condition, and not changed the insert in between unless a jobs bounced and pinched the end.

Hopefully not teaching to suck eggs, but always remember to have the blade as short as possible for maximum rigidity.

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We use GTSS in coventry, or Ryona Engineering Services, also Cov...I think...between them they supply pretty much everything we buy in.

JB may have a full answer machine because she's been at the midlands show since last thursday, I'd imagine she'll be home today, but like I say, I've never phoned or emailled her, always seen her at shows.

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We should all arrange to meet up there - and compare Kagool zippers! I'll probably go on the Saturday as the used tool dealers seem to get the best stuff out on Sat and it's all gone by Sunday.

I usually end up just buying tips & tools - but this year I have a shopping list of stuff I need (want more accurately ;) ).

How about meeting at the cafe at 1pm? The food there is expensive horribleness - so I'd bring sandwiches!

Si

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