With a 60-year history of carbide cutting tool experience, Hanita’s VariMill technology brings exciting advancements to WIDIA’s replaceable tip system, including a range of helix and cutting geometries, an asymmetrical flute design, and wear-resistant AlTiN coatings for productive use in titanium and nickel-based superalloys.

If your shop has been searching for the flexibility, simplicity, and cost-effectiveness of WIDIA Products Group  modular end mills but needs the cutting performance of solid carbide, look no further than the replaceable tip end mill solution from WIDIA Products Group, featuring the DUO-LOCK connection from WIDIA and Haimer.

That’s because it’s the only tool available that can predictably take full-width slotting cuts in stainless steel and aerospace alloys at 1xD deep, and 50% cut widths at 1.5xD. “In apples to apples cutting tests against our competitors’ tools, the DUO-LOCK connection was the only one that didn’t break,” says marketing portfolio director Avishay Zohar. “It is easily the most robust modular solution on the market today.” The unmatched metal removal rate is due to a double-taper, face-contact mount and intelligent thread design. This provides runout accuracy better than 5 µm (.0002 in.), axial repeatability of 10 µm (.0004 in.) or better, and up to 25% higher torque and chip load capabilities than others in this market. This also makes the WIDIA system a budget-friendly alternative to solid carbide end mills for shops of all sizes. “Yes, we compete very well at the Tier I and Tier II levels in the aerospace, energy, and automotive industries, but it’s also a great solution for their suppliers, the smaller job shops with a handful of vertical machining centers that cut Inconel one day and 4140 steel alloy the next,” says Zohar. “These shops stand to benefit 0ther most from our system’s flexibility and competitive price point, because it reduces the need for expensive solid carbide end mills, and special order tools that may take weeks to arrive.”

Mark White, marketing portfolio manager at WIDIA, agrees. “The DUO-LOCK connection was originally designed for heavy roughing and semi-finishing applications in difficult materials, but the platform has evolved since then. When coupled with the wide array of carbide, coatings, and geometries from our sister company Hanita, WIDIA provides manufacturers with a modular alternative to solid carbide end mills in 80% of their machining operations.”

Examples include the WIDIA-Hanita brand VariMill III, a 7-flute center-cutting end mill with a 38° helix for high-feed machining of titanium and nickel-based superalloys, and the VariMill I, with a conical core and asymmetrical 4-flute design that eliminates chatter inextreme roughing and deep slotting applications. Both are available in WIDIA’s Victory WS15PE and WP15PE AlTiN-coated grades, known throughout the industry for superior wear and heat-resistance.

Hanita brings over 60 years of carbide excellence to the table; WIDIA’s partnership with Haimer GmbH adds decades of toolholding excellence as well. All of WIDIA’s modular cutting tools and adapters are available with the company’s Safe-Lock technology, WIDIA Products Group  which assures zero pullout in titanium and other “grabby” materials. For those shops that prefer a simpler toolholding approach, WIDIA offers a variety of integral shank taper, lobed, and HSK-style toolholders, as well as straight shank “cut to size” adapters 10 – 32 mm (0.39 – 1.25 in.) in diameter. WIDIA is also offering a complete range of cutter geometries, from high-performance “corn cob” style roughers to ball-nose and chamfering cutters. Many of these are available in 20° and 45° helix angles, with custom grinds and edge preps possible in a few weeks or less.

“Our replaceable tip system decreases tooling inventory, machine downtime, and operator headaches” says White. “A single toolholder or adapter accommodates any number of cutting heads. Unscrew one, thread on another, torque it down and you’re ready to go,with no worries over tool runout or Z-axis offset changes. Together with the excellent cutting performance and superior tool life of VariMill, we feel it’s the most flexible, cost-effective modular solution available. I encourage shops of all sizes to give it a try.”

An intelligent thread design, dual-taper and full-face contact make WIDIA’s DUO-LOCK connection the strongest modular end mill available.

WIDIA offers a variety of integral shank taper, lobed, and HSK-style toolholders, as well as straight shank “cut to size” adapters 10 – 32 mm (0.39 – 1.25 in.) in diameter, all of which are available with Haimer® Safe-Lock anti-pullout technology.

WIDIA’s Top Ream platform covers the majority of hole finishing needs, with diameters up to 42 mm (1.65 in.) and a range of edge preps and geometries available The three keys to hole quality are diametral accuracy, form and position, and surface finish. Boring tools are the undisputed king in all of these areas, but they’re also one of the slowest methods of hole finishing, and in most cases are limited to 10:1 depth to diameter ratios or less.

Conventional carbide-tipped reamers produce good hole quality, are substantially faster than boring and able to reach much deeper, but they also have an Achilles heel. The steel
shank to which the carbide flutes are brazed has a thermal coefficient three times that of carbide, and is subject to growth during machining operations. Worse, sharpening of these tools often leads to less than desirable results. The mixture of carbide and steel wreaks havoc on grinding wheels, providing a reground edge that is rarely as good as the original tool. Also, PVD and especially CVD coating of reground tools is problematic, because the temperature inside most coating vessels reaches upwards of 530 degrees C (986 F), leading to micro-movement of the brazed carbide flutes. WIDIA Products Group has addressed these problems and more with its new Top Ream carbide reaming solution. Instead of four to eight (or more) individually brazed carbide tips, Top Ream uses a single carbide disc and brazed joint, providing a strong connection that is virtually immune to thermal effects during machining operations. WIDIA manufacturing engineer Tom Bobos notes another important advantage of Top Ream’s all-carbide tip. “Steel-bodied reamers tend to get banged up on the ends. The center can get nicked or distorted, preventing an accurate regrind. With carbide, you always have a good center to locate on.” The result is a minimum of four “like new” regrinds vs. an average of three questionable ones. However, there’s more to Top Ream than its ability to hold an accurate edge. “Overall it’s just a better design,” Bobos says. “A single piece of carbide is inherently more stable and resistant to vibration. The through-hole style has an 18-degree left hand spiral that does a great job of pushing the chip forward. It’s really best in class.” The Top Ream platform offers best in class carbide as well. WIDIA’s WU05PR advanced reaming grade was developed specifically for the demanding tool wear and surface finish requirements encountered in most hole reaming operations. For example, tests performed over a total cut distance 100 feet (30 m) in length showed an ability to consistently maintain surface finishes of 32 μin Ra (0.8 μm) in 4140 steel alloy and 64 μin Ra (1.6 μm) in gray cast iron, three times that of TiAlN-coated tools. Jerry Hanna, WIDIA Director of Sales Operations, says the Top Ream covers hole diameters up to 42 mm (1.65 in.), with the TRF shank-style starting at 14 mm (0.551 in.), and the TRM modular tool from 20 mm (0.787 in.) and up. “This size range covers the lion’s share of requests from our customers,” he says. “We also offer a wide variety of custom geometries, diameters, and edge preps, all available in three weeks or less.”
If you’re worried about custom cutting tools, don’t be. “With reaming, 98 percent of the tools are custom,” Bobos points out. “We encourage our customers to try standard sizes,
but they should also ask us for advice. We have the ability to optimize solutions specifically for any application—if you’re machining titanium, there are specific geometries and
coatings for that. Same with 316 stainless, or Inconel. A slight tweak to the hone, or modifying the leading edge a little bit can make a huge difference in productivity and hole
quality.”
One of the best features of the Top Ream is the TRM series’ mounting mechanism, which makes simultaneous contact on the cutting head’s face and taper. Twist the locking screw and the reamer head pops out, with no need for head to body orientation. This provides a strong, vibration-free, and—most importantly—extremely precise reamer interface. “There’s virtually zero run out with the modular design,” Bobos says. “Once you have everything dialed in, you just put the head on and tighten it down. There’s never a need to re-indicate after a tool change.”
Hanna agrees. “The Top Ream’s unique design is geared towards anyone that needs fine hole finishes and high productivity rates, whether it’s a Tier 1 automotive company or the
small job shop down the street. And as the use of additive manufacturing and other near net-shape processes continue to grow, so too will the need for accurate, cost-effective
hole finishing. That makes Top Ream an ideal reaming solution for today’s manufacturers, as well as tomorrow’s. We’re very pleased with the design.”

Excellent cutting and extended tool life mean more parts at higher quality

Numerous precision parts in transportation, moldmaking, general engineering, and more require true 90-degree shoulders and floors with superior surface finish. Economic and competitive pressures require manufacturers of all parts to maximize metal removal and tool life. The new VSM490 double-sided shoulder milling platform from WIDIA is a powerful advantage for achieving all this and more.

“Go ahead and get aggressive with feed rates,” says Global Product Manager Juan Seculi. “Not only will you see the depth of cut is much bigger (up to 15mm or 0.590 inches), scallop or stepdown marks are barely noticeable. Poor surface quality means additional operations and higher cycle times. Take the VSM490 performance upgrade and add that double-sided inserts deliver a sizeable cost benefit over single-sided tools and the VSM490 advantages become compelling.”

Designed for low horsepower draw and free machining, VSM490 delivers an effective one-two punch of reduced horsepower at the machine and higher speed and feed rates that get jobs done faster and/or with an improved surface quality.

State-of-the-Art Design

With four cutting edges and multiple corner nose radii available, the robust VSM490-15 inserts provide added stability and reliability in addition to delivering true 90-degree shoulders and floors. Two insert geometries are available: MM (universal), making it the first choice for a range of work materials; and ML (light) with sharper cutting edges resulting in lower cutting forces for mild steels and stainless.

VSM490 cutter bodies made with tight tolerances to ensure minimum run-out have an integral chip gash design for excellent chip evacuation along with hardened-steel construction and hardened pocket seats for improved resistance to deformation. They are available in shell, screw on, cylindrical shank, and Weldon shank models with internal air and coolant capability.

“The VSM490 portfolio is engineered for multiple applications in multiple materials, making it a go-to milling tool,” Seculi says. “Users should expect true 90-degree shoulders and floors, superior surface finish on both, and higher metal-removal rates at lower horsepower for savings all around.”

Better Engineering Means Higher Productivity in Titanium and Stainless Steel With New VariMill III ER From WIDIA.

With a new seven-flute, eccentric relief (ER) design, the newest addition to the WIDIA VariMill family, the VariMill III ER solid-carbide end mill, is engineered for higher metal removal, longer tool life, and improved surface finishes in demanding workpiece materials such as titaniums and stainless steels.

“OEMs and tier suppliers in the aerospace and energy segments who regularly face working in high-strength, low-weight titaniums and stainless steels will want to see how the VariMill III ER together with the new WIDIA Victory Grade WS15PE can improve performance,” says Ron West, WIDIA product manager. A newly developed coating and proprietary pre- and post-coat treatment significantly improves cutting edge consistency. Consistent cutting edges mean higher metal-removal rates, longer tool life, and improved workpiece surface finishes in expensive demanding materials.
The tool is designed to be a true finishing endmill with the ability to take up to 30% radial engagement.
“This also means VariMill III ER customers can use high-speed machining techniques such as peel milling or trochoidal machining in high-strength alloys,” West adds.

Demanding markets such as aerospace and energy are defined by the need for increased efficiency. In response, WIDIA is offering the VariMill III ER in a full line of options, including two, three, and five times diameter length-of-cut and all common aerospace radii and chamfered corners, metric and inch. With more and more additive layer manufacturing in the aerospace field, the trend going forward will be from roughing to semi-finishing and finishing operations, perfect for the increased efficiencies VariMill III ER provides.

VariMill III ER end mills also come standard with the SAFE-LOCK option by Haimer, eliminating pull-out risk, and making the tool assembly more stable and concentric, which in turn increases surface finish and tool life.

Featured in NOVO
Moreover, VariMill solid-carbide end mills are available through NOVO, WIDIA’s digital process knowledge application. With powerful process knowledge available on iPad and other digital devices, NOVO helps users define machining features, such as ramping or slotting in specific work materials, and then immediately reduces the product set to those like VariMill that can do the job. This provides far more useful process knowledge than any online catalog alone, all obtained in a fraction of the time.

The versatile and robust VSM17 platform from WIDIA provide true 90-degree walls and excellent stepless finishes.

With cutters that can be used for shoulder milling, profiling, face milling, slotting, ramping, helical interpolation, and circular interpolation, all while achieving true 90-degree shoulders, the Victory Shoulder Mill (VSM) 17 platform from WIDIA is a robust and versatile job-shop winner.

Designed for low horsepower draw and free machining, the VSM17 delivers an effective one-two punch of reduced horsepower at the machine and higher speed and feed rates that mean more parts per shift. “For a wide range of work materials, the entire VSM 17 platform is optimized to provide higher productivity for job shops” says Adarsh Sowcar, global product manager, indexable milling.

VSM17 cutter bodies have an integral chip gash design for excellent chip evacuation along with hardened-steel construction and hardened pocket seats which provide high resistance to deformation. VSM17 offers aggressive ramping capability up to 8.8° and a maximum 0.642” (16.45mm) depth of cut. VSM17 is available in shell mills, screw on cutters, cylindrical shank and Weldon shank end mills with internal air and coolant capability.

VSM17 inserts have strong cutting edges, multiple corner radii, and positive rake faces that provide a true 90-degree wall while providing excellent wall and floor surface finish.

VSM17 starter kits are available now through local authorized WIDIA distributors. These kits feature a cutter body and ten inserts.

Featured in NOVO
Moreover, the VSM17 platform is available through NOVO, WIDIA’s digital process knowledge application. With powerful process knowledge available on iPad and other digital devices, NOVO helps users define machining features, such as ramping or slotting in specific work materials, and then immediately reduces the product set to those like VSM17 that can do the job. This provides far more useful process knowledge than any online catalog alone, all obtained in a fraction of the time.

The new VSM490 double-sided shoulder milling platform from WIDIA is a powerful advantage for achieving true 90-degree shoulders and floors with superior surface finish.

Numerous precision parts in transportation, moldmaking, general engineering, and more require true 90-degree shoulders and floors with superior surface finish. Economic and competitive pressures require manufacturers of all parts to maximize metal removal and tool life. The new VSM490 double-sided shoulder milling platform from WIDIA is a powerful advantage for achieving all this and more.

“Go ahead and get aggressive with feed rates,” says Global Product Manager Juan Seculi. “Not only will you see the depth of cut is much bigger (up to 15mm or 0.590 inches), scallop or stepdown marks are barely noticeable. Poor surface quality means additional operations and higher cycle times. Take the VSM490 performance upgrade and add that double-sided inserts deliver a sizeable cost benefit over single-sided tools and the VSM490 advantages become compelling.”

Designed for low horsepower draw and free machining, VSM490 delivers an effective one-two punch of reduced horsepower at the machine and higher speed and feed rates that get jobs done faster and/or with an improved surface quality.

State-of-the-Art Design
With four cutting edges and multiple corner nose radii available, the robust VSM490-15 inserts provide added stability and reliability in addition to delivering true 90-degree shoulders and floors. Two insert geometries are available: MM (universal), making it the first choice for a range of work materials; and ML (light) with sharper cutting edges resulting in lower cutting forces for mild steels and stainless.

VSM490 cutter bodies made with tight tolerances to ensure minimum run-out have an integral chip gash design for excellent chip evacuation along with hardened-steel construction and hardened pocket seats for improved resistance to deformation. They are available in shell, screw on, cylindrical shank, and Weldon shank models with internal air and coolant capability.

“The VSM490 portfolio is engineered for multiple applications in multiple materials, making it a go-to milling tool,” Seculi says. “Users should expect true 90-degree shoulders and floors, superior surface finish on both, and higher metal-removal rates at lower horsepower for savings all around.”

Featured in NOVO
Moreover, VSM490 is available through NOVO, WIDIA’s digital process knowledge application. With powerful process knowledge available on iPad and other digital devices, NOVO helps users define machining features, such as shoulder milling in specific work materials, and then immediately reduces the product set to those like VSM490 that can do the job, taking into account constraint requirements such as material, tolerance, and machining sequence for both single tools and multi-tools. NOVO then ranks the results—based on knowledge-based rules—to best meet the challenges of the application as defined by the customer’s operating environment and user preferences. This provides far more useful process knowledge than any online catalog alone, all obtained in a fraction of the time.

VSM490 Starter Kits in both metric and inch, including cutter bodies, end mills, and WIDIA Victory grade inserts covering a variety of applications are available by contacting your WIDIA distributor. For more information, visit http://www.widia.com/

Manufacturers of high-precision components (aerospace, transportation, die and mold, general engineering, and many more) wage a constant battle between producing high-tolerance parts and a ‘we-have-to-have-it-tomorrow’ reality.
WIDIA has recently announced a significant new weapon to bring shops closer to victory, a universal, high-precision collet chuck offering use in multiple applications (milling, drilling, reaming, and tapping), while maintaining runout accuracies of 0.003 mm (0.0001 inches) at 3xD.
Shops looking to upgrade performance and final part tolerance will welcome this chuck’s features:
Added versatility — the ability to continue using standard ER collets while upgrading to precision collets
Thicker chuck walls and a stronger outer form for added rigidity and lower vibration for longer spindle and tool life
Unique sealed-by-design precision collets (6 – 20 mm or 0.24 – 0.79 inches) for excellent coolant delivery and longer tool life
Better and repeatable balancing, all contributing to higher accuracy
Aerospace, die/mold and many other industries regularly encounter high-strength, difficult-to-machine materials requiring high torques, feeds, and forces. The danger of milling cutters being pulled out of the tool holder at these extreme forces has significantly increased. This is at least true for tool holders that offer precision clamping with good concentricity such as shrink-fit. Such toolholders work with frictional locking, but their clamping force is often not sufficient for roughing.
In response, the new WIDIA universal precision collet is available with Safe-Lock pull-out protection from Haimer. Helical grooves are ground into the shank of the milling tool that, together with the respective pin drivers in the chuck, prevent the tool from spinning or being pulled out of the holder altogether under extreme machining conditions. The helical path of the Safe-Lock grooves also allows for adjusting tool length, meaning tools can be reground and pre-set as usual.
The opportunity for upgrading to high-precision machining with increased accuracy and reliability is here for your inspection.

A single high-accuracy tool holder for milling, drilling, reaming, or tapping boosts efficiencies while holding near-perfect runoutNew universal, high-precision chuck.

Manufacturers of high-precision components (aerospace, transportation, die and mold, general engineering, and many more) wage a constant battle between producing high-tolerance parts and a ‘we-have-to-have-it-tomorrow’ reality.

WIDIA has recently announced a significant new weapon to bring shops closer to victory, a universal, high-precision collet chuck offering use in multiple applications (milling, drilling, reaming, and tapping), while maintaining runout accuracies of 0.003 mm (0.0001 inches) at 3xD.

Shops looking to upgrade performance and final part tolerance will welcome this chuck’s features:

• Added versatility — the ability to continue using standard ER collets while upgrading to precision collets
• Thicker chuck walls and a stronger outer form for added rigidity and lower vibration for longer spindle and tool life
• Unique sealed-by-design precision collets (6 – 20 mm or 0.24 – 0.79 inches) for excellent coolant delivery and longer tool life
• Better and repeatable balancing, all contributing to higher accuracy

Aerospace, die/mold and many other industries regularly encounter high-strength, difficult-to-machine materials requiring high torques, feeds, and forces. The danger of milling cutters being pulled out of the tool holder at these extreme forces has significantly increased. This is at least true for tool holders that offer precision clamping with good concentricity such as shrink-fit. Such toolholders work with frictional locking, but their clamping force is often not sufficient for roughing.

In response, the new WIDIA universal precision collet is available with Safe-Lock pull-out protection from Haimer. Helical grooves are ground into the shank of the milling tool that, together with the respective pin drivers in the chuck, prevent the tool from spinning or being pulled out of the holder altogether under extreme machining conditions. The helical path of the Safe-Lock grooves also allows for adjusting tool length, meaning tools can be reground and pre-set as usual.

As a job-shop owner, how would you describe an ideal, go-to tool? Certainly, it should be a high-performance tool that can cover multiple functions such as shoulder milling, slotting, pocket milling, ramping and helical interpolation. All inserts are available in the latest WIDIA VictoryTM grades for a variety of workpiece materials. And naturally it should have the performance and working life that make it an economical win for present and future production tasks.

This ideal product is the new VSM11 platform from WIDIA.

“VSM11’s versatility and a wide breadth of offering is specifically engineered and optimised to provide higher productivity for job shops,” says Adarsh Sowcar, Global Product Manager, Indexable Milling. Designed for low horsepower draw and free machining, the VSM11 delivers an effective one-two punch of reduced horsepower at the machine and higher speed and feed rates that get jobs done faster.

VSM11 cutter bodies have an integral chip gash design for excellent chip evacuation along with hardened-steel construction and hardened pocket seats for improved resistance to deformation. They are available in shell, screw on, cylindrical shank, and Weldon shank models with internal air and coolant capability.

VSM11 11-mm insert has an optimised cutting edge and positive rake face that provides a true 90-degree wall while concurrently reducing cutting forces and providing excellent, stepless surface finishes. Six WIDIA VictoryTM grades and five geometries make up a well-rounded portfolio of first-choice recommendations covering multiple material types and machining tasks.

There are many things for job shops to like about VSM1. One offering can accomplish 90-degree shoulder milling, full slotting, 3D pocket milling, circular contour milling ID and OD, helical interpolation and ramping into full material. Add to that reduced cutting forces and improved free-cutting action and the result is phenomenal hours of improved tool life. VSM11 are high-performance tools that do more of what job shops need done.

Shops turning a wide range of materials face extreme challenges daily. They know that the most efficient machining means finding the “sweet spot.” Too slow may increase attention to detail but also increase opportunities from speedier competitors. Accelerating speeds and feeds may actually lower efficiency if you’re using up tooling faster or stopping your turning center more often to clean out stringers.

The WIDIA Victory family of turning inserts from WIDIA is announcing new geometries and grades that extend your turning sweet spot by delivering excellent chip flow that results in smooth machining, improved efficiencies, and extended tool life.

For difficult-to-machine materials like Inconel and Rene in complex aerospace applications or cobalt-chromes and high-alloy stainless steels in precise medical applications, the new WIDIA Victory FS geometry is a ground, high positive design best used in finishing tasks where surface finish and minimizing part deflection are critical. Precision grinding, proprietary nose geometry, and optimized edge treatment result in an insert that retains its high-quality cutting edge with minimal heat generation and good chip breaking at finishing parameters. Its high rake angle reduces cutting forces and also reduces built-up edge.

The –FS is available in WS10PT, a high-performance PVD grade. This grade utilizes a two-layer coating that increases coating integrity and reduces depth-of-cut notching, increasing productivity and dependability. All inserts in the WS10PT grade undergo a post-coat treatment to increase compressive stress and improve edge toughness. This delays built-up edge and results in longer tool life. WS10PT is available in other geometries including the UR geometry.

Stainless Steel Performance
WIDIA’s Universal Roughing (UR) geometry is specifically designed to increase roughing and medium turning performance in stainless steels and steel workpieces. Its unique chip breaker and rake profile design without inflection points breaks up stringers without concentrating cutting forces that result in breakage. Its positive rake angle further reduces cutting forces while improving depth of cut notching resistance. Together with a multi-layer coating with a ZrCN top coat for both extended performance and improved wear identification, the result is the ability to increase speeds or feed rates efficiently, increasing productivity and reducing cycle times.

WIDIA grades WP15CT, WP25CT, and WP35CT are also available in the Universal Roughing geometry to particularly improve performance on steel workpieces. Emphasizing an excellent combination of toughness and cutting performance, WP15CT is universally applicable on all finishing, medium machining and light roughing steel operations, wet or dry, interrupted and non-interrupted.

WP25CT is best applicable on all medium to light roughing operations, wet or dry on interrupted and non-interrupted cuts.WP35CT is the best choice on all roughing and heavy roughing jobs, also wet or dry, interrupted or non-interrupted. These new grades also feature the ZrCN top coating and proprietary post-coat treatment that reduces friction and improves edge toughness as well as functioning as an excellent wear indicator.

“Shops doing a major percentage of turning work know beating the competition involves delivering excellent results reliably,” says WIDIA global product manager John Gable. “The WIDIA Victory turning portfolio is just the kind of tool selection that allows these shops to up their performance to even higher levels.”