A composite tool for ball endmilling

The paper reports on the performance of a novel composite ball nose endmill that utilizes cermet and tungsten carbide indexable inserts on the same cu tter body, with a view to optimizing both tool life and workpiece surface r oughness. The technique exploits the asymmetric design of the cutter to pos ition the cermet and tungsten carbide inserts appropriately, so that their characteristic tribological attributes are consistent with the functions of surface generation and wear resistance. Experimental work on ball endmilli ng of hardened AISI H13 tool steel is presented to illustrate the concept. The mechanism of performance enhancement of the composite tool is also deta iled with reference to the flank wear pattern of the inserts and the morpho logy of the machined surface.