3 WAYS TO BREAK THE CHIP ON YOUR CNC LATHE

Chip breaking is one of the most critical aspects in many machining processes. Long and entangled chips are formed mainly in turning operations due to constant cutting conditions. Moreover, it can also affect negatively the automation of part’s loading and unloading process.

CMZ, European CNC lathe manufacturer, shows us three different ways to break chip and avoid problems formed by chip accumulation.

1. OSCILLATION CUTTING

Oscillation cutting (OC) consists of machining with an advance that has one constant and one sinusoidal component. Programme the amplitude of the sine and the oscillation frequency to obtain the desired chip length. With this method, the chip can be broken without leaving marks on the machining.

More information about Oscillation Cutting here.

2. CHIP BREAKING DURING THREADING

Oscillation cutting CANNOT be used during threading, but here we show you a very good way of doing it: Optithreading™. By programming each pass of the thread, and making them with variable penetration, we can cut the chip on the thread.

More information about Chip Breaking in Threading here.

3. STANDARD CHIP BREAKING M415

If, for various reasons, the above systems haven’t worked for you, you can always resort to the traditional system of programming stops in the advance. This is what M415 is. The disadvantage of this method is that it leaves marks on the machining, and so can’t be used in all circumstances.

More information about Standard Chip Breaking Solution with M415 here.

Chip accumulation during machining has a very negative impact in many areas of the company, such as security, quality, and productivity. It reduces the efficiency of the process, and the tool’s life cycle, because the build-up of swarf in the cutting zone can lead to friction and heat.

These are some of the main consequences of chip accumulation during machining:

• The impact of poor chip management can even affect operators’ safety, leading to production stops. It can mean a risk for machine operators, because the chip can be ejected from the machine at high speed. Moreover, manual removal can result in cuts to operators.
• It can cause marks or scratches on the surface of the machined part, which directly affects the quality of the final workpiece.
• It can cause the cutting tool wander off its path, which reduces machining accuracy and increases the possibility of poor cuts. This leads to non-quality parts or loss of capability.
• Premature wear of the cutting tool. Chip accumulation on the cutting zone can generate friction and overwhelming, which accelerates the wear of the cutting tool. Consequently, the cutting tool has shorter life-cycle, and therefore it is more likely to produce out-of-tolerance dimensions parts.
• It can clog the work area inside the lathe and make it difficult to access the part, tools, and fixtures. This leads to production stoppages to clean up the lathe from chip.⁠
• Chip accumulation on the chip extractors can cause system downtimes and loss of productivity. As chip extractors fail if these is too much chip, it is important to prevent this to happen.⁠
• Accumulation in the machine itself can lead to premature wear of the machine’s components. This means that downtimes to replace these elements will be carried out: chip extractor blades, hinges… ⁠

In CMZ they are aware of the problems that chip accumulation can cause on your CNC lathe, and they want to be part of the solution. CMZ lathes are present in a wide range of productive sectors with different productive levels, geometries and materials. Get to know more in their website.