More than one shop searching for the secret to higher productivi-ty has found itself handicapped by its machining-center tool-holders. Whether these shops hold their tools with collet chucks, with hydraulic chucks, or by some other mechanical method, they can't reach the level of toolholding accuracy needed for high-speed, high-precision work. Their tools may be concentric, balanced, and rigid enough for lower speed machining, but when spindle speeds exceed 10,000 rpm, the forces acting on the tools magnify every imperfection. From the standpoint of concentricity, rigidity, and balance, a machining-center tool machined in one piece—from the taper shank to the cutting edge—out of a solid block of HSS or carbide would be the ideal. There would be no junction between the tool and the toolholder to introduce instability into the setup, and the user would never have to worry about a toolholder clamping a tool off-center. However, the cost of stocking a toolcrib with these one-piece tools for a machining center would be astronomical.
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