General principles of machining stainless

steels
Introduction
The most common and hence most frequently machined stainless steels are the austenitic types, such as grades 304 (1.4301) and 316 (1.4401).
These are characterised by their high work hardening rates and poor chip breaking properties during machining. This article covers the important
issues that influence the successful machining of these steels.

Machine and tooling rigidity

When machining stainless steels it important to ensure that there is no dwell or rubbing caused by machine vibration or tool chatter. Machines
must be 'substantial' and capable of making the deep cuts needed in machining austenitic stainless steel without slowing down the set feed or
surface speeds. Small training or 'hobbies' lathes and milling machines intended for machining mild steel, brasses etc. are unlikely to be
substantial enough for the successful machining of stainless steels.
Machines should not be prone to excessive vibration in the machine bed, drives and gear boxes or at the cutting tool or its mountings. Large
overhangs of tool shank out of the tool box should be avoided. The distance between the cutting tip and toolbox support should be as short as
practicable and the shank cross section as substantial as possible. This can also help in dissipating heat away from the cutting faces. Arbours for
supporting barrel milling cutters should be stout as short as possible. The arbour supports should be as close as possible to the ends of the cutter
to provide maximum support.
Some 'squealing' as the metal is being cut is not unusual, but can indicate that the tool may be wearing and need replacing.

Tool materials
Either high speed steel (HSS) (wrought or sintered) or cemented carbide tools can be used for machining stainless steels.
High speed steels
Either tungsten or molybdenum HSS can be used. These are particularly useful in machining operations involving high feed and low speed
machining operations where there are variable cutting edge stresses induced from complex tool shapes.
The tungsten types (eg T15) can be useful for their good abrasion resistance and red hardness. The molybdenum HSS are more widely used,
M42 being useful for applications such as milling cutters where a good combination of hardness and strength are required at lower cutting
speeds. M42 has better hardness than grades like the more common M2, but may not be as tough however.
If the tools are prone to edge chipping, use a tougher grade, eg M2, M10 If tools are burning, use a higher red hardness grade, eg M42, T15 If the
tools are wearing, use a more abrasion resistant grade, eg T15
Cemented carbides
Cemented carbides are normally used for machining stainless steels where higher speeds or higher feeds than those that can be produced using
HSS are required. Either disposable insert or brazed-on tips (where lower cutting speeds can be tolerated) can be used and are composed of
either tungsten carbides or a blend of tungsten and other metal carbides, including titanium, niobium, and chromium. The carbides are bonded
with cobalt. The 'straight' tungsten carbides grades are used for machining austenitic and duplex stainless steels and the 'complex' carbides are
used for machining martensitic and ferritic family grades.
Coated carbides have the additional benefit of improved wear resistance and resistance to breakage. Consequently they are capable of higher
cutting speeds compared to un-coated carbide tools.
The wide range of carbide tools available usually means that machining trials are needed to get the optimum machining characteristics for
specific situations.

Tool geometry and sharpness

It is essential to keep the cutting tools sharp when machining stainless steels. Careful grinding and honing of the tool faces to give accurate and
sharp face angles is important. This helps optimise:
tool life
finish, accuracy and tolerances
productivity between regrinds
and reduce:
tool breakages
power requirements
Re-sharpening should be done as soon as the quality of the cut has deteriorated.
Machine grinding using properly dressed wheels, free from glazing, is preferable to hand grinding to get the necessary accuracy of tool geometry.

Correct tool geometry is important for minimising swarf build up on the tool faces.
Swarf build up can also result in increased machine power requirements and poor surface finish on the machined surfaces.
Tool relief angles must be flat. Concave relief faces can result in tool chipping or breakage due to the reduced support of the cutting edge.
Where possible the tool faces should incorporate chip curlers or breakers as austenitic stainless steels are prone to forming long spiralling
turnings that can easily wrap around the tool and tool post. These can easily become entangled around the tooling and are difficult and time
consuming to remove. In extreme cases the tool can become jammed by entangled turnings.

Lubrication and cooling

It is essential that cutting fluids are used when stainless steels are machined. This is due to the combination effects of the deep cuts and high
feed rates needed to overcome the effects of work hardening, and the low thermal conductivity of the austenitic stainless steels, restricting the
flow of heat away from the machined faces. Overheating stainless steel surfaces, characterised by the formation of heat tinting colours, during
machining can impair corrosion resistance and so must be avoided. If formed pickling the surface can be used to restore corrosion resistance on
the finished part. Overheating can also result in distortion that can be difficult to compensate for or correct.
The lubrication provided by cutting fluids also helps reduce tool wear and wash away the machining swarf.
Generally cooling is more important than lubrication with faster the cutting speeds and so high cutting fluid flow rates are normally used when
machining stainless steels.
Either mineral oils or water soluble emulsifiable oils can be used. Minerial oils are more suited to severe machining operations with heavy loads at
low speeds or where HSS tools are being used. Emulsifiable oils are used for machining at higher speeds with carbide tooling.
Mineral oils
Sulphurized, chlorinated or sulpho-chlorinated mineral oils can be used with additions of up to 10% fatty oils for machining non-free machining
grades. Paraffin is used to dilute these oils, in oil/paraffin ratios between 1/5 for high speeds and light feed work to 1/1 for slower speed and
heavier feed machining.
If excessive wear is being experienced, consider using greater dilutions. If the cutting edge is tending to burn, consider reducing the dilution.
Emulsifiable oils
These oils are diluted with water and provide better cooling than the paraffin diluted mineral oils. If extreme pressure (EP) emulsifiable oils are
used, more sever machining operations can be supported. It is important that dilution is done by adding oil to water, not water to oil so that the
correct form of emulsion, with the right lubrication and cooling properties, is formed.
After machining all traces of the cutting fluid should be removed from the surface so that the stainless steel surfaces can self-passivate. Under
certain circumstances acid passivation should be considered.
Further information on the selection of cutting fluids for machining is available in the BSSA Training Note No9 'Machining Stainless Steels

(Source http://www.bssa.org.uk/topics.php?article=192 )