4 flute end mills for routing.

[gary butcher]

I have a 1/4" carbide upcut spiral bit which I like a lot and would like to know if any of you have used 4 flute carbide end mills like these below, and if so, what's your opinion of them?

http://www.american-carbide.com/images/RFEM.jpg
http://www.american-carbide.com/images/BEM4.jpg

I've read that some find these more stable with less chatter than the standard 2 flute router bits. They generally cost less than their 'wood' counterparts and are stronger too.

[Keith Outten]

Gary,

There was a pretty informative thread recently in the CNC Forum here about using end mills in routers. Some woodworkers are not fans of using end mills for woodworking but I have been using them longer than I can remember.
.

[gary butcher]

Thanks Keith, I'll see if I can find it.

[Tony Joyce]

Just don't use the Weldon type(with flats) they can damage your collets. I've used some 4 flute in smaller sizes they seem to work very well and are usually cheaper.

[Lee Schierer]

I have a 4" long end mill I use in my router. It has worked well when I have used it.

[Steve knight]

stick with 2f if you can. you can't feed the bit fast enough to keep the chipload right so the bit will overheat faster. it will work fine but a 2 flute is better. it's hard enough to feed a 2 flute fast eno9ugh on my cnc with the lower rpms. no chance at all you can do it with a regular router.

[Frank Drew]

I found that 2 flute bits cut more efficiently in wood than 4; perhaps 4 flutes are more suitable for metal?

[Steve knight]

I found that 2 flute bits cut more efficiently in wood than 4; perhaps 4 flutes are more suitable for metal?

it's that you can't move the bit fast enough for it to cut well. the mroe flutes the faster the feed rate.

[gary butcher]

Thanks for the replies.

I should probably have stated I won't be using them in a normal 'router' fashion so it'll all be a bit hit and miss until I get my technique down. I have my little router mounted on a drillwizzard which is attached to half a cross-slide vice which is attached to my lathe so that I can plunge in while turning the chuck by hand. The cross-slide allows me to set exact widths for precise cutting. Sounds complicated but it's not really. I enjoy coming up with fun contraptions and this is one of them :D

I like to be able to see exactly what's going on with cutter/wood. I don't like circle jigs, especially for the small hollows I make and I'm not good at getting exact repeatability with chisels which is what I need. I generally make headphone cups so I need a bit more accuracy or things don't fit like they should. I still turn the outside of the cups normally and between the two I can get a good fit and nice look. I'll also be using it to rout plexiglass.

Can't wait until I get my new lathe with indexing as that'll really make screw and wire holes easy and accurate too.

[Steve knight]

in that case it may not matter get the cheapest ones.

[gary butcher]

yeah, I just need a fast, clean cut so as long as the cutter is sharp it'll do. I was looking at end mills because they are relatively cheap.

[Ryan Baker]

If you want to plunge, you need two flute, not four flute.

[Steve knight]

the flutes are not what determines plunging it is the tip type.

[Darrell Bade]

From my experience on CNC mills with metal, not wood, 4 flute endmills often times do not plunge well even if they have a tip designed for it. Two flutes often plunge much better and last longer in a plunging operation.