Feed Rate Calculator
Too small a chip load burns more cutters than too large.
Too small a chip load burns more cutters than too large. Feed rate from spindle speed, flute count and chip load, with material removal rate and cutting time.
Feed rate
600 mm/min
4 flutes at 0.05 mm per tooth
Feed rate is spindle speed times flutes times chip load. Chip load is the real parameter — the thickness of material each tooth takes — and everything else is arithmetic around it. Too small a chip load is worse than too large. Below about 0.02 mm the edge rubs instead of cutting, generating heat rather than chips, and that is what burns cutters in aluminium far more often than feeding too hard does. If a cut is squealing, feeding faster often fixes it. Chip thinning matters whenever the radial engagement is less than half the cutter diameter. The actual chip comes out thinner than the programmed feed implies, so light finishing passes can usually be run considerably faster than the nominal figure.
How the Feed Rate Calculator works
Feed rate from spindle speed, flute count and chip load, with material removal rate and cutting time. Chip load is the real parameter — everything else is arithmetic around it.
Also known as: chip load for a 6mm cutter · feed rate mm per minute · why do my end mills burn · material removal rate calculator
Where to go next
The Feed Rate question rarely arrives on its own. These are the ones that usually come with it:
- Cutting Speed Calculator — Spindle speed is not cutting speed.
- Tap Drill Calculator — 75% engagement is optimal, not a compromise.
- Sheet Metal Bend Calculator — The flat blank is always shorter than the legs.
- Speed Distance Time Calculator — Any one of the three from the other two, in four units.
Sources
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate feed rate?
Spindle speed × number of flutes × chip load per tooth. A 4-flute cutter at 3,000 rpm taking 0.05 mm per tooth feeds at 600 mm/min.
What chip load should I use?
Roughly 1 to 2% of cutter diameter as a starting point, so 0.05 to 0.1 mm for a 6 mm cutter. Harder materials want less, softer more.
Why is too small a chip load bad?
Below about 0.02 mm the edge rubs instead of cutting, generating heat rather than chips. That burns more cutters in aluminium than feeding too hard ever does.
What is chip thinning?
When radial engagement is less than half the cutter diameter, the actual chip comes out thinner than the programmed feed implies. Light finishing passes can usually run considerably faster as a result.
Should I change speed or feed first?
Set speed from the material and tool, then adjust feed by the sound and the chips. Good chips come off curled and coloured, not as dust and not as long strings.
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Related calculators
Cutting Speed Calculator
Spindle speed is not cutting speed.
OpenTap Drill Calculator
75% engagement is optimal, not a compromise.
OpenSheet Metal Bend Calculator
The flat blank is always shorter than the legs.
OpenSpeed Distance Time Calculator
Any one of the three from the other two, in four units.
Open