Circle segment milling cutters are quickly becoming the norm in 5-axis machining. These cutters can reduce cycle times while still providing superior surface finishes and flexibility in machining. Although the traditional ball-nosed endmill is still the most widely used tool for surfacing, the circle segment (or barrel) cutter isn’t far behind.
There are several different categories and shapes of these tools, but at the core, a circle segment cutting tool is a tool with more than one radii formed into the cutting areas of the tool. The side of the tool can be “barrel shaped” and provides a very large radius shape. The tip of the tool might have a smaller and more traditional looking ball-nosed radius and shape. These two areas are used for different processes but provide the flexibility and efficiency of machining it all without the need for tool changes. The cutter is simply tipped into position to use the portion of the tool that fits the current need.
Tilting the tool to utilize the larger radius on the sides of the cutter allows for a very large stepdown when machining walled surfaces, while still maintaining a really nice surface finish, as well as providing drastically faster cycle times. Since using a traditional ball-nose endmill with a very large radius would be problematic (because we can’t hold a ball-nosed cutter with a 1” radius for example) these tools have brought about a huge benefit in the world of surface machining.
Now, once the flat surfaces have been machined, the tool can be tilted even further to utilize the smaller ball-nosed cutting tip to machine smaller and more intricate details of the part.
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