I check out some from Banggood. 10pcs CCGT060204-AK H01 Inserts -- bit.ly/3yPOIV5 The regular general purpose insert I compare it against is a TCMT type.
I use those same aluminium inserts, I like them ! They give me a really good finish and I like the super sharp edges… I don’t ever take huge cuts, maximum 0.5mm cut, but for the work I do is fine…
Yes, provided you keep the DOC down they work great on most metal. Don't use them on brass as the profile is all wrong and they will catch and dig in. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu they work well as long as you take it easy and not try to take to much at one time . If you order them out of china they are even cheaper ! Great share Rob ..
I've used these on the little Drummond for light cuts on ally and steel . Can't fault them for convenience but my best home ground HSS has it hands down for finish and durability. Horses for courses, I keep a few handy because they have their uses. The point you make about machining grade as opposed to random unknown metal is an important one for anyone new to lathe work. Countless times on forums we get the I can't get a good finish question. The answer is usually that the random lump of steel /ally in the chuck is the culprit ,not the tool or the lathe. A good review Rob, I think you covered all the issues very clearly there.
Thanks Lee. The quality of the lump in the chuck certainly has a big effect on the outcome. Trying to turn rubbish makes you learn faster and correct the situation ;) He He. I think we've all been there at some stage. It can be a challenge. Cheers Rob
I got some aluminum inserts from banggood for my face mill the do great, but my high speed steel with a round radius is hard to beat. Great info rob,👍.
Happy new year Rob. I use these inserts for everything, the positive rake takes a lot less effort to push through materials on my tiny lathe, I first heard about using them from the channel "smalllathe" who uses them on his benchtop CNC lathes.
Hi James. Yes, you put much less stress on the lathe using positive inserts. Negative rake inserts are really meant for stronger machines and are more durable, so industry uses them a lot. Cheers Rob
Hi Alan, I had never used them before and they did well for carbide. I was impressed with the end result. No good for brass, but people say they work well on plastic and copper, so there's a few things to try. I had been meaning to try these for quite a while. Lots of positive written reviews on the web page. Cheers Rob
Good to hear your voice again. Hoping all is well with you & family. Do have a Happy New Year from the Pacific Northwest, of the U.S.A. (Washington State, Not Wash. D.C. on the East Coast.) God Bless.
Love your honest practicable reviews Rob. If your home melt castings are from previous cast aluminium they will contain a percentage of silicon to help with fluidity and shrinkage. Silicon is hard (try machining silicon bronze compaired to leaded bronze) and the machined finish will suffer in aluminium. That's often the trade off, good castings that fill the mold with reduced shrinkage or good surface finish when machining. Would be great to see how these inserts would perform on light cuts in steel and if they produce the same good surface finish. Cam
Hi Cam, thanks for the comments. I will try the other tips of the already damaged insert on some mild steel and see what happens. Quite a few viewers say they do it. So I guess I had better follow up on this ;) Plastic and copper are also supposed to machine well. Stay tuned. Cheers Rob
Thanks Matty. I have always wondered how good these inserts are. Seen lots of people rave about them and the finish they get. It did a good job, but HSS is tougher and just as good IMHO. These inserts are ideal for people that can't/don't want to grind HSS. Carbide and HSS both have their place in the workshop. Cheers Rob
I use those inserts all the time on my personal lathe. A guy gave me 50 boxes of different types at an auction. They finish steel better with high rpm’s. I use a homemade drip solution with aluminum for a good finish. It’s possible to run dry with a feed rate of eternity. I mean they are cheap and like high temperature. Might as well crank the rpm’s up. I’ve spun up around 1500 with mild.
They have a very sharp cutting edge (for carbide) and work a lot like HSS. Particularly useful/effective on low grade steel that would otherwise tear up and feather badly. Only good for light cuts otherwise they will break the edges. Not recommended for brass as they can easily catch and dig in due to the large top relief. Cheers Rob
I use these for everything up to stainless steel and sometimes resharpen them on a diamond plate. It's a bit unsophisticated I guess, but I like the results on my similarly sized lathe.
Sounds good Robin. I often resharpen my GP inserts and it's a good opportunity to play around with different profiles. It doesn't take much variation to make a big difference. I will try the ally ones on other materials when I get a chance. Cast iron would be interesting. Cheers Rob
I use CCGT inserts all the time for Aluminium. The polished top surface helps to stop galling but yes, they are still best with coolant/lube. A 1" dia. bar could do with turning at 2000 rpm though! They can also be good for light cuts on Stainless Steel (at much lower speeds, of course) though, as you say, they are a bit fragile. Wrong geometry for Brass & definitely not for Cast Iron!
Interesting review Rob, used to use these a lot in my past (obviously not Banggood ones lol), they are good as a finishing insert, will do a decent job in mild steel also. Happy New year. Cheers, Jon
Interesting info Jon. I see a few similar steel use comments, but only for very light cuts. It chipped dead easy to the point that I was a bit shocked. Most Banggood inserts are pretty tough, although I have found their DCMT blue nano inserts chip easily. TCMT is a good all rounder and was the first carbide insert recommended to me (by a machinist) when I got into metal turning. I hope 2022 turns into a better year for everyone. Cheers Rob
Happy New Year, Rob! Interesting results! 2 cents: You really shouldn't put down your homebrewed Al, as it's a different animal from the storebought pure product. Guess your remelt was from diecasts - as it gets that short, curly swarf from its ca 8-11% Si content, and hence cannot get that über-fine turned finish as the pure Al gets (and also not the stringy swarf bird nests...) The contained Si also wears HSS cutting edges faster than pure Al does, but you could use an HSS shear tool + polish if you want to get closer that mirror finish, but that's the tradeoff for using Si in the melts: better mold flow, less shrinkage, self-ageing and a bit harder than pure Al. ATB DIYSwede
Happy new year to you as well Johan. That aluminium was from melted down Toyota alloy wheel rims, not die cast. I hope you noticed there was NO porosity in it despite the fact that I don't use a degasser or flux ;) It's all about the temperature. Pour as soon as it becomes liquid and you won't form hydrogen. The inserts did well, but HSS will do just as good. I was interested to see if the inserts were as good as some people rave about them. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu Those rims are die cast, IIRC in a spin mould, to get the density up and no porosity, and to get a fast cycle time. close tolerance die to mean minimal finishing, but after casting they have a full CNC clean up pass.
I'm not even a real machinist, but I know that carbide is usually a bad idea for machining aluminum, high-speed steel is what's recommended. This will be interesting to watch.
It's ok for steel as long as they dont get used for interrupted cuts. Plenty of wd40 or kerosene oil needed for aluminium or you'd get aluminium build up on edge ruining it. Rubbish on brass, even have had some catch and break.
Your casting could machine better if you made it from only extruded aluminium, which has almost no silicon in it. The shop made casting at least does not make long chips when machining, as it work hardens during the cut. Extruded has to be purer to extrude properly, so will make long chips.
Sounds reasonable to me Sean. I mainly use recycled alloy car wheel rims, which are pretty tough, but probably have a bit of silicon in the mix. I don't have a source for extrusions, otherwise I would give it a try. Thanks for the comment. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu Just start to collect scrap metal till you get enough extrusions. Might mean a day or two on garbage day, driving before sparrow fart looking for any hard rubbish with enough aluminium in it, then collecting the lot till you get enough to try a single casting. Probably will have a lot of shrinkage in the cast, so use your largest longest pipe for it. If it does not work mix with the regular casting, and your chips probably will end up longer, with a slightly better finish. Will not be as hard to machine. Hardest thing to machine is PTFE, especially when pure, when you really want a nice sharp brand new tip in the lathe. Next is pure unfilled nylon, and the nicest is self lubricating Vesconite.
You are not using them correctly. Far too slow and shallow. Any decent insert will have the recommended speed and feeds on the box. They are excellent on brass and intermittent cuts are not a problem.
Note: The GP insert seen in the video is a common TCMT type. I accidentally called it something from my IT days at the time. Cheers Rob
I knew what they were when I saw them Rob ! But I know some don't good UPDATE !!
Rob, got to hand it to you, you know your turning pretty well - thanks for sharing mate.
Thanks Benny. It's all a learning curve. We never stop. Cheers Rob
I use those same aluminium inserts, I like them ! They give me a really good finish and I like the super sharp edges… I don’t ever take huge cuts, maximum 0.5mm cut, but for the work I do is fine…
Yes, provided you keep the DOC down they work great on most metal. Don't use them on brass as the profile is all wrong and they will catch and dig in. Cheers Rob
I have several boxes of those in the insert drawer . Great when your working on a fast spinning soft metal !
Hi Shawn. I had never used them before. How do they go with interrupted cuts ? I use HSS normally for ally and brass. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu they work well as long as you take it easy and not try to take to much at one time . If you order them out of china they are even cheaper ! Great share Rob ..
I've used these on the little Drummond for light cuts on ally and steel . Can't fault them for convenience but my best home ground HSS has it hands down for finish and durability.
Horses for courses, I keep a few handy because they have their uses.
The point you make about machining grade as opposed to random unknown metal is an important one for anyone new to lathe work.
Countless times on forums we get the I can't get a good finish question. The answer is usually that the random lump of steel /ally in the chuck
is the culprit ,not the tool or the lathe.
A good review Rob, I think you covered all the issues very clearly there.
Thanks Lee. The quality of the lump in the chuck certainly has a big effect on the outcome. Trying to turn rubbish makes you learn faster and correct the situation ;) He He. I think we've all been there at some stage. It can be a challenge. Cheers Rob
I use those on my Myford and they are good on steel and stainless as well
I got some aluminum inserts from banggood for my face mill the do great, but my high speed steel with a round radius is hard to beat. Great info rob,👍.
Yes, HSS is hard to beat for some applications, interrupted cuts especially. Cheers Rob
Happy new year Rob. I use these inserts for everything, the positive rake takes a lot less effort to push through materials on my tiny lathe, I first heard about using them from the channel "smalllathe" who uses them on his benchtop CNC lathes.
Hi James. Yes, you put much less stress on the lathe using positive inserts. Negative rake inserts are really meant for stronger machines and are more durable, so industry uses them a lot. Cheers Rob
Hi Rob. I have a box of those, so far only used them on aluminium, great finish, but I think it's time to experiment 🙂 Cheers, Alan.
Hi Alan, I had never used them before and they did well for carbide. I was impressed with the end result. No good for brass, but people say they work well on plastic and copper, so there's a few things to try. I had been meaning to try these for quite a while. Lots of positive written reviews on the web page. Cheers Rob
Good to hear your voice again. Hoping all is well with you & family. Do have a Happy New Year from the Pacific Northwest, of the U.S.A. (Washington State, Not Wash. D.C. on the East Coast.) God Bless.
Thanks Dave. All the best to you and yours also. Stay safe and well in these trying times. Cheers Rob
Love your honest practicable reviews Rob. If your home melt castings are from previous cast aluminium they will contain a percentage of silicon to help with fluidity and shrinkage. Silicon is hard (try machining silicon bronze compaired to leaded bronze) and the machined finish will suffer in aluminium. That's often the trade off, good castings that fill the mold with reduced shrinkage or good surface finish when machining.
Would be great to see how these inserts would perform on light cuts in steel and if they produce the same good surface finish.
Cam
Hi Cam, thanks for the comments. I will try the other tips of the already damaged insert on some mild steel and see what happens. Quite a few viewers say they do it. So I guess I had better follow up on this ;) Plastic and copper are also supposed to machine well. Stay tuned. Cheers Rob
Gday Rob, good review and great results, cheers
Thanks Matty. I have always wondered how good these inserts are. Seen lots of people rave about them and the finish they get. It did a good job, but HSS is tougher and just as good IMHO. These inserts are ideal for people that can't/don't want to grind HSS. Carbide and HSS both have their place in the workshop. Cheers Rob
I use those inserts all the time on my personal lathe. A guy gave me 50 boxes of different types at an auction. They finish steel better with high rpm’s. I use a homemade drip solution with aluminum for a good finish. It’s possible to run dry with a feed rate of eternity.
I mean they are cheap and like high temperature. Might as well crank the rpm’s up. I’ve spun up around 1500 with mild.
I bought some WNMG inserts for aluminum, I found they gave a reasonable result on mild steel. I tried them as a last resort, noting else was working.
They have a very sharp cutting edge (for carbide) and work a lot like HSS. Particularly useful/effective on low grade steel that would otherwise tear up and feather badly. Only good for light cuts otherwise they will break the edges. Not recommended for brass as they can easily catch and dig in due to the large top relief. Cheers Rob
I use these for everything up to stainless steel and sometimes resharpen them on a diamond plate.
It's a bit unsophisticated I guess, but I like the results on my similarly sized lathe.
Sounds good Robin. I often resharpen my GP inserts and it's a good opportunity to play around with different profiles. It doesn't take much variation to make a big difference. I will try the ally ones on other materials when I get a chance. Cast iron would be interesting. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu Sounds good to me. 👍🙂
Thanks for sharing!
I use CCGT inserts all the time for Aluminium. The polished top surface helps to stop galling but yes, they are still best with coolant/lube. A 1" dia. bar could do with turning at 2000 rpm though! They can also be good for light cuts on Stainless Steel (at much lower speeds, of course) though, as you say, they are a bit fragile. Wrong geometry for Brass & definitely not for Cast Iron!
I’d say 3000+ would be fine with coolant
G'day Rob, I've just ordered something similar to machine Aluminium with lol, great timing buddy
Great minds think alike Ralfy ;) Cheers Rob
Interesting review Rob, used to use these a lot in my past (obviously not Banggood ones lol), they are good as a finishing insert, will do a decent job in mild steel also. Happy New year. Cheers, Jon
Interesting info Jon. I see a few similar steel use comments, but only for very light cuts. It chipped dead easy to the point that I was a bit shocked. Most Banggood inserts are pretty tough, although I have found their DCMT blue nano inserts chip easily. TCMT is a good all rounder and was the first carbide insert recommended to me (by a machinist) when I got into metal turning. I hope 2022 turns into a better year for everyone. Cheers Rob
Hello Rob,
Interesting review, thank you... Happy New Year to you...
Take care.
Paul,,
Same to you Paul. It's been trying times for sure. Cheers Rob
Happy New Year, Rob! Interesting results! 2 cents: You really shouldn't put down your homebrewed Al, as it's a different animal from the storebought pure product. Guess your remelt was from diecasts - as it gets that short, curly swarf from its ca 8-11% Si content, and hence cannot get that über-fine turned finish as the pure Al gets (and also not the stringy swarf bird nests...) The contained Si also wears HSS cutting edges faster than pure Al does, but you could use an HSS shear tool + polish if you want to get closer that mirror finish, but that's the tradeoff for using Si in the melts: better mold flow, less shrinkage, self-ageing and a bit harder than pure Al. ATB DIYSwede
Happy new year to you as well Johan. That aluminium was from melted down Toyota alloy wheel rims, not die cast. I hope you noticed there was NO porosity in it despite the fact that I don't use a degasser or flux ;) It's all about the temperature. Pour as soon as it becomes liquid and you won't form hydrogen. The inserts did well, but HSS will do just as good. I was interested to see if the inserts were as good as some people rave about them. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu Those rims are die cast, IIRC in a spin mould, to get the density up and no porosity, and to get a fast cycle time. close tolerance die to mean minimal finishing, but after casting they have a full CNC clean up pass.
Thanks for sharing 👍
Thank you for the video.
You're welcome
Usually the random import ones are $1-1.25 each. Good Sandvik ones are much hardier and last longer, $6-8 each.
I'm not even a real machinist, but I know that carbide is usually a bad idea for machining aluminum, high-speed steel is what's recommended. This will be interesting to watch.
It's ok for steel as long as they dont get used for interrupted cuts. Plenty of wd40 or kerosene oil needed for aluminium or you'd get aluminium build up on edge ruining it. Rubbish on brass, even have had some catch and break.
Your casting could machine better if you made it from only extruded aluminium, which has almost no silicon in it. The shop made casting at least does not make long chips when machining, as it work hardens during the cut. Extruded has to be purer to extrude properly, so will make long chips.
Sounds reasonable to me Sean. I mainly use recycled alloy car wheel rims, which are pretty tough, but probably have a bit of silicon in the mix. I don't have a source for extrusions, otherwise I would give it a try. Thanks for the comment. Cheers Rob
@@Xynudu Just start to collect scrap metal till you get enough extrusions. Might mean a day or two on garbage day, driving before sparrow fart looking for any hard rubbish with enough aluminium in it, then collecting the lot till you get enough to try a single casting. Probably will have a lot of shrinkage in the cast, so use your largest longest pipe for it. If it does not work mix with the regular casting, and your chips probably will end up longer, with a slightly better finish. Will not be as hard to machine.
Hardest thing to machine is PTFE, especially when pure, when you really want a nice sharp brand new tip in the lathe. Next is pure unfilled nylon, and the nicest is self lubricating Vesconite.
You are not using them correctly. Far too slow and shallow. Any decent insert will have the recommended speed and feeds on the box.
They are excellent on brass and intermittent cuts are not a problem.