Settings to cut brass

Using a Nomad 3, ive traditionally used a 112 endmill to picket out larger areas. im testing CCPro’s Rest Machining feature so im using a #102 bit for the first time.

Can anyone recommend the settings (stepover, depth, Plunge, etc) when butting brass? I tried the recommended settings but stopped the machine almost immediately because it seemed like it was set to cut too much at once, i didn want to damage the machine or bit

What were the recommended settings you’ve tried? I only ask because there are none in the carbide motion tool database, so I’m not sure what you’ve tried so far :slightly_smiling_face:


These are the recommended settings but that are way too deep and fast to cut without snapping a bit or damaging the machine…

We have some videos on feeds and speeds for various materials, including brass at:

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I’ll chuck up some brass today and give these a shot with a 102 today.
Generally folks would say to take the aluminum speeds (which looks like what we see here) and back off 15%-20%
That said, I’ve run brass at the (very conservative) aluminum setting quite a few times without backing off and had little issue.

I’m wondering if your issues stem from work holding or your specific flavour of brass :thinking:

I use a Saunders machine work modular vise for work holding, it’s rock solid. I also usually use a 274z for brass which feels like a better cut than the 102 and is recommended in the material Monday videos Will linked. (They are spendy though, you probably wouldn’t want to use a new one every time :slightly_smiling_face: )

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cool, thanks. let me know what you find. I use bolts and washers that hold it down to the baseplate on the machine.