The Art and Science of Carbide Cutting Tools

Some people call them cutters, but they are generally known as carbide cutting tools. These tools have tiny shanks and sharp cutting edges.

Carbide cutting tools are often used in industrial cutting or machining processes. They cut hard and stiff materials, which require that the cutting tools be rigid and strong enough. Experts use cutting tools in modern engineering and machining industries in different specifications, materials, and designs to accomplish different tasks.

The Art of Carbide Cutting Tools

Carbide cutting tools are widely available on the market today. They are designed such that only the cutters are made of a carbide material or the metallic cutter coated with a carbide layer. Similarly, the cutter could be laced with a carbide cutting edge—all these to fortify the tool and provide better cutting performance.

Instead of making the entire cutting tool from carbide, experts in cutting tools manufacturing use carbide coating or carbide cutting tip to provide better physical properties to the cutters. Carbide lacing or coating makes the tools more durable and strong enough to handle the tasks.

Advantages of Carbide Cutting Tools

Key advantages of carbide cutting tools emanate from the physical properties of carbide material. These qualities include:

Carbonized metallic material

The carbide material is mainly used for making cutting tools. It’s a combination of a chemical compound, carbon, and other metallic elements. The usual materials used together with the carbon to make cutting tools include tantalum, tungsten, and titanium. The carbonized metallic materials stand out for their physical strength, rigidness, and resistance to wear, heat, and pressure.

Tungsten Carbide

Tungsten carbide is the ideal material for making carbide cutting tools. The material contains both carbon and tungsten in equal amounts. The product enjoys excellent stiffness, which is twice the power of steel. Additionally, tungsten carbide offers outstanding hardness, ranking it number 9 on the Mohs scale. Consequently, the material is used to make stronger cutting tools, machining tools, and abrasiveness.

Titanium Carbide

Titanium carbide is among the best materials for making the sturdiest and most durable cutting tools. The material equally ranks number 9 on the Mohs scale. It’s mainly used to make high-powered cutters with smooth finishes, high cutting speed, and precision. Titanium carbide tools are often used in machining processes involving steel-based materials.

Tantalum Carbide

This material is not as hard and stiff as tungsten carbide. Tantalum carbide is often used quite often as a coating layer of cutting tools. It can also be used alongside tungsten carbide to make the material more corrosion-resistant. All the same, tantalum carbide stands out for its superconductivity.

This feature allows tantalum carbide to function as the electrode material. When used as the electrode material, tantalum carbide functions as the cutting tool in EDM wire cutting works. Experts use sparks instead of the regular cutting tool in wire cutting work. Overall, tantalum carbide is suitable for cutting complex shapes on different materials.

Carbide cutting tools offer various advantages in metalworking processes. They have better physical features and are available at a lower cost. To get started with these tools, visit Suncoast Precision Tools.