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Author Topic: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?  (Read 39883 times)

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Offline Sage

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Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #80 on: January 24, 2010, 08:34:29 PM »
Sorry to jump in here so late. It's been very interesting though.
When you refer to 6061 T651(1) "Wrought Plate" I assume you are talking about something other than your common 6061 everyday aluminum plate? Maybe someone can explain. I would have assumed 6061 T6511 would all be the same given the numbers pretty much dictate it's characteristics - no (?)

Thanks
Sage
Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #81 on: January 24, 2010, 09:13:43 PM »
6061 T651
Machinability  and tensile the same. Wrought plate is double the price
Ed VanEss

Offline Sage

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Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #82 on: January 24, 2010, 09:23:25 PM »
And more than double the trouble by the sound of it because I've never had any trouble whatsoever machining the "regular" stuff. So the question is, why is the wrought stuff so difficult.

Sage
Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #83 on: January 24, 2010, 09:27:59 PM »
Sorry to jump in here so late. It's been very interesting though.
When you refer to 6061 T651(1) "Wrought Plate" I assume you are talking about something other than your common 6061 everyday aluminum plate? Maybe someone can explain. I would have assumed 6061 T6511 would all be the same given the numbers pretty much dictate it's characteristics - no (?)

Thanks
Sage

T651 and T6511 are not the same thing.  T561 is rolled, stretched, then surfaced, rather than being simply extruded.  I can't explain why the real-world machining characteristics of this stuff is so different from the extruded 6061 I've used tons of in the past, but it sure is.  However, increasing the chipload/feedrate by about 2X has resolved my problem.  It now machines just fine, at 30 IPM with a 1/2" HSS 2-flute, and 75 IPM with a 1/2" carbide 3-flute, even with no coolant.

Regards,
Ray L.
Regards,
Ray L.

Offline Sage

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Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #84 on: January 24, 2010, 09:32:09 PM »
SO all the digits are important to note. I'll have to investigate that more.
Thanks for that. I hope I never need to machine it.

SAge
Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #85 on: January 24, 2010, 09:54:17 PM »
According to the Aluminum Associations standards and data:

T_51 Applies to plate and rolled or cold-finished rod or bar, die or ring forgings and rolled rings when stretched the indicated amounts after solution heat treatment or after cooling from an elevated temperature shaping process.  The products receive no further straightening after stretching.
Plate 1 1/2 % to 3 % permanent set
Rolled or Cold-Finished Rod or Bar 1 % to 3 % permanent set
Die or Ring Forgings and Rolled Rings 1 % to 5 % permanent set


T_511 Applies to extruded rod, bar, profiles (shapes) and tube and to drawn tube when stretched the indicated amounts after solution heat treatment or after cooling from an elevated temperature shaping process.  These products may receive minor straightening after stretching to comply with standard tolerances.
Extruded Rod, Bar, Profiles (Shapes) and Tube 1 % to 3 % permanent set
Drawn Tube 1/2 % to 3 % permanent set
Ed VanEss

Offline Sage

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Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #86 on: January 24, 2010, 10:01:33 PM »
Hmmm. They look almost the same except for the rolling vs extruding. Amazing that rolling the aluminum can can make that much difference in the machining characteristics of the finished product.

Sage

Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #87 on: January 24, 2010, 10:27:16 PM »
Hmmm. They look almost the same except for the rolling vs extruding. Amazing that rolling the aluminum can can make that much difference in the machining characteristics of the finished product.

Sage


Well, when machined *properly* there doesn't seem to be a huge difference.  I can now use the same (revised) parameters for both with good results.  What I was using before worked well for T6511, but not for T651.  It appears to me the T651 just gets gummy at a significantly lower temperature.  The difference is just a much heavier chipload.

Regards,
Ray L.
Regards,
Ray L.
Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #88 on: January 25, 2010, 02:42:49 PM »
Quote
  It now machines just fine, at 30 IPM with a 1/2" HSS 2-flute, and 75 IPM with a 1/2" carbide 3-flute, even with no coolant.

Regards,
Ray L.


Can you tell us the RPM's you are running?
Maybe what kind of cut depths you are running?

It will probably help some of us a lot if we run into a similar
situation.


Thank You,
Scott


Re: Anyone Here Have Experience Milling 6061-T651 Wrought Plate?
« Reply #89 on: January 25, 2010, 10:11:51 PM »
Quote
 It now machines just fine, at 30 IPM with a 1/2" HSS 2-flute, and 75 IPM with a 1/2" carbide 3-flute, even with no coolant.

Regards,
Ray L.



Can you tell us the RPM's you are running?
Maybe what kind of cut depths you are running?

It will probably help some of us a lot if we run into a similar
situation.


Thank You,
Scott




For a 1/2" HSS 2-flute, 3100 RPM, 0.150" DOC, 30 IPM works well.  For a 1/2" Carbide 3-flute, 6100 RPM, 0.150" DOC, 75 IPM works well.
For a 1/2" HSS 2-flute, 3100 RPM, 0.500" DOC, 12 IPM.

I'm still playing with settings to find the optimum for deeper cuts.  I tried the HSS at 0.225" DOC, 18 IPM, but that didn't work terribly well - chipload was too high.

Regards,
Ray L.
Regards,
Ray L.