Tool Holders 101: Cat, BT, HSK and More Info

Tool holders (toolholders) are the main facet that connects the machine tool to the tooling.. Their mounting styles are all different according to the interface. Their mounts can range from HSK tool holders, VDI mount, or the dated R8 styles.

You will get efficient and thoughtful service from Ruihan.

All types of tool holders consist of 3 unique parts: the collet pocket, the flange, and the taper. There is static tooling which is not powered and there is live (driven) tooling which is not powered.

• Taper: The taper part of a toolholder is cone-shaped. It is the part that is connected to the spindle when the tool is changed.
• Flange: The flange is connected and attached to the automatic changer which moves the spindle and tool changer.
• Collet Pocket: The collet pocket is fastened to the different collet nuts and is the region where the insert of the collet is secured.

A variety of tool holders surround the cutting tool (machine tool) so it remains intact in one position &#; while many other machining tools enable maximized clearance for small to large sizes.

Tool Holder Types

There are a wide variety of tool-holder types, they are indexed in the industrial machine tooling databases as such:

• Machine arbors: These are driven by motors an are responsible for the turning mechanism of machinery tools.
• Side cutter holders: These toolholder&#;s purpose is to hold the cutting tools in place.
• Saw blade holders: These holders keep saw-blades in place.
• Boring heads: They hold boring bars in places as well as other types of tool holders.
• Tapping chucks: These keep operations in threading running smooth and also keep tapping tools in place.
• Blank adapters: Depending on tasks in machining these are customizable for various applications.
• End mill holders: Essentially for milling, these holders keep milling tools in place.
• Outer diameter (OD) and inner diameter (ID): These are universal holders that are interchangeable with many types of tools for cutting.
• Collet chucks: The variety of collet chucks work to hold different machinery tooling in place.
• Milling or drilling chucks: Specifically designed to hold the placement for tools associated with drilling and million operations.

When you but tool holders, you should consider the exact mounting style that you need..

R8 is an old school mount developed by Bridgeport back in . This part is obsolete and rarely used in modern machine tooling.

For more Tool Holder for CNC Machineinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.

 The Morse taper (MT)  is manufactured in 4 different sizes. Every size differential contains a unique taper for ease of transitional changes in tool fittings and machinery tool use.

National Machine Tool Builders (NMTB) defined

The NMTB taper  type of toolholder was defined by (NMBT) National Machine Tool Builders. It is used in all types of milling CNC machinery and machines. The basic measurement requires a draw bar and stands at 3.5 inches per foot.

The CAT®  by Caterpillar®developed  customized mount style, is mainly referred to the  V-flange. It is the very basic tool for Cat CNC machines. All tool-holders built and manufactured by Cat consist of a numerical ID associated with taper size. (examples CAT-30, CAT-40, CAT-50 and CAT-60.)

Similar to the popular Cat tooling options is also BT tool holders. BT holders differ from cat because they are all symmetric and balanced within the rotational axis. BT toolholders contain the same standards of taper measures as the NMBT stud threads that use metrics to move.

Hollow shank tooling (HSK)  is a new innovation in tooling that is now used and implemented with various types of HSM machines. It is manufactured for quick changes in tooling and also comes in straight shank formats and dovetail formatting in machinery.

For more information, please visit Types of Bench Vice.

Tool Holders: Features and Applications

Hello,

I've designed a tool holder and a tool for a cutting process in a CNC lathe (using tip insert on the tool).
My problem is to select the best material for the tool holder, and for the tool.

Can anyone give an idea of what type of material should I be looking at?

I need to avoid vibration during the machining. What type of parameters should I look in the steel properties ? Enlongation ? Rm ? density ?

Thanks,

Rjl Number one property requirement for the holder is Modulus of Elasticity. You want maximum regidity possible unless the workpiece is light metal and you are taking light cuts and the function is not boring a hole with a large depth/dia ratio. Solid Carbide has the highest MoE for tool holders that I am aware of. Next would be probably Molybdenum but not commonly used in this applicaation so I know not about availability. Steel is probably next and very likely best choice unless you are boring deep/(small-dia) hole in which case you might need Carbide.

The second property requirement is compressive strength since the insert will impart compressive stress to the holder. Cabide has good compressive strength but if your regidity reqirements allow Steel it can be heat treated to very high compressive strength. Keep in mind that the heat treatment will not alter the MoM.

One needs to know the geometry of the holder and cutting function to give a more difinitive answer for material selection.

For the insert, I recommend you take that question to the Machines & Machining forum under Industrial/Manufacturing Engineers heading. When you post your question there, give them all the details of geometry, material and conditon (heat treat, form, i.e. forged-rolled-cast-etc) and provide specfics of the cutting operation(s), tolerances, and surface finish requiremnts.

There a lot of beautifully designed inserts out there today so you will likely want to also talk to a vendor to help choose a good insert.

The braze alloy and joint design can make a huge difference in the performance of the finished tool.

We do a great deal of this. If you want to contact me directly I would be happy to talk to you no charge.

We do the tool design free so we can either build the tools or sell the materials for you to build the tools.

Tom

Thomas J. Walz
Carbide Processors, Inc.