There are many differences between carbide CNC milling tools and high-speed steel CNC milling tools in terms of material composition, performance characteristics, processing applications, tool life, manufacturing costs, etc. The following is a detailed introduction:
Different Material Composition
Carbide CNC milling tools: mainly made of refractory metal carbides (such as tungsten carbide, titanium carbide, etc.) and metal binders (such as cobalt, nickel, etc.) through powder metallurgy. High-speed steel CNC milling tools: a high-alloy tool steel containing more alloy elements such as tungsten, molybdenum, chromium, and vanadium, with a high carbon content, generally between 0.7% and 1.65%.
Different performance characteristics
Hardness: The hardness of carbide CNC milling tool is usually between HRA89 and 93, which is much higher than HRC62-65 of high-speed steel CNC milling tools, and can better maintain the sharpness of the blade. Wear resistance: The wear resistance of carbide is much better than that of high-speed steel. During the cutting process, the wear rate of carbide CNC milling tool is slower, and stable cutting can be maintained for a longer time. Hot hardness: Carbide CNC milling tools can maintain high hardness at high temperatures and can still perform cutting at around 1000℃; the hardness of high-speed steel CNC milling tools will drop significantly at around 600℃. Toughness: High-speed steel CNC milling tools have better toughness and can withstand certain impact loads without breaking easily; carbide milling tools have relatively poor toughness and are brittle, and are prone to chipping or breaking when subjected to large impacts.
Different processing applications
Cutting materials: Carbide CNC milling tools are suitable for processing high-hardness materials, such as hardened steel, stainless steel, heat-resistant alloys and other difficult-to-process materials; high-speed steel CNC milling tools are suitable for processing materials of general hardness, such as ordinary carbon steel, aluminum alloy, etc. Cutting parameters: Carbide milling tools can use higher cutting speeds and feed rates, which can effectively improve processing efficiency; the cutting speed and feed rate of high-speed steel milling tools are relatively low. For example, when processing ordinary carbon steel, the cutting speed of carbide CNC milling tools can reach 200-300m/min, while high-speed steel CNC milling tools are generally 50-80m/min. Processing accuracy: Carbide milling tools have more advantages when processing parts with higher precision requirements, and can achieve higher dimensional accuracy and surface quality; high-speed steel milling tools are widely used in some ordinary processing that does not require extremely high precision.
Tool life varies
Normal wear life: Due to the good wear resistance and hot hardness of cemented carbide CNC milling tools, under normal cutting conditions, their life is usually several times or even higher than that of high-speed steel CNC milling tools. For example, under the same cutting conditions, the service life of cemented carbide CNC milling tools may be 5-10 times that of high-speed steel CNC milling tools when machining stainless steel materials. Resistance to breakage: Although high-speed steel CNC milling tools have good toughness, they are also prone to wear and breakage during long-term, high-intensity cutting due to their limited hardness and wear resistance; although cemented carbide CNC milling tools have poor toughness, as long as they are used under appropriate cutting conditions, their resistance to breakage can also meet many processing needs.
Manufacturing costs vary
Raw material cost: The raw material price of cemented carbide is relatively high, especially some cemented carbide containing rare metals, which makes its raw material cost much higher than that of high-speed steel. Manufacturing process cost: The manufacturing process of cemented carbide CNC milling tool is relatively complicated, requiring special processes such as powder metallurgy, with a long production cycle and high manufacturing cost; the manufacturing process of high-speed steel milling tool is relatively simple and the cost is lower.
Market price: Taking the above factors into consideration, the market price of cemented carbide CNC milling tool is usually much higher than that of high-speed steel milling tool. Generally speaking, the price of cemented carbide CNC milling tool may be 3-10 times that of high-speed steel milling tool.
The above content is the difference between carbide milling tools and high-speed steel milling tools. What other questions do you have about CNC milling tool?
