Cutting Tool Life Comparisons

Single point tool performance data are presented, concerning the use of tungsten carbide, alumina, sialon and cubic boron nitride cutting tools, when machining a variety of hardened and annealed ferrous workpiece materials. When cutting hardened die steel Rc 55-61, at speeds between 50–100m /min with a constant feed rate of 0.12mm/rev, two of the three sialons tested fared substantially better than either of the two CBN products used. In contrast, when turning a medium carbon steel and an annealed die steel, the sialon tools showed rapid flank and crater wear over a wide range of cutting speeds. On grey cast iron, grade 260, the alumina tool proved the most effective. In industrial tests using Syalon and BZN shank tools to machine automotive valve seats, the Syalon tools showed on average three times the level of BZN flank wear for a working component output of only 1½% of the BZN total.