Cutting conditions for turning tools

After identifying the machine tools and cutters, the following primary cutting conditions need to be considered.

1. Cutting speed

Cutting speed is the relative surface speed between the tool and the workpiece, measured in surface feet per minute (SFM). Whether the workpiece is still a cutting tool, in the cutting time can move. Because machine tools move in rotations in revolutions per minute, there must be a way to convert the apparent speed to revolutions per minute (RPM). All tool data have a specific SFM when cutting different workpiece data. Many references will give the recommended SFM scale for tool and workpiece data.

2. Cutting depth

Depth of cut refers to the depth of the cutting tool tip into the workpiece. Depth of cut determines the linear scale of the cut area. For example, if the outer diameter of a workpiece is shortened by 0.500 ", the cutting depth is 0.250 ".

3. Feed rate

The feed rate of a turning lathe is the axial speed of the cutting tool along the workpiece per rotation, expressed in inches per revolution (IPR) or in inches per minute (IPM) over a period of one minute.

Feed rate, cutting speed, and cutting depth directly affect productivity, tool life, and machine tools. Therefore, the choice of cutting conditions is directly influenced by the choice of cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut to be adopted for each cutting application.