HOW TO TOOL UP A MILLING MACHINE

You have bought a new milling machine. Now you have to buy tools and accessories for it. Can you do it on your own? To answer this question, we should know the following.

First of all, the technical data of your machine:

• type of the machine (vertical, horizontal);
• taper type;
• pull-stud type;
• spindle type;
• tool storage capacity;
• worktable data;
• dimensions of the equipment.

All this data can be found in the technical documentation for the machine.

The next step is to pin down the production pattern. If the machine is to mass-produce one workpart, the tools and accessories are to maintain the highest output of that part, and automation may be added, as well. We check how the piece will be mounted and fixed (in a vice, a 3  or a 4 jaw chuck). Perhaps, pallets will be used (while a piece is being machined, the next one is getting ready).

Opposite case: machining of most diverse parts, and one does not even know in advance what kind of parts. In this case, you would have to purchase such a set of cutting and clamping tools, and universal fixtures that will enable machining in most typical situations (covering of 100% of eventual jobs is certainly impossible).

Can you pick up all the necessary attachments and accessories for your miller on your own, without an engineering company? It depends on your experience. If you have not previously operated this kind of machine, you most probably used quite different processes, and it would be difficult for you to find your bearings in the possibilities opened up by the new machine. If you do have this experience, you will perhaps be able to tool the machine up unaided. Mind, however, that differences between machines may seriously impact the choice of tools. For example, the previous machine worked at 8000 rpm, while the new one has a higher speed. That means you now need special balanced tools (e. g., those marked Big+). There are a lot of such subtleties, which you may not know. Therefore, in any case, before buying attachments and accessories for a milling machine, you’d better ask the advice of specialists knowledgeable about various machines.

Such specialists can be found, for example, in Pumori Corporation. They will ascertain what processes, equipment and tools for millers you used and what pieces manufactured; they will closely examine your new machine and the intended products; and will provide expert advice, omitting not the smallest detail that might influence the choice of tools and accessories for the machine. When necessary, Pumori’s specialists will also design your production process and make a test manufacture.

If the machine is to be used to make various parts and you need a universal kit, it would be rather difficult for you to make it up. That is where an engineering company’s expertise will come in very useful, since it works with very different customers all the time. Its specialists will put together a kit of mills and drills for various materials, pull-studs, holders, vices, chucks, and universal fixtures. They will take account of your preferences; and if they believe something different will work better, they will bring forward their arguments, when necessary, in the form of a feasibility study. Since the Corporation works with a number of high-quality tool makers, it is quite possible to find tools most suitable for you in terms of both performance and price.