When is it best to use carbide tipped, solid carbide, and high speed steel?
High speed steel should be used for shorter runs of parts made of non-ferrous materials and applications where machining conditions restrict the use of harder, more brittle tool substrates. Solid Carbide is most cost effective to use in smaller tools up to about 3/8 diameter in longer production runs. Depending on the carbide grade, solid carbide can be used for both steel and non-ferrous applications. Carbide tipped tools should be used for long production runs. They are effective when cutting difficult to machine and abrasive materials. They offer the same cutting hardness as solid carbide tools. However, small diameter carbide tipped tools are not as rigid as solid carbide tools.
