ISO Turn Inserts Wear Problems and Solutions

Flank Wear

• High cutting speed
• Low wear resistance carbide grade

• Use harder cutting tool material
• Reduce cutting speed
• Increase coolant preesure and check coolant direction
• For work-hardening materials, select a smaller entry angle
• Reduce the cutting speed when machining heat resistant materials

Crater Wear

• Excessive cutting temperatures and pressures on the top of the insert

• Reduce cutting speed
• Use geometry with greater rake angle
• Use more wear - resistant cutting tool material
• Reduce feed rate
• Increase coolant preesure and check coolant direction

Plastic Deformation

• Cutting temperature is too high

• Select more wear resistant cutting material
• Reduce the feed rate
• Reduce the cutting speed
• Reduce the cutting depth
• Increase coolant pressure

Notch Wear

• High hardness of the material surface causes damage at the depth of cut line

• Vary the cutting depth
• Use tool with a leading cutting edge
• Select a smaller corner radius
• Increase coolant pressure
• Select a more wear resistant grade
• For work-hardening materials, select a smaller entry angle
• Reduce the cutting speed when machining heat resistant materials

Thermal Cracking

• Excessive variations in surface temperature, intermittent machining, or variations in coolant supply

• Reduce cutting speed
• Reduce feed rate
• Use tougher cutting tool material
• Turn off coolant supply when machining interrupted cuts
• Use more stable geometry
• Select a tougher insert grade
• Eliminate the use of coolant whenever possible

Edge Fracture

• Caused by excessive insert wear before indexing the insert
• The grade and geometry could be too weak for the applications
• Excessive load on the insert
• Built-up edge has been formed on the insert

• Use a tougher cutting tool material
• Reduce the cutting speed
• Use a stronger cutting edge
• Check the tool stability if vibration occurs
• Reduce the feed rate
• Turn off coolant supply when machining interrupted cuts
• Increase corner radius if possible
• Reduce feed and/or depth of cut
• Select a stronger or thicker insert and tougher grade

Built-up Edge

• Cutting zone temperature is too low
• Negative cutting geometry
• Machining of very sticky materials such as low-carbon steel, stainless steels, and aluminum

• Increase cutting speed
• Use a sharper cutting edge
• Use cutting tool material with a treated (smoother) surface
• Increase coolant supply

Chip Hammering

• Chips curling into insert

• Try a different chip breaker with stronger geometry
• Alter feed rate and/or cutting speed

Chipping

• Caused by either the cutting edge of the insert being too brittle, or a built-up edge has been formed

• Select a tougher grade
• Reduce the feedrate
• Select a chipformer with a stronger cutting edge
• Check tool clamping stability
• Increase cutting speed
• Reduce feed rate at beginning of cut
• Improve stability of the set-up