Improve the Operation of CNC Router with the help of Tooling Techniques
The CNC Router, especially the one used for woodworking is an interesting innovation that has influenced the related business positively. As you might be aware, a CNC router is a machine controlled through computer numerical in order to achieve the desired design on the wooden piece. You will be able to design the program parts in the computer using CAM/CAD program, which the machine will follow with the help of a router to give you the finished product.
The CNC router machine is available in many varieties and can cut through a wide array of materials with equal superiority and precision. Over the years, it has become the foremost choice of the businessmen in the woodworking industry because of its multiple advantages against the traditional methods. However, abiding by a few essential techniques can improve the operations of this router even more.
Advantage against the Manual Way
When the laborers work manually to produce a finished woodwork, it consumes a hell lot of time. The precision of the art is not always on point and in order to maintain the accuracy, the work produces a lot of waste. Consequently, this tends the businesses to bear significant losses. Thankfully, the introduction of the CNC router addressed all these issues quite efficiently.
The router offers you:
- Cent percent accurate work even for complicated designs
- Less or no wastage of materials
- Less time; can handle a hefty load of work within the short time span
- Better profit and less cost of production.
Hence, you can say that the CNC Router is an inevitable inclusion in the factories and workshops. You need to apply the techniques and condition the tool accordingly, to get the maximum benefits in terms of productivity.
Important Tooling Techniques
Although the tools vary in their shape and application, still while selecting one, you should consider these four essential aspects to make your machine perform above par excellence.
1. Go for shorter tooling: But obviously, your prime concern will be the performance of your tool, which depends on its rigidity level. Therefore, to maintain and to ensure that your tool is rigid, you need to buy the one that has the shortest overall length.
2. Take Care of Shank: You would preferably want your tool to stay strong and last long. This requires you to maintain a proper technique to set the collet. As an important tip, you should fill 75% of the internal diameter of the collet with a shank.
3. Balance material thickness and tool diameter: The tool suffers deflection when it tries to cut through the material. It resists the cut and forces the tool to move off the way, but the machine prefers to move in a straight path. To avoid this disparity you should always choose tools with large diameters. However, the nature of the material also plays an important role in this regard, so keep this in mind as well.
4. Select the correct direction of rotation: When the tool rotates in a specific direction, the machine creates a particular style of cut, which makes one side to look better than the other. Therefore, when you are using the tool to cut, you need to choose that particular direction in which you want the material to look good- in the conventional cut side or in the climb cut side. A further switching of the rotation will ensure a different outcome.
If you keep these four points in mind, then the affair of cutting becomes the easier and accurate, which will ultimately help your business to thrive.
More Ideas for Added Benefits
If you already own a tool and wish to improve its quality by addressing the above-mentioned concerns, here are few options to help you out.
1. Optimal Dust Extraction: The extraction of dust is a crucial point in this industry as its accumulation might lead to an unsafe and accident-prone environment for workers. The two options for this extraction include a unique design for large tool bodies and a standard fan for extraction. The fan removes the dust from the working surface upward into the vacuum. However, for best results, it is better to install the fan in the perfect position with the tool, while taking proper protection for the ear and eyes. This relieves the labors from the task of cleaning and lets them concentrate on work.
2. Lubrication of Sticky materials: At times, some materials like Aluminum gets attracted to the material of the cutter and welds chips into the edge which reduces the longevity of the tool by making it prone to breaking. Therefore, if you want to prevent that then you should opt for lubricants, which will be available from mist coolant, flood coolant or from some kind of tool coating.
3. Being Gentle with Entry and Exits: Another way, with which the damaging of the router can be checked is by choosing gentler options in the CAM program to enter as well as to take out the cutter. It is wise to opt for spiral, helix or ramp in.
4. Lowering of spindle rpm or surface speed: The more the surface speed, the hotter the cutter gets and this heat leads to softening of the cutter edge, hence, it is necessary to reduce the speed, so that heat is kept in check and the machine can perform better and for more days.
5. Increasing Depths of cuts: It might seem to you that a shallow cut will add up to your tool’s age but such is not the case rather it will affect the flute’s tip. Therefore, it is better to have deep cuts, which will spread the wearing throughout the flute.
Tooling is the very heart of a CNC Router. Thus, follow these points to increase the tool life and improve your cut! For more information on this topic, or to buy a CNC router machine for your cause, it is even better to contact OMNI CNC. The industry-leading company offers a range of CNC router machines to adhere to your specific purpose.
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