In article , Harold and Susan Vordos says...

My point in
getting you to try chip breakers is to learn about them and have them firmly
entrenched in your mind, so when the need arises you don't have to go
through the learning curve.

Something I never did. LOL. Might be time to investigate, eh?
I seem to recall teenut saying something about the chipbreaker
groove on a HSS tool could be done with a tiny cutoff wheel
and a die grinder.


Understand that some aluminums cut without making strings. It's the nature
of the material. Amongst them are 2024 and 7075, each of which will gladly
cut string free under the right conditions, including the absence of a
proper chip breaker. 6061 is another story, and is generally more than
happy to generate strings, although generally very easy to control.

6061 is like turning silly putty. 2024T6 is more like steel than
aluminum. I love that stuff. Too bad you can't weld it.

... I use a
square tool block (my choice) so I shim all my tools. You get used to
having a small box of shims handy and it takes almost no time to set up your
tools. You get to the point where you can pick up a tool and know what shim
is required to hit center. I use anything for shims, including strapping
material, which comes in a myriad of thicknesses. Old feeler gages are
fine, too, just expensive. And then there's always shim stock!

This is one reason I avoid back rake - because it means that sharpening
the tool requires resetting center height.

One thing I don't use is a tool rest. Never. Not for grinding tool bits.
They get in the way and restrict your ability. You likely won't be able to
do that at school, but keep it in mind for home use. Have a special grinder
that you use exclusively for sharpening toolbits, and have it mounted such
that you can stand erect and grind at a comfortable level. It takes some
getting used to, but once you master it, you'll never go back to a
conventional pedestal grinder for grinding toolbits. Knowing how to
properly dress the wheel becomes quite important when you grind this way.
It must run smooth and true, for it becomes your reference point.

Toolrests are OK for roughing stuff out, but I agree that 90 percent
of the lathe tool grinding I do is offhand, no rest. You have to be
able to get the angles right. Good lighting is vital. My grinder
is tucked away in a far corner of my shop, to keep grit off the machines.
The lighting sucks there, it's one more of those roundtuit items.

Jim


--
==================================================
please reply to:
JRR(zero) at pkmfgvm4 (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com
==================================================