Machining Copper (C14500) on the Nomad -

Certain grades and condition of copper are good to machine, like Tellurium Copper (C14500). Here we go over some usable recipes you can use as you learn to conquer this material.
102-Z Endmill: shop.carbide3d...
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Music by / liqwyd

[@AllanScheSar]

please let us hear the cutting sound from the material the next time. I think the sound give everybody a better understanding if there is my parameter correct?

[@shadowmanxyz7805]

Beautiful

[@meoutwest]

Thanks for listing the material and end mill. That helps

[@lukebrown6913]

Hi, please can you help....I'm looking to machine some detailed parts out of 3mm thick copper sheet and would be really grateful if you can recommend the best, but cost effective grade...I've narrowed down to c111 copper/sulphur alloy vs c145 tellurium/copper alloy? Please note that I must use copper, not brass. Many thanks in advance, Luke

[@8thsinner]

I would be looking to do this on the xxl pro in the near future. I would be looking to cut one inch wide smooth pyramidal points (liken to point on a walking stick) 50-60 degree face... I suspect the only bit for this is a ball nose, maybe 1/8" bit? I won't have a rotary device in my starting budget for this project. But I am hoping I can get the face smooth enough that buffing will smooth out any ridges.

[@DJHeyl]

can your spindel not handel full depth cut ?

[@ielfenbein]

@bigstakd you should get a mill a make cool engravings in your ingots

[@justlivemyway]

What is the kW rating of the spindle used in this video?

[@viquarsyed1663]

Hi, I have looked multiple places, finding H04 (Full hard) sheets is really difficult, would appreciate any vendor recommendations.

[@mickaelbiondi9310]

Thank you for this interesting video. Are there any differences with the shapeoko3? I plan to machine some copper on it.

[@ruthainmuteba865]

Hey, Could you machine a 1.5 mm copper electrode with a smaller endmill carbide? I'm trying to do that as i need to spark out a 1.8mm drill bit that broke inside my job, please any suggestion to go about

[@JoshPitts530]

Save them flakes and melt 'em back down!

[@glennmartonic6376]

i hava some 160z 24 guage 99% lead free copper sheets i want to cut and engrave on my cnc. can you suggest a bit (1/16 or 1/32) for this? and suggested feed/depth rates? i do not know specific temper spec's of material. also where to purchase bits

[@carbide3d]

Either general purpose endmills or aluminum-specialized endmills will work fine in non-ferrous metals. Our #112 and #122 cutters on our store would be fine as a starting point, though you can find a larger variety of lengths and styles from other manufacturers. Two domestic companies I've used before are Lakeshore Carbide and Kodiak Cutting Tools, the latter of which has tools even smaller than 1/32". Our 501 PCB engraver is also good for marking metals. Not knowing the exact alloy or temper however will make things tricky. We have a video showing what happens when you try to machine the wrong type of metal. (Spoiler alert, the edges will have a really nasty burr and it's not a clean cut. You may also break endmills more often.)

[@robertosoto6547]

Are you using 10k RPM because it’s the maximum speed of your spindle or because it’s a good speed for cutting copper. Can you use 18k RPM? And what feed rate?

[@carbide3d]

10k was the max on the old Nomad. Yes you can go faster but at a point you start leaving the sweet spot for non ferrous metal cutting. Recommend doing some research about speeds and feeds (and in particular Surface Speed) recommendations for the tools and materials you're using.

[@TheRealMrMagic]

What is the name of the design you're working on @1:25 in the video

[@carbide3d]

That's Winston's personal logo from Winston Makes.

[@godfreypoon5148]

1:00 girlfriend advises that deeper and faster is a more optimal strategy