Cutting Aluminum Keys

[the lockpickkid]

I have some cheapy aluminum keys that I cut on my machine to make sure it's dialed in. NO MORE. It plugs the cutter and then it bogs down the motor on my Mini Speedex, not a good deal. You would think that after cutting a few brass keys that the aluminium would come out of the cutter, no luck on that. I have cleaned my cutter though by using a pointed tip on my pocket knife and picking the aluminum out of the grooves on the cutter and by using wd-40 and gently using a brass brush on it. I highly recommend not using aluminum key blanks unless that's all you got. As it stands now, my cutter works better but I don't think it's a good deal to be picking aluminum out of it and I fear I have shortened the life of the cutter. Just a heads up you guys.

[MBI]

Yeah, aluminum key blanks will definitely shorten the life of a standard cutting wheel. I've never tried them on a carbide wheel though. I wonder how that would work out.

[the lockpickkid]

they may be fine, but look at the price for a standard carbide wheel! Holy cow, those things are like gold!

[aka.decoy]

I have some cheapy aluminum keys that I cut on my machine to make sure it's dialed in. NO MORE. It plugs the cutter and then it bogs down the motor on my Mini Speedex, not a good deal. You would think that after cutting a few brass keys that the aluminium would come out of the cutter, no luck on that. I have cleaned my cutter though by using a pointed tip on my pocket knife and picking the aluminum out of the grooves on the cutter and by using wd-40 and gently using a brass brush on it. I highly recommend not using aluminum key blanks unless that's all you got. As it stands now, my cutter works better but I don't think it's a good deal to be picking aluminum out of it and I fear I have shortened the life of the cutter. Just a heads up you guys.

Yeah, aluminum tends to load up on any cutter. I don't know about a key cutting wheel, but on all other types of carbide tooling I've used aluminum loads up too. I mean, lasts a bit longer but loads up the same. Especially with the design of a standard key cutting wheel. Believe it or not, brushed on kerosene makes an excellent cutting fluid for aluminum...however I doubt you'd wanna deal with the clean up, or have it splashed on your machine, or have the customer wonder what that funny smell is lol. Props on the brass brush though. Might I suggest something for clean up in case you run into that situation again? Get a tiny brass rod (about 1/8") from the hardware store for a couple bucks. Cut it about 6-7" and stick it in your cordless drill. Let her rip on a belt sander (or whatever if you don't have one, but anything EXCEPT a grinding wheel) at an angle till you get a nice point to your liking. You might have to brace the rod a little since it's sticking so far out, but it shouldn't take much pressure since it's brass. It should be perfectly even since you were spinning the drill, and you should end up with a nice little brass pick that's softer than your cutter (and your hardened pocket knife), less likely to ding your cutting edges should you slip whilst cleaning. I usually flatten out the other end with a hammer & file, and use it to remove o-rings when I repair shower/sink valves on the side. But of course that's totally up to you =)

P.S. - I know it sounds like I over explained it a little, and I know you're super capable LPK...I just didn't want some random kid reading this post blaming me for a brass dagger in the eye o_O!

[aka.decoy]

Oh yeah, and did you take smaller cuts when you were cutting the aluminum blanks or just like normal? Aluminum tends to get stickier when it gets hot.

[pin_pusher]

just got a new (new to me) ilco copier on my tool table...and some donated aluminum key blanks, makes me wonder if that was a joke. i'll keep this in mind, and avoid using those aluminum blanks until an emergency arises (doubtfully so). thanks for the heads up!

[the lockpickkid]

I did find a use for these after all!! They work great on the 1200 punch machine to check or calibration, no wheels to get screwed up on that, and they cut like hot butter on the punch!

[barbarian]

The little teeth on the cutter are shaped for brass. They will load up if you use aluminum. The cutters on something like a mini speedex are really more like a file, than a milling cutter.

If you ever work brass on a milling machine, you will notice it often breaks into sharp little chips as its cut. Aluminum on the other hand produces long continuous chips that whip around with the cutter. If you look at cutters for milling machines, they mention the type of material they are best for. This has to do with the shape and angles of the teeth, not just the hardness. (carbide)

Frikking Aluminum will load up a cutter. Special cutting fluid helps, but it's not great. Once it welds itself on the cutter, it's almost impossible to remove.

[aka.decoy]

The little teeth on the cutter are shaped for brass. They will load up if you use aluminum. The cutters on something like a mini speedex are really more like a file, than a milling cutter.

If you ever work brass on a milling machine, you will notice it often breaks into sharp little chips as its cut. Aluminum on the other hand produces long continuous chips that whip around with the cutter. If you look at cutters for milling machines, they mention the type of material they are best for. This has to do with the shape and angles of the teeth, not just the hardness. (carbide)

Frikking Aluminum will load up a cutter. Special cutting fluid helps, but it's not great. Once it welds itself on the cutter, it's almost impossible to remove.

Hey barbarian. I've had stringy chips drilling aluminum on a mill, turning aluminum, boring, sometimes facing, but never milling aluminum. 2 flute, 3 flute, 4 flute, finishing, roughing, shell mill, carbide, woodruff, spot facing, slitting...never got stringy chips milling. Just out of curiosity, what kind of milling cutter produces stringy chips? So I can steer clear of it lol. Thanks.