Hey all, Completely new with a LEAD1010 and wanting to get some suggestions on what Mill bits and flutes I should look for. They range for cheap cheap to expensive so I'm confused as to what to purchase to get me going. I'll be looking to use the machine for Wood, Acrylic, Carbon (plate) and Alloy. I've had a look on amazon and found kits available but thought I'd ask here first to get some help and point me in the right direction as to what to look for etc.
The shark bits that OpenBuilds sells are great, but I can understand the apprehension as a beginner not wanting to break a good quality end-mill. Many people buy the cheap Amazon 10 packs of 3.175 mm end mills to start with. Personally, I like using the largest end mill I can get away with because I can cut faster, deeper, and more accurately. For wood, many people like a down cut end mill to prevent tear-out, but I prefer an end mill with two straight flutes that is commonly available at a hardware store for the use in routers. They work well in plastic, too. What I have found is that a higher quality end mill is much more likely to be the actual stated size (ie. 1/4" end mill actually measures 1/4" in diameter) and produces a better cut, particularly in aluminum. I have used and broken many (close to 30) cheap Amazon 1/8" end mills and one thing I can say about them is that not a single one measured what it was supposed to be with my digital caliper. They should have been 3.175 mm but most were between 3.15 and 3.16 mm. This is important to know if you are cutting parts that you expect to fit together. If you do not enter the exact size of the end mill diameter in your CAM software when generating the gcode the parts will be either too large or too small. Not by much, but if you are relying on tight tolerances, they may not fit. So, a digital caliper is also handy if you buy cheap end mills. That being said, they did not break because of their quality (well, at least not all of them), they broke due to dumb errors on my part like forgetting to re-zero the Z axis after a tool change while cutting aluminum. A cheap set may be what you want to play around with until you get the hang of it. However, if you plan on making signs and other carvings a good quality V-bit set will always be a good investment.
I just started playing with a CNC earlier this year. I didn't want to sink too much money into bits that I may break while I was just learning. After a bit of research, I ended up going with Sainsmart bits. (SainSmart | Desktop CNC, 3D Printing & DIY Tools | Power to the Makers) Look around on their site to see what they offer, but I ordered them off Amazon. I've been pretty happy with them. I've done lots of wood, and some plastic / acrylic and have been very pleased. And yes, I broke a couple early on do to user error. (Like accidentally jamming the bit down into the work piece and then trying to move.) I'm going to keep using these as long as they work for me, but I may opt for some higher quality bits as these dull or break on me.
These have been shockingly good for me... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0882ZMS1R/ Otherwise I really like freud and whiteside. I have an amana bit that I can't get myself to use. Someday. Someday.
