Turning and finishing a mirror finish on mild steel
Can anyone suggest a tool shape and feed that
might give me a better finish. My tool is
slightly rounded with the recommmended angles
for steel.
I have the best luck with very sharp HSS toolbits,
good cutting oil to prevent a buildup on the toolbit nose
and a slow cutting speed of about 50.
One time I used a carbide toobit at high speed
with smoking hot chips and I got a almost chrome looking
finish. I never could duplicate it though!
I have the same problem sometimes with CI flywheels
but not as bad as with crummy steel. I use very
coarse emery paper (80-100) to get the marks out
followed by finer grits to get the finish. It might
not be a prefect surface anymore but it doesn't matter
for a flywheel.
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