[Jewelry making - Article 00216] - Re: [Orchid] Turning Speeds and Angles for Platinum

[Paul Finelt]

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Karl,

    Platinum is indeed very 'sticky' or gummy - actually the material
    sticks to a cutting edge. Machining characteristics of a material
    come from it's physical properties. Pt is dense and is alloyed with
    other elements that effect it's machinability. 

    Begin by considering the 'system' in which you are working. These
    are factors that are interrelated. 

    1. the material. What alloy are you cutting? Pt/Co - Pt/Ru or Pt/Ir?
    They differ in their machining characteristics. 

    2. your machine tool. Is it rigid or loose? Higher HP or lower?
    Higher speed capable or lower? Are you removing large volumes of
    material or not (not is more likely in Pt/Au!!! so look for finishing
    speeds and feeds) 

    3. the cutting tool material and geometry. High speed steel cutting
    tools generally don't work well with platinum. You might find some
    success with a TiN (gold) coated HSS if your machine is low HP and
    you care running at lower speeds / feeds. If you are using carbide
    tools, look for machining recommendations for nickel and high nickel
    alloys like Monel and Inconel. Diamond cutting tools certainly work
    best but are very costly. 

    4. the coolant. Use water based or vegetable oil based coolants -
    flood or mist depending upon how fast you are pushing your tools.
    Higher cutting speeds generally call for flood coolant. 

    These factors when considered together should get you to a solution
    with the least amount of experimentation on any material. This 
article
    contains recommendations that are a good starting point. 

    http://www.espi-metals.com/tech/machiningnickel&alloys.pdf 

I hope this helps.
Paul Finelt, CIRM
http://www.finelt.com
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