MILLING MACHINE

Milling machine is one of the most widely used machines in precision metal machining industry. On a milling machine, the work piece which is rigidly held on the table of the milling machine with the help of a milling vice or clamps is fed against a rotating milling cutter which is held in the spindle inside the fixed head of the milling machine. Milling cutter is normally a multi point cutting tool with cutting tooth made out of hard materials like high speed steel or carbide. Milling machine can also be used for various other metal cutting operations like drilling, tapping, reaming and boring with the help of different attachments and collets.
Milling machines come in various sizes and shapes depending upon the size of the work piece, accuracy required, type of milling cutters used, complexity of the profile to be milled and type of metal cutting operation to be performed. Some of the most commonly used milling machines are, small milling machines, vertical milling machines, horizontal milling machines, precision tool room milling machines high speed machining centers and cnc milling machines.

Let us examine the various types of milling machines and types of milling operations used for metal cutting. Milling machines can be generally classified into Vertical milling machines and horizontal milling machines. Again you have conventional milling machines and cnc milling machines under each of these classifications.

Vertical Milling Machines

Vertical milling machines are one of the most versatile metal cutting machines. In a vertical milling machine the spindle of the machine is vertical to the table on which the work piece is loaded. The milling cutter will be mounted on the spindle which will be rotating inside the vertical head of the machine. The precision tool room milling machines are often equipped with swell heads which will make it possible to perform milling of complex profiles using various milling cutters like end mills. The above picture shows a precision tool room milling machine from bridgeport which falls under the category of vertical milling machines.

Horizontal Milling Machine

On a horizontal milling machine, the axis of the spindle on which the milling cutter is mounted is horizontal to the work table. Usually horizontal milling machines are used to remove surplus amount of material from the work piece like milling the the length and width of large steel plates. Face milling cutters like shell end mills and carbide insert milling cutters are commonly used on these types of machines.

You are at, Metal Stamping Dies - Machines - Milling Machines

You can also see more information on other metal cutting machines like, Drilling Machine

Directory | Site Map

Copyright © Metal Stamping Dies® All rights reserved.