160mm Diameter 45 Degree Face Mill for ONHU06 8 Edged Inserts 11 Teeth

Milling tools are cutting tools used in milling machines and CNC machining centres to remove material from a workpiece through rotary cutting motion.

They encompass a wide family of tools, including; solid carbide end mills and slot drills to indexable face mills and specialist form tools. These tools are used across industries including aerospace, automotive, engineering & tool making.

• Milling Cutters - are solid, one-piece tools (typically carbide, HSS or HSSE) where the cutting edges are ground into the tool body itself - when worn, the whole tool is replaced or reground

• Indexable Milling Tools - use a steel or carbide body fitted with replaceable inserts. When an insert edge wears, you simply index or swap the insert - this makes them highly economical for higher-volume or production machining

• Form Tools are profiled tools designed to cut specific shapes in a single pass - such as dovetails, T-slots, corner rounding, or custom profiles - eliminating the need for multiple operations.

Solid milling cutters are generally preferred for:

• Smaller diameters (typically under 12-16mm) where indexable insert geometry becomes impractical

• High-precision finishing operations requiring very tight tolerances

• Complex geometries and profiling work (ball nose, corner radius)

• Lower volume or jobbing work where setup speed matters.

Whereas Indexable milling tools are generally better suited to:

• Larger diameter facing, shouldering & roughing

• High-volume production where insert replacement cost savings add up

• Applications where cutting edge condition is critical and quick changeover is needed.

Our milling tools cover the full range of workpiece materials:

• Carbon & Alloy Steels - the most common application - choose coated carbide for best performance

• Stainless Steel - requires sharp, positive geometry and good chip evacuation

• Cast Iron - typically machined dry - carbide with appropriate coatings preferred

• Aluminium & Non-Ferrous Alloys - needs highly polished, high-rake geometry and good chip clearance (2–3 flute cutters)

• Hardened Steel (up to 65 HRC) - requires ultra-hard coated solid carbide or CBN-tipped indexable tools

• Heat-Resistant Super alloys (HRSA) - Inconel, titanium, Hastelloy - demands premium carbide grades with specialist coatings

Consider these key factors when selecting the correct milling tool for your needs:

1. Material – hardness, abrasiveness and machinability of the workpiece

2. Operation – roughing, semi-finishing, finishing, profiling, slotting, facing

3. Machine – spindle speed/power capability, rigidity and whether it's manual or CNC

4. Geometry – flute count, helix angle, profile (square, ball nose, corner radius)

5. Substrate and coating – HSS for lower speeds, carbide for high-speed CNC

6. Diameter and reach – use the shortest tool possible - consider reduced neck or long series only when necessary

7. Toolholding – collet, shrink fit, or Weldon flat affects rigidity and runout

If you're unsure, our engineering team is on hand to advise - just call, email or use our live chat.