For those who have worked with it, what are the best ways to go about machining Garolite? I've got carbide mills coming, but was wondering if speeds should be as high as I suspect, and what's a good coolant that won't contaminate the material? (it's going to be glued up in some places and will be in high vacuum, so nothing that can outgas significantly.) I was planning on using clean shop air for coolant and dust removal (PPE covered) as I want to minimize contamination of the part, but all thoughts are welcome.
machining Garolite
Jul 18, 2007
3 Replies
it cuts with standard woodworking tools so the faster rms's the better. so air is fine for cooling. it holds up to heat well I use it behind sanding belts wears like steel.
Garolite is a tradename that covers a wide range of plastic composites, with various reinforcements and binders. Some are easy to machine, some are pretty nasty.
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I picked Garolite XX or LE for the job. Can't recall right now. I don't need the strength of stouter materials, I just needed something easy for this amateur to work with and that could tolerate the environment it was in (and better match the thermal characteristics of the G-10 it's going to be epoxied to.)
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