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Cutting Tool Specialists
REAMING
When it is necessary to produce a tight tolerance hole in laminates, usually it is better to ream using tungsten carbide reamers with hand taper lead. Because of the taper a more gradual cutting action reduces the possibility of splitting the laminates (fig 4).
COUNTERSINKING
Carbon Fibre is usually the top skin and therefore the material to be countersunk. For this operation we try to use countersink cutters with brazed Polycrystalline Diamond tips, either single or twin flutes. The advantage of P.C.D. over the other materials is the tool life. Where a tungsten carbide cutter will produce 100 countersinks, a P.C.D. cutter will produce 1,000 to 2,000 (fig 5).
SLITTING AND ROUTING
Normally, for slitting operations of Carbon Fibre materials, diamond coated tools are used. The diamond coating process allows us to produce a wide rage of cutters of different angles or radii.
Routing profiles in Carbon is becoming an important operation. Due to different methods used it is necessary to select the correct tool per application. For example, if the carbon has no backing and delamination could be a problem, it would be necessary to use a solid carbide cutter with a diamond cut flute pattern so that the cutting forces are directed to the centre of the material, thus reducing edge delamination. However, if the carbon is backed, Polycrystalline Diamond is generally used, as this offers high wear resistance (fig 6).
We can now offer a cutter GT800 with interchangeable saw blades for the contour cutting of NOMEX (trade mark of DuPont). The blade diameters commonly used are 30 to 50 mm. Solid cutters can be supplied with smaller diameters (fig 7).
Carbon Composite Cutting Solutions - contd.
Gandtrack Ltd, Unit 8, Gladstone Business Park, Gladstone St, Moorhey, Oldham, OL4 1AX England.