The cutting edge along the side of an end mill is generally straight and sometimes can be tapered by grinding on a tool and cutter grinder such that the draft required for mould and die cavities can be automatically generated. Further, the end face can be square with the side as in the normal case or a ball end shape to be used for milling three dimensional contours such as in die cavities. It can also have a rounded corner for milling special round edged pockets as shown in Fig.7.10.
Large size end mills are called shell end mills, which do not have any shank and can be mounted with the help of a central hole. Consequently these can be used in horizontal axis as well as vertical axis milling machines. These will be mounted with the help of a stub arbor onto the spindle as shown in Fig.7.9.
Face milling cutters (Fig.7.12) are used for machining large, flat surfaces. They have the cutting edges on the face and periphery. They are generally mounted directly on the nose of the spindle with the entire face free for machining. The teeth on the face do most of the machining while those on side are used for cleaning the surface. These are generally made of carbide insert variety in view of the large material removal, though high speed steel is also used.
In connection with the milling cutter designation the following terms are often used.
Hand of cut This refers to the direction in which the cutter is rotated. When viewed towards the spindle, when the cutter is moving counter clock wise it is called right hand rotation while the opposite is called left hand rotation.
Hand of helix In case of helical milling cutters, when viewed from the end if the flutes move in a clock wise direction it is called the right hand helix while the opposite is called the left hand helix. The axial cutting force direction depends upon the hand of the helix. If two milling cutters of different helices are arranged side by side in a gang milling operation, the net axial force can be reduced to zero depending upon the cut taken by each of the milling cutters.
While selecting a milling cutter for a given application the following points should be considered.
(i) Use standard tools whenever possible.
(ii) Use a short overhang from the spindle and the largest possible mounting type.
(iii) Select a cutter diameter 30% larger than the width of cut (face milling).
(iv) Use a close pitch cutter as first choice.
(v) Use a coarse pitch cutter for long over hangs and unstable conditions.
(vi) Use an extra close pitch cutter for short chipping materials and small radial depths of cut.
The slab milling cutter can have the cutting teeth, which can be straight and parallel to the axis of rotation. Alternatively they can be at an angle to the axis along a helix as shown in Fig.7.13.