Today we’re going to take a look at the HPX Drill for steels. The HPX Drill is a new solid carbide drill series with a material specific point geometry that creates significantly lower cutting forces. This also means that it works great for machines with lower spindle capabilities, unstable cutting conditions, or unstable work piece clamping.
A Closer Look at the HPX Drill
Let’s look at the front end of this drill. There’s a straight cutting edge which reduces edge build-up and chipping on the cutting edge as well as on the margin lands. This drill has two margin lands which provide stability and reduce friction. Take a look at these ultra-high polished chip flutes. They reduce friction, improve chip evacuation, and increase tool life.
Now let’s turn it around and take a look at the shank. Here we have something very interesting. Every drill comes with this standard backend that fulfills the requirements of two din standers. This new and wider chamfer on the shank is wider than the slot and provides a leak group system for either flood or minimum quantity lubrication. Take a look at the difference between this older style and the new backend design.
Back to the patented design of the HPX Drill Point. It provides precise center chip formation, it provides excellent self-centering capabilities and features a low thrust drill point design. Now what exactly does low thrust drill point design mean and why is it even important? Well, it provides two options.
- Number one, it’s the perfect drill for any large volume production of steels and can be applied on powerful machines with high rpm capabilities. This drill provides up to two times higher cutting parameters, saving machining time and freeing up capacity.
- And number two, it can also be applied under less-than-ideal clamping conditions or thin-walled applications, or simply when spindle power is the limiting factor.
Now let’s make some chips!
Drilling Blind Holes in 4140 Steel
This 16-millimeter diameter HPX Drill is going to drill 5xD blind holes in this block of 4140 steel. The HPX Drill produces consistently higher tool life in steels than competitive tools especially when feeds and speeds are significantly increased. Special gashing on the HPX Drill improves the chip formation and curls a smaller chip. The chips are directed straight into the ultra-high polished chip glutes which ensure superior chip evacuation.
This content was first published on the Kennametal website.