Under the right conditions and with proper maintenance and handling, significant cost savings can be achieved by running polycrystalline diamond (PCD) tooling. Understanding the basics of diamond tooling is important when contemplating its use in your own production line. First and foremost, think of it as the marathon runner, as it will yield the best results in continuous and steady cutting of homogeneous materials. Diamond tooling is not advisable as an all-round tool that will be required to meet demands of a wide range of cutting applications on a day to day basis. So, if you are machining different materials and want one tool to do it all, the diamond tool will not be able to excel as well as it will if you are machining, for instance, 3/4&#; MDF all day long.
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Polycrystalline diamond is manufactured in a high-pressure, high-temperature laboratory process that fuses diamond particles onto a carbide substrate, which, in turn, allows the diamond to be brazed onto a tool body. PCD has an exceptionally high wear resistance factor, in particular with abrasive composite materials that are often difficult to machine with carbide. Examples are: particleboard, MDF, OSB, high pressure laminate, phenolic, fibre glass etc. Depending on what material is being machined, it is not unheard of for a diamond tool to outrun carbide by a ratio of 300 : 1! Nevertheless, when deciding whether to switch, be conservative in your cost analysis and base your decision on the diamond bit lasting 25x longer than carbide. You won&#;t be disappointed!
The original developers of synthetic diamond were GE (Specialty Materials Division) and DeBeers (Element 6) who pioneered this process and mastered the know-how of synthesizing diamond for industrial cutting applications. Meanwhile, there are a number of synthetic diamond tool blank manufacturers, and the quality, durability and wear resistance is not always equal.
When shopping for a PCD tool, it is important to discuss your proposed use and expectations in detail with the tool manufacturer as this allows for selection of the proper PCD grade (grain size), and optimum tool design. In particular, you want to be certain that there is no more PCD on the tool than actually needed (i.e. don&#;t order a tool with 1.1/4&#; cut length when you only cut 3/4&#; material because that needlessly increases the tool cost.
To understand the complete picture and compare &#;apples to apples&#; when shopping, it is important to ask the following questions:
How many times will I be able to sharpen this tool under normal wear conditions?
What will it cost to sharpen this tool?
How long will it take to turnaround a tool when sharpening?
If you neglect to get answers to these questions, you might be in for a surprise to find you were sold a &#;disposable&#; tool that cannot be sharpened at all, or can only be sharpened once. Or, you might think you are getting a bargain when you buy the tool, only to find you are going to be expected to pay 50% of the new tool cost to get it sharpened.
These factors significantly affect the cost per linear foot machined so are important to know when doing a cost comparison or justification for PCD tooling. Below is an example of a cost comparison using a diamond saw blade versus a carbide tipped blade:
$./$. = PCD costs 19.6% of carbide when comparing $/Linear Foot (80.4% cost reduction)
Another advantage of PCD tooling, apart from the longer tool life, includes the quality of finish which is often significantly improved and therefore requires less sanding. With carbide tools, the finish starts to deteriorate from the very first cut onward, whereas the diamond tool maintains a nice clean finish right up until it becomes dull&#;..at which time it plummets and should be pulled for sharpening. Pushing a diamond tool to run a little longer once it shows signs of becoming dull (a good indicator is when the machine amps increase), can result in a substantially larger sharpening cost as the diamond face can shatter and require re-tipping/replacing of the cutting edge.
At first glance PCD tooling seems expensive when compared to carbide however when we compute the cost per linear foot machined, in the right application, PCD will be revealed as the only choice for discerning shops that are cost conscious. As you can see from the cost calculation above, the investment in PCD tools pays off rather quickly. Some of the top PCD applications are machining abrasive materials, composites and workflows that do high volume of the same cut and material type.
With PCD router bits, maintaining correct chip load is very important as heat buildup during the cut will damage the diamond and can lead to tool failure. Accurate tool clamping systems with close tolerances are also essential as is firm material hold down to avoid any vibration during the cut. For specific questions about PCD tooling, please contact us or give us a call at 1-800-544-
Diamond bits are not best for every situation. Among other factors, they usually require slower feed rates. January 2,
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Question
Diamond tooling has come down in price to the point I've decided to try 1/2" compression for cutting laminated P Bd and melamine bd. The only diamond tooling we've used has been our slatwall bits. Just looking at the geometry the diamond bits don't seem like they would work as well as the carbide.
What experience have you had with them? I've been leery of using them due to the trash in P Bd. We currently get about 50 sheets of melamine on a 3/8 compression before it shows signs of getting dull. On HPL laminated board we are only getting about 15 sheets. That means 3-4 bits a day on HPL. At that rate we can throw away a diamond bit every other day and still be ahead. Can the same feed rate be maintained with the 1/2" diamond as we've been using with 3/8" carbide? On two flute bits we've been running a relatively slow pace of 600" and on 3 flute 900"/min.
Forum Responses
(CNC Forum)
From contributor C:
Not sure on your RPM, but if you are running 18,000 RPM you will be about half of the 600 IPM. Diamond tooling will not run as fast as a spiral. The diamond is on a shear and not a spiral. The big question you would have to ask is what is more important, time or money?
We are running 18,000rpm and we are short of enough time available on the router now. Going 300" seems painfully slow and would only worsen our bottle neck.Sorry you can only run about 200-250 IPM at 18k. I am sure you are using the 3 flute on the laminate material so you should be getting more sheets. Not all tools are created equal.So, what good are diamond tools for woodworking? We have been using them to cut fiberglass faced aluminum honey comb aircraft panels. Even there they don't produce a really fine cut but it doesn't much matter. 200-250ipm is like watching grass grow.Diamond tooling is very application specific. Let&#;s say you have a job and you can afford to let the machine run slower on the feed rate. Also, the material must be suitable for it, mostly man-made items. We sell both but most choose the solid carbide spirals.Based upon my experience with diamond router bits, there seems to be a misunderstanding about feed rate. All other things being equal, a diamond bit runs at basically the same chip load as a carbide bit. The difference is in the number of flutes. Because a diamond bit is made differently than a carbide bit (the teeth are staggered), it usually only has one flute, even though it may appear to have more. Therefore, at the same RPM, a diamond bit must run much slower than a two, three, or four flute carbide bit. We once tried a true two flute diamond bit, but the lower teeth broke off.From what I have seen a diamond bit has never ran the same feed rate as a S/C Spiral. The diamond is on a shear and not a spiral.Diamond has a spot in the wood industry. Courmatt has designed thousands of diamond tools from v-grooving, door (cabinets, interior, exterior) saw blades, edge band, etc. As mentioned it's not for every application. The 1/2 can and is used on small parts and in countries that do not have firms to sharpen spiral tools.750 IPM all the time on two sided melamine with an MDF core. We get anywhere from 175 to 250 sheets average per bit and have achieved over 500 on two occasions. We have tried just about every PCD bit out there and 99% said we could not do what we are doing. I don't like to argue when people have already made up their mind. We think outside the box so not sure how PCD will work on PB core. We don't use PBC since we saw sparks one time on our sliding table.
I will say that it is possible with an MDF Melamine but not sure if it is possible with a PB core and because of the loose core you may or may not be able to maintain a clean edge. Only you can decide what is an acceptable edge quality and if you will achieve it cost effectively. It will also depend on what type of CNC you have, your toolholders, collets, and believe it or not if you use a torch wrench at the correct foot lbs.
Contributor M - if you are running at 600 to 700 IPM with diamond tooling and achieving good results, you are in the top 2% of CNC users. I can say that I have been all over the world and never saw that kind of feeds with good results on diamond tooling, unless you are talking about diamond coated spirals.To support Contributor M&#;s comments about achieving 600+ inches/min with a 1/2" diameter PCD compression bit, it is very possible with the right bit. We aren&#;t the only company to make them, you just need to look at amongst the top PCD tooling manufactures and consider your production&#;s net cost, not only the initial tooling purchase price. There are cheap PCD bits and there are more expensive ones. The quality of PCD and time spent on the erosion process equates to a higher cost but also a better cutting edge that will last longer, much longer. The standard 1+1 or 2+2 PCD bits that most companies offer simply can&#;t perform at your desired feed-rates.
PCD bits in a diameter of 1/2" or smaller also have to contend with rigidity issues as the router bit&#;s body is softer than your solid carbide spiral&#;s. Again, with a good design, quality materials and attention spent to the erosion process, this isn&#;t an issue but keep in mind that larger than 1/2&#; diameter&#;s are preferred.
To the original questioner: For your particleboard application, you will need to get a diamond tooling company to look over your board with you as most standard particleboard contains many glue pockets, foreign material which makes the density very inconsistent - this can cause fractures in the PCD, leading to failure of the cutting edge and tool breakage if it isn&#;t caught. Then again, some people use good board and experience great results. You simply need to get an experienced tooling company involved and they&#;ll help you out.
In regards to the HPL, you may find it to be more consistent and friendlier to PCD bits. However, before you make any assumptions, get some material/cut samples and information about your routing programs to a good diamond company. As for your carbide bits, try getting a specialized highspeed two flute solid carbide bit and run it hard. You should be able to get some improvements there given what your original post describes. Generally speaking, 50 sheets shouldn&#;t be your top end.
The PCD bit below may look strange to most of you. This is because its shank is an HSK20C connection designed for the Aerotech System. It&#;s all I have in my office, so please keep in mind that the design of the cutting edge is what this image is attempting to illustrate - nothing else.
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