1/16th bit keep breaking

[lhanner]

I keep breaking the 1/16th bit on oak. cedar, pine, I am cutting through .250 materials taking .100 at each pass. I call LHR. below is their response. I am also attaching the mpc file. Anyone know where I can get 1/16th cutting bit. I have broken 3 and at 25 bucks each plus shipping is costly. The attached mpc is name of my family, but I can tell you I sell these at $5.50 ea I can do 12 in 2hr that includes milling the wood and carve time.

"We don’t support the rock chuck because that is not our product so we don’t ever test with aftermarket product you can locate the rock chuck company and ask if you can use a 1/16” cutting bit on their chuck.PHIL (http://store.carvewright.com/product.php?productid=20097&cat=273&page=1) Hardware Support Team 2010 713-473-6572

39551

[dbfletcher]

I have also cut those keychains using the 1/16 cutting bit and my rock chuck. I have not broken it yet, so I think we need more information on when/how it is breaking. You small passes should be enought. I beleive I have cut the keychain in oak at full 1/4 depth, but you .100 passes should be even safer. Rest assured it most likely has nothing to do with the rock chuck. I know there are several others of us here that routinely use the 1/16 cutting bit with the rock without issue.

[lhanner]

Thanks for the quick response, I do not believe it the rock chuck either. I tried to buy the bit from Ron, but he could not get them. I know when I purchased them from LHR they ask me what chuck I was using I told them the rock, They said they would work. Now it is more than likely its something I'm doing. The point is they should tell you they don't support the rock chuck and use the bits at your own risk instead of saying yes they will work on the rock. See my meaning. They ask me to send them the mpc file which I did then they ask me which chuck I was using I told them and the did not even look at the mpc. Doug did you look at the MPC? If not please do.

[Digitalwoodshop]

Lon,

When I open your .mpc I do not have the Font "KeyChain" loaded in my computer so the project looks like the bottom set of names. I changed the top set of names to a font called "Scroll Saw" so you can see the connected letters.

This would make GREAT CHRISTMAS Craft Show STUFF....

So I cannot for sure answer the question as to why your 1/16 inch cutting bit broke..... BUT.....

I am betting it is a case of the board loosing contact with the brass roller....

For this project you need to take special care in making a proper carrier board.

If you look at my Carrier Board for my Plastic Tags I cut with a 1/16 inch end mill bit, I made it from a piece of PVC BOARD for stability. Attached many strips of masking tape to the bottom of the board to let it bite into the sand paper belt. Plus a strip along the Brass Roller...

Then for the top.... I know my plastic sheets are 12 x 24 inches.... SO I glues a 4 inch strip of plastic on my carrier board and make a blank area in my designer artwork. This is so even though I select to NOT stay under the rollers, the DEAD AREA of 4 inches before I start the artwork ALWAYS protects the project with the board always being held by 2 rollers... I then add a piece of plastic for the END of my 24 inch sheet. That sheet keeps the Rear Roller Level and holds the end of the board.

I would make a Carrier Board just for your key chains from a quality piece of wood... NO warped plywood.... Something GOOD.... I would setup your designer file for say a 24 inch piece of wood..... So you cut blanks to fit the sled.... Held by masking tape and on the underside, use double stick tape.... That way the cut loose pieces don't pinch the bit or fly out... I broke a X Gear when a tag came out and acted as a speed bump of the rollers...

So since I like you Lon, and we have talked a few times when you were fixing your machine.... You found the final problem the other day with a wire on the Power Supply being loose... Good Job... I will share a little secret with Bits for what you are plannng.....

"Circuit Board" Bits..... Used Circuit Board Cutting Bits..... The box in the picture I purchased on eBay for $9.00...... They normally go for MORE.... They come from the Circuit Board Industry, CNC cutting machines.... They are replaced and they sell the used bits with plenty of life on them..... All you need is a 1/8 inch Sleeve from Ron Justice and your all set.....

Another source of End Mill Bits is the Award and Engraving Machines..... I cut a 6 inch long bit down for my Star 912 Rotary Engraver and that is what I use for cutting the plastic tags.... The Long bit on top of the standard bits was the cut down 6 inch bit.

Make a Carrier Board for your tag products... Keeps the board from tipping UP or only being held by one roller....



Good Luck,

AL

[Digitalwoodshop]

Forgot to post the picture of the Scroll Saw font.... Made a .mpc using a 11.25 inch wide board that is 36 inches long. The mpc is 36 inches long too.... BUT, I am making this for a 24 inch blank... 4 Two Inch blanks..... Lon, this is what you should build.... and use Place on END..... NOT stay under rollers....

AL

[JLT]

I'm using the LHR 1/16" cutting bit with the Rock and it's been working great. As I indicated in the other related post, it's mostly through 1/8" birch plywood.

In order, though, to get the LHR 1/16" cutting bit to work with the Rock, though, the QC collar of course needed to be removed. But even then, the 1/4" collar was a bit tight for my Rock. I'm sure this will make the machinists cringe, but I found that I had to stick the bit, cutting side first, into the chuck of a cordless drill, and spin it while gently sanding the 1/4" collar until it fit my Rock. Of course, having done this, I've taken it upon myself to ensure that the collar is true, and hence (at least in my case) I can see where LHR might balk at supporting such a configuration...

By the way, it doesn't look like you have a max depth set on your attached project...

[AskBud]

I keep breaking the 1/16th bit on oak. cedar, pine, I am cutting through .250 materials taking .100 at each pass. I call LHR. below is their response. I am also attaching the mpc file. Anyone know where I can get 1/16th cutting bit. I have broken 3 and at 25 bucks each plus shipping is costly. The attached mpc is name of my family, but I can tell you I sell these at $5.50 ea I can do 12 in 2hr that includes milling the wood and carve time.

"We don’t support the rock chuck because that is not our product so we don’t ever test with aftermarket product you can locate the rock chuck company and ask if you can use a 1/16” cutting bit on their chuck.PHIL (http://store.carvewright.com/product.php?productid=20097&cat=273&page=1) Hardware Support Team 2010 713-473-6572

39551
Lon,
I looked at your MPC. I fail to see any tabs to keep the loose pieces from moving and binding with the bit.
You did not assign a standard "Cut-out" operation, which provides tabs.
How do you hold the loose cut-outs in place?
AskBud

[dbfletcher]

For those who dont have the keychain font, here is a screenshot of a small portion of his board.

Good point about affixing the peices. I used double sided carpet tape when I did mine.

[JLT]

"Circuit Board" Bits..... Used Circuit Board Cutting Bits..... The box in the picture I purchased on eBay for $9.00...... They normally go for MORE.... They come from the Circuit Board Industry, CNC cutting machines.... They are replaced and they sell the used bits with plenty of life on them..... All you need is a 1/8 inch Sleeve from Ron Justice and your all set.....


Al,

A while back, when I began using my LHR 1/16" cutting bit, I did exactly as you indicated above, but haven't had the misfortune of breaking the LHR bit yet. (There I go, I just jinxed myself!) How well do the "circuit board" bits in conjunction with the 1/8" Rock collar work for you?!

Jon

[lhanner]

Bud
I use double sided tape? My carrer board in a piece of 3/4" MDF cut .250 deep. I see your point bud. I will fix that. Thanks

[AskBud]

Bud
I use double sided tape? My carrer board in a piece of 3/4" MDF cut .250 deep. I see your point bud. I will fix that. Thanks
Lon,
MDF is a hard product. If your bit contacts that board, I think you could have a protion of your trouble with that tiny bit.
AskBud

[Digitalwoodshop]

Jon,

I am still on the 6 inch long bit I cut in half... I have not used the Circuit Board Bits yet....

Lon, How WIDE is your Carrier Board? A thin board, 2 inches like your .mpc... You crank the head down on a 2 inch wide board and it is possible for the Bit Plate Side of the machine to droop..... Yes the left and right is connected together with the jacking screw and cross connector.... But the Rubber Rollers could drop on the far side..... This binding could give you problems and cause the bit to snap due to loss of contact with the brass roller....

So a WIDE carrier Board and setting up 4 blanks wide is the way to go.... You can still only use the first blank area to cut, just keep wood in the other areas to stabilize the board.

Where did you get the Key chain Font?

Good Luck,

AL

[JLT]

I use double sided tape? My carrer board in a piece of 3/4" MDF cut .250 deep.

I've never had much luck mixing double sided tape and MDF. The tape doesn't seem to adhere to the MDF very well. I usually use plywood as the carrier, in particular 1/4" plywood attached to 3/4" plywood. After many uses, particularly if you make many through cuts, the plywood (as you can imagine) is pretty dinged up and the double sided tape has less to hold onto. So, by attaching a piece of 1/4" plywood (actually underlayment in my case) to the 3/4" plywood, all one has to do is replace the 1/4" piece after it gets dinged up, which is more cost effective...

[JLT]

I am still on the 6 inch long bit I cut in half... I have not used the Circuit Board Bits yet....

Al,

Happened to make use of the 1/16" circuit board bit tonight in conjunction with the 1/8" rock collar, as my LHR 1/16th inch cutting bit seemed to be showing signs of wear with more fuzzies and tearout on the baltic birch plywood I was cutting. I used the 1/16" circuit board bit for about 30 minutes worth of cuts, and it cut cleanly. The cutting spirals on the circuit board bits, though, are smaller and tighter than the LHR 1/16" cutting bit, so it spit out a finer dust. So far, so good...

[Digitalwoodshop]

Good to know.... Thanks,

AL

[dbfletcher]

Al,

Happened to make use of the 1/16" circuit board bit tonight in conjunction with the 1/8" rock collar, as my LHR 1/16th inch cutting bit seemed to be showing signs of wear with more fuzzies and tearout on the baltic birch plywood I was cutting. I used the 1/16" circuit board bit for about 30 minutes worth of cuts, and it cut cleanly. The cutting spirals on the circuit board bits, though, are smaller and tighter than the LHR 1/16" cutting bit, so it spit out a finer dust. So far, so good...

Is this the type of bit you are referring to? and if not can you provide a link to what your using?

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-Carbide-Router-Bits-Single-Spiral-Flute-1-16-1-60mm-/150538320147?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item230cc87913

[JLT]

Doug,

I'm actually using the following (from eBay, 10 Carbide Router Bits-Endmills-Diamond Coated 1/16")...

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-Carbide-Router-Bits-Endmills-Diamond-Coated-1-16-/160522700192?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item255fe605a0#ht_5749wt_1138

...but the one you've identified might be better, as they might clean out the cut better than the ones identified above. I actually just snapped one of the carbide router bits this evening when I was performing a cutpath on 0.220" thick cast acrylic, at 0.085" depth per pass. As it was making the cut, I could see that the bit was not clearing the trench. It made it through about 10" of cut before it snapped.

I have, though, been successful for about an 1+ hours worth of cuts in both 1/8" and 1/4" thick baltic birch plywood (taking no more than 0.125" of a cut), and will continue to use the bits. If you go with the style that you've identified, I'd be interested in hearing how it turns out...

Jon