Clarkson Cutting Tools

Clarkson is a historic British cutting-tool brand with a heritage spanning over a century of precision metalworking. Originally founded in the UK Clarkson became one of the most recognised names in milling cutters, taps & dies and round tooling, supplying British manufacturing through the post-war industrial boom and beyond.

The brand is known for robust, reliable high speed-steel milling cutters designed and refined through decades of direct feedback from machinists and toolmakers.

Today, the Clarkson range continues to serve general-purpose milling, slot drilling and profile milling applications across workshops, toolrooms and production environments that value dependable HSS tooling.

Yes. As well as just 'Clarkson', 'Clarkson-Osborn' can also be used to refer to Clarkson Tools. You shop our Osborn brand range here.

A well established metal cutting tools brand long before Europa Tools involvement, Clarkson have long been known for producing quality end mills, slot drills & ball nose cutters.

Across these products the flute counts range from 1 to 8, and in standard, long and extra-long lengths.

Diameters run from as small as 1 mm up to 50 mm with shank diameters from 6 mm to 32 mm. The Clarkson range is offered in HSSE (8% cobalt high-speed steel) for general-purpose and aluminium/non-ferrous work and in PM75 powder-metal cutters for higher-performance applications.

This covers the vast majority of HSS milling requirements in a typical workshop.

The number of flutes (cutting teeth) is chosen based on the material, the application and the chip-clearance requirement.

1-flute and 2-flute milling cutters provide the largest chip space and are used for softer materials (aluminium, non-ferrous, plastics) and for slotting and plunging where chip evacuation is critical.

3-flute cutters offer a good balance of chip space and edge strength and are a popular general-purpose choice for both ferrous and non-ferrous.

4-flute cutters give a finer finish and higher feed rates in steels and cast irons, where chip space is less of a concern.

5-flute, 6-flute & 8-flute cutters are used for finishing operations and harder materials, where more edges share the load and produce a smoother finish.

Clarkson offers milling cutters from 1 to 8 flutes.

PM75 refers to a powder-metallurgy high-speed steel produced from atomised metal powder that is compacted and sintered to form a tool-steel blank with a very fine, uniform carbide structure.

Compared with conventional cast HSS, powder-metal steel has more consistent properties, higher wear resistance and better edge-holding (approaching the performance of solid carbide in many applications while retaining the toughness and fracture resistance of HSS).

PM75 is particularly effective in harder and more abrasive materials where conventional HSS wears quickly.

Clarkson PM75 cutters bridge the gap between standard HSSE and solid carbide, offering improved performance and tool life for production milling where the higher cost is justified by longer intervals between tool changes.

Clarkson offers cutters specifically designated for aluminium and non-ferrous work. These typically feature a high helix angle and polished flutes to produce a clean, shear cutting action and efficient chip evacuation, which is important because aluminium tends to weld to the cutting edge and clog the flutes if chip flow is poor.

The large, polished flute space and sharp edge prevent built-up edge (BUE) and produce a bright finish on non-ferrous and soft materials. The Clarkson range includes end mills, slot drills & ball-nosed cutters in HSSE for general non-ferrous work with diameters covering fine-detail work through to larger milling.

For tougher non-ferrous alloys and higher production rates checkout the PM75 range.

Clarkson cutters are available in four length configurations:

• Short-length cutters have a short projection from the holder, maximising rigidity and allowing heavier cuts with less deflection and they are used for shallow pockets, facing and profiling where reach is not required. Standard-length cutters offer a balanced reach and rigidity for general-purpose milling.

• Long-length cutters provide greater reach for deeper pockets, cavities and tall workpieces at the cost of some rigidity.

• Extra-long cutters provide maximum reach for deep cavities, tall walls and inaccessible features, but require careful attention to speeds, feeds and deflection due to the long overhang.

Choosing the shortest length that reaches the feature is good practice because longer cutters deflect more and can chatter.

Clarkson cutters are available with shank diameters of 6 mm, 8 mm, 10 mm, 12 mm, 16 mm, 20 mm, 25 mm &and 32 mm.

The shank is the cylindrical portion of the cutter held in the collet, side-lock holder or shrink-fit chuck, and its diameter must match the holder's capacity.

For cutters where the cutting diameter equals the shank diameter (a straight end mill), the shank is the same size as the cutting portion.

For cutters with a reduced neck (where the cutting diameter is smaller than the shank), the shank diameter is larger than the cutting portion, providing extra rigidity.

Selecting the correct shank diameter ensures the cutter is securely held and runs true in the machine.

Clarkson cutters are available in an extensive range of cutting diameters from as small as 1 mm for fine-detail and miniature work, through the common general-purpose range (3 mm to 12 mm) that covers most workshop milling, up to 50 mm for large-diameter facing and slotting.

Half-millimetre increments are available across much of the range (e.g. 3.5 mm, 4.5 mm, 5.5 mm, 6.5 mm, 7.5 mm, 8.5 mm) to allow precise matching of the cutter to the feature, for example; matching a slot drill to a slot width, or selecting a ball nose to produce a specific fillet radius.

This fine increment range is a practical advantage when working to specific dimensional requirements.

Choosing the right cutter requires knowing the material being machined (which informs the substrate (HSSE or PM75) and the flute count), the type of operation (end milling, slotting, plunging, profiling, roughing, finishing), the feature geometry (which determines square, ball-nose or rougher profile, and the required diameter) and the reach required (which determines the length).

• For aluminium and non-ferrous, choose a high-helix polished-flute cutter

• For aggressive stock removal, choose a rougher/ripper

• For contoured work, choose a ball nose

• For plunging and slotting, choose a slot drill

• For general profiling, choose a 4-flute end mill in HSSE, or PM75 for harder materials.

Selecting the shortest length that reaches the feature, and matching the shank to your holder, completes the selection.

Our engineers can advise.

Yes.

Our in-house support team team includes time-served engineers who can help you select the correct Clarkson cutter for your milling application, whether that's choosing between an end mill and a slot drill, selecting the right flute count for your material, deciding between HSSE and PM75, specifying a ball nose for contoured work or choosing a rougher/ripper for heavy stock removal.

We can advise on diameter and length selection, shank-to-holder matching and the best substrate for the material you're machining.

You can reach us by phone, online chat or email and we will be happy to help you specify the correct Clarkson tooling for your job.