Speeds & Feeds

Speeds & Feeds

Cutting speeds depend on many factors, including material properties, tool

diameter, depth of cut, machine rigidity and setup rigidity.

Drill Cycle
Speeds

Mastercam has built in material libraries that recommend speeds and

feeds. It also includes a speed and feed calculator. You can manually
calculate speeds and feeds using the formulas and data below. Tooling
suppliers are also excellent sources of speeds and feeds data.

Drilling & Reaming Surface Feet per Minute (SFM)

Material
Drilling
Reaming

Steel, 1018
Steel, 4140
Steel, 4340
Stainless Steel, 303
Stainless Steel, 304
Aluminum, 6061-T6
Wood
Plastic
Polycarbonate

90
80
60
100
50
250
240
300
240

65
60
45
50
35
300
180
160

Counterbore

45
40
30
50
25
125
120
150
120

Use the following formula to calculate drill speeds:

Speed =

SFM x 4
Cutter Diameter

D-1
Mastercam Handbook Volume 1

Appendix D

For example, to calculate the speed for a HSS drill in Aluminum:

Example

Operation
Material
Tool
SFM

Solution
Drilling
Aluminum 6061-T6
.25 HSS Twist Drill
250

Test you knowledge by calculating cutting speed for the following:

Try It

Try It

D-2

Solution

Operation Drilling
Material Stainless Steel, 303
Tool .201 HSS Twist
Drill
SFM

Mastercam X2

Speeds & Feeds

Drill cycle feeds are calculated using the following formulas:

Drill Feed
Drill Diameter
Under .125
.125 - .25
.25 - .50
.50 1.00

Feed (IPR)
.001-.002
.002-.004
.004-.007
.007-.015

Counterbore Feed
Counterbore Diameter
.375
.625
.875

Feed (IPR)
.004
.005
.006

Reamer Feed
Reamer Diameter
Under .125
.125 - .25
.25 - .375
.375 - .50
.50 - .75

Feed (IPR)
.003-.006
.005-.009
.007-.012
.010-.015
.015-.031

Drill Cycle
Feeds

Tap Feed
Tap Feed = Speed / Threads per inch

Use the following formula to calculate drilling cycle feeds (except taps):

Feed =

Speed x IPR

D-3
Mastercam Handbook Volume 1

Appendix D

Example

Operation
Material
Tool
Speed
IPR

Solution
Drilling
Aluminum 6061-T6
.25 HSS Twist Drill
4,000
.004

Try It

Try It

Try It

Try It

D-4

Solution

Operation Reaming
Material Aluminum 6061-T6
Tool .25 Reamer
Speed
IPR

Solution

Operation Tapping
Material Aluminum 6061-T6
Tool -20 Tap
Speed
IPR

Mastercam X2

Speeds & Feeds

Cutting speeds depend on many factors, including the material properties,
tool diameter, machine and setup rigidity and more. Mastercam has a
built in speeds and feeds calculator and material library, or you can use the
data and formulas below to manually calculate speeds and feeds.

Contour/
Pocket
Speeds

If the resulting speed exceeds the machine limit, use the machine max
spindle speed in the feed calculation.
Contour/Pocket Machining Surface Feet per Minute (SFM)

Material
Steel, 1018
Steel, 4140
Steel, 4340
Stainless Steel, 303
Stainless Steel, 304
Aluminum, 6061-T6
Wood
Plastic
Polycarbonate

HSS
180
120
120
175
110
800
400
300
400

Carbide
550
450
450
450
360
1300
2250
400
600

Use the following formula to calculate cutting speed:

Speed =

Example:
Operation
Material
Tool
SFM

SFM x 4
Cutter Diameter

Solution:
2D Contour
Aluminum 6061-T6
.5 Carbide End Mill
1300
Max Spindle
Speed = 10,000

D-5
Mastercam Handbook Volume 1

Appendix D

Contour/
Pocket
Feeds

Contour feeds use the number of cutting flutes, cutting speed and chip
load. Chip load is the amount of material removed with each swipe of the
cutting flute.
Contour/Pocket Machining Chip Load (IPR)

Material
Steel, 1018
Steel, 4140
Steel, 4340
Stainless Steel, 303
Stainless Steel, 304
Aluminum, 6061-T6
Wood
Plastic
Polycarbonate

1/8 End
Mill
.0007
.0005
.0003
.001
.001
.003
.005
.001
.001

1 End Mill
.005
.003
.002
.003
.004
.009
.010
.003
.003

Use the following formula to calculate contour feeds:

Feed = Number of Flutes x Speed x IPR
Example:
Solution:
Operation 2D Contour Rough
Material Aluminum 6061-T6
Tool .5 Carbide End Mill
2 Flutes
Speed 10,000
IPR .005
The information here should be considered as a starting point only. For
long or small diameters, reduce speeds and feeds by up to 75% to reduce
tool chatter or breakage.
Reduce feeds when the setup lacks rigidity, when a better surface finish is
required, or in cases of tool chip or breakage.
D-6

Mastercam X2