What Is Milling?

Milling is a machining technique that employs rotating cutters to extract material from a workpiece by advancing the cutter into it. This process encompasses a diverse range of operations and machines, from crafting small components to executing heavy-duty group milling tasks. It stands as one of the most extensively employed methods for machining customized parts with meticulous tolerances.

Milling can be conducted along various directions on one or more axes, contingent upon cutting head speed and pressure. Diverse machine tools can be used for this purpose. The milling procedure necessitates a milling machine, a workpiece, a jig, and a milling cutter. The workpiece is a pre-shaped material fixed to a fixture, which is in turn mounted on a platform within the milling machine.

A milling cutter, equipped with sharp teeth, is installed in the milling machine and spins at high speeds. By moving the workpiece into the rotating milling cutter, the material is carved from the workpiece in the form of small chips to attain the desired shape.

Milling is primarily applied to craft parts that lack axial symmetry and possess numerous attributes like holes, slots, pockets, and even three-dimensional surface contours. Parts produced entirely through milling often incorporate components used in limited quantities, often for prototyping, such as bespoke fasteners or brackets.

Milling also finds utility in producing tools for other processes. For instance, three-dimensional shapes are commonly milled. Additionally, milling frequently serves as a supplementary technique to append or refine features on parts originally shaped through different processes. Given milling's capability to deliver stringent tolerances and refined surface finishes, it is particularly suited for introducing precision features to a part whose fundamental shape has already been established.