What is CNC Aluminum Machining?

Published by Worthy Hardware at May 30, 2022

Table of Content

■ Tips To Improve Dimensional Stability in CNC Aluminum!

■ Aluminum Material Grades We Work With!

■ Why Working With Worthy Hardware For Your Aluminum Machining Project?

Types Of Aluminum Machining!

The manufacturing industry aluminum can barely cope without aluminum. Below are a few machining types with high speeds used in the industry.

1) Machined Aluminum Prototype

Machined aluminum prototypes are mainly products of a variety of alloys. The commonly used alloy is 6061-T6, covering transportation, aerospace, electronics, and military industries.

Aluminum alloys have high strength and low density. Most time, Aluminum CNC machining has a high tolerance to control as much as 0.01MM. Quality and unique aluminum equipment can be manufactured via CNC. The perfect choice for this process is CNC Milling, and it has high accuracy and precision in milling aluminum.

Prototype manufacturing in aluminum takes several processes from aluminum blocks. Wide range of technologies and machines come up with the best tool design for each equipment made.

Designers and manufacturers tend to launch their products In the shortest possible time frame to save cost. A sample close to the original will be manufactured.

Advantages Of Machined Aluminum Prototype!

The aluminum prototype has high strength to weight ratio very high resistance to high temperatures and good electrical conductivity. Therefore, the degradation during the production process is low compared to other metals such as steel. Aluminum materials are commonly any equipment due to its excellent machinability.

Besides the excellent machinability, aluminum prototype looks better and has good electrical conductivity
Aluminum prototypes are of low cost compared to plastics part.
CNC Machining prototypes have high accuracy of rock climbing.
Aluminum alloy has good resistance to corrosion and high strength to weight ratio.

2) Manufacturing Of Custom Aluminum Parts

Aluminum in a wide range is used to develop mechanical Aluminum parts because it can be processed efficiently; it’s solid and light metal. The addition of surface finishes can prevent corrosion in aluminum. There are several ways of manufacturing machined aluminum parts.

§ Block Or Bar Aluminum Machining

This is the easiest way of processing machined parts. An aluminum block is mounted to a milling machine for the Cutting tool to process the commonly Machined Aluminum parts. Chips of metal are cut with cutting tools to obtain the desired shape from the cutting edge.

§ Aluminum CNC Machining

This Aluminum CNC machining processes allows fast cutting speeds. Additionally, with suitable cooling liquid, well machined parts are obtained from the aluminum material. Alcohol is often used as a cooling agent for the materials in this process. It also gives the surface of the aluminum materials a shiny look.

§ Aluminum Extrusion

Aluminum extrusion has its advantages. Half fabricates are made from the extrusion process. Aluminum material is exposed to heat to a temperature it can deform. After extrusion, the machined components are now cut to the desired shape and size. The product is time machined in most cases.

3) 5-axis CNC Milling Aluminum

The process of 5-axis CNC Milling and machining aluminum involves using CNC machines to move aluminum material through five different axes of the cutting tool simultaneously. This permits the production of complex components and less chip. 5-axis CNC machining has two additional revolving shafts added to three standard axes like X, Y, and Z. Complex shapes of various methods can be made with this method from any aluminum materials.

Advantages of Using 5-Axis Machining

This machine has high precision and accuracy capabilities. Finish work with the materials can be found by simple clamping for coating on the table.
The 5-axis machine doesn’t allow deterioration of the material as the operator tends to move towards the edge or top part.
Much time can be saved using a 5-axis machine compared to other machine types.
The machine requires a small setup to achieve accuracy because more setups can lead you to create more errors and less chip.
Quality surface coating is possible because of the configuration. Lesser tool vibrations are experienced as the last two tools use the short cutting tool.

Tips To Improve Dimensional Stability in CNC Aluminum!

When it comes to enhancing the dimensional stability, the following tips will come in handy

1) Eliminate The Internal Stress Of The Material

As earlier discussed, dimensional instability primarily depends on Internal stresses. Vibration treatment is the best method for eliminating internal stresses in aluminum alloys or any other metal.

Using tensile loading for material removal in a controlled manner is the first method. You can only apply this method to open die forgings. The second method is the cold stabilization method, which reduces the internal stresses of the material by up to 25%. The last method is uphill quenching, where a high speed of -273 degrees Celsius is used to cool the blank and then immediately heated by hot steam.

2) Improve The Clamping Method Of The Workpiece

Clamping of aluminum machining workpiece can be improved in two ways. If it’s a thin-walled cylindrical part, deformation will occur if clamping with three-clawed self-centering happens. Therefore, it is advised to use the face compression method in this case. The cover plate is used to compress the end-plate of the components, and a nut is used to tighten it.

3) Improve The Cutting Ability Of The Tool

Choice of tool parameters affects the quality of cutting force and dissipation of heat in CNC machining. Let us, therefore, look at some vital parameters and choices of appropriate tools.

4) Geometric Parameters

CNC Machining Aluminum material and tools should be placed on the ground properly. This tool geometry permits for more side rake and back angles. Larger rake angles should be used for tools that are for finishing touches. More considerable rake favor machining soft aluminum alloys because the more significant the rake angles, the more acute the Cutting edges of tooling in CNC machining, and the lesser the chip.

However, for precision in CNC machining processes of CNC Aluminum, there’s a need to do away with elastic deformations of the components and make sure there’s less friction between the workpiece and cutter. The back angle magnitude should always be enormous for this.

5) Choose A Reasonable Machining Process

Reducing the number of teeth in the cutter is essential for CNC machining aluminum. This is due to aluminum’s metal high plasticity, which means more significant deformation during processing. Aluminum machining chips have an adhesive element that makes it challenging to produce good machined parts with the required permeability. The increased distance between the cutting edges and the material causes larger chips to disappear.

Keep the tip roughness below 0.4 mm and process the cut with proper milling operations. This machining process removes any unnecessary burrs, which ultimately reduces heat loss and deformation from the edge. Equipment replacement or repair must be performed according to the instructions. Therefore, if the surface roughness value is more significant than 0.2 mm and the cutting temperature values are greater than 100 degrees Celsius, the tool should be replaced or supplemented.

6) Use Appropriate Methods Of Operation

The operator must have the appropriate knowledge about calculating speed and feed rates. Speeds and feed rates differ from other materials to aluminum alloys. High spindle speed is required for cutting aluminum metal. Therefore, a skilled operator must have the appropriate skill needed to create and operate Aluminum Machining processes.

A slow and steady approach is required in the Aluminum CNC Machining industry. A good CNC operator will always be patient for a better outcome. Proper calculation is needed for accuracy in cutting guides.

Aluminum Material Grades We Work With!

Choosing aluminum grade is another critical aspect of aluminum machining. With the wide range of aluminum metal grades, almost every grade of aluminum alloy is perfect to work due to its electrical conductivity, corrosion resistance, light weight among other properties. However, your choice will be based on your project needs. Be it mechanical, aerospace, automotive or any other needs.

ü Alu6061

Aluminum 6061, also known as the workhorse Aluminum, has a higher corrosion resistance than plenty of alloys. Aluminum 6061 Other properties include its high welding heat properties and its strength compared to some alloys. Aluminum 6061 is the most used material in the manufacturing and aerospace industry to make automotive parts.

ü Alu6082

Aluminum 6082 has medium strength and excellent corrosion resistance. Of the 6000 series alloys, it has the highest strength in addition to high machinability. This aluminum alloy is known as a structural alloy. Alu6082 is commonly used for CNC machining to produce aluminum parts of great quality.

ü Alu7075

Aluminum 7075 is the aluminum alloy with the highest strength and machinability available, making its processes easier. Aluminum 7075 in industries is always used in highly stressed parts. It is also used to improve corrosion resistance. Aluminum 7075 is also widely used in aerospace because of its good performance in mechanical and aerospace properties.

ü Alu2024

Alu2024 is among the most popular high-strength aluminum alloys with low cost. Aluminum alloy 2024 is used in aircraft and transportation firms due to its high fatigue resistance performance and high corrosion resistance.

ü Alu5754

Alu5754 is a medium strength and has good corrosion resistance, easy processing, and weldability. More profound drilling performance is made better by the more refined grains. Alu5754 is among the most potent alloys available commercially.

Why Working With Worthy Hardware For Your Aluminum Machining Project?

There are many Aluminum CNC Machining Project companies all over the world. It is a very competitive market. Most companies and industries believe they are the best in operations, but they have some shortcomings. When it comes to accuracy and precision, Worthy hardware is the most reliable, and this is why you should do business when us. Below are the reasons to do business with worthy hardware.

Customers who require CNC machining services for small parts often have specific expectations of accuracy, surface finish, and overall quality.

Machining small parts can be complex due to the size constraints and the need for precision. To get the most output out of your CNC machines, you need to know these challenges and work around them.

With careful planning and execution, you can overcome any obstacle in your way and produce tight tolerances and high-quality metal machined parts using a CNC machine.

CNC machining is still an excellent option for customers who need small pieces with tight tolerances. Despite these challenges, Thanks to the many different capabilities of CNC machines, industries across the board can take advantage of this technology.

Worthy Hardware is a qualified machining company in China offering small CNC parts manufacturing services. We feature high-quality parts for various sectors, including automotive and aerospace.

Feel free to contact us if you need any CNC machining-related services.

▬ No MOQ

We don’t have limitations on MOQ operations because we can create from prototype to mass production equipment. It’s workable if you order 1pcs; we accept small quantity jobs.

▬ High-Precision And Tight Tolerance

Electrical conductivity signals are emitted by the computer, which gives the exact precision needed to create parts for modern-day technology.

Competitive prices
Fast delivery

After the completion of production, the order is sent to the client that same day.

Wide range of coating and finishes
Rich experience

Conclusion

The introduction of the aluminum machining procedure has made production operations much easier. However, if you are looking for a cost-effective method of producing high-quality metal and plastic parts, we recommend you get in touch with Worthy Hardware now.

Worthy Hardware is a CNC manufacturing and sheet metal fabrication company,including CNC machining services,CNC milling services, CNC turning services, laser cutting services and stamping services.Call us +86-76989919645 or email us [email protected] for more discounts for your projects.