3. Material selection and cutting speeds

3.1 Materials

The very wide range of cutting materials currently available means that choices have to be made. The importance of the tool/material pairing has been demonstrated by numerous recent studies [4][5][6] .

As a general rule, the machinist has little opportunity to influence the material of the part being machined. The tool, and consequently the cutting material, must therefore be the focus of attention.

Before deciding on the cutting conditions, the machinist needs to check the suitability (or qualification) of the cutting material for machining the workpiece material....