Gunsmithing End mill for bedding cleanup

[cast1]

Would appreciate an end mill recommendation for cleaning up bedding jobs in fiberglass stocks. New owner of a mill and am ready to graduate from a dremel tool lol. I believe 1/4” is the right size but not sure. How long overall for sufficient reach? Number of flutes, etc. Thanks!

 

[NVScout]

I’m curious as well. Just googling I found a grizzly mini mill for around 800, I’m not sure if it’s big enough for a stock though.

 

[LRI]

Onsrud 3F compression endmill. They don't work for shit when plunging, but for profile work on composites there's nothing I've found that works better. It pushes the chip into "itself" so that the edges machine clean with no tearout. You'll have to baby sit a little more if pocketing as the flutes don't eject the swarf. Buy them uncoated. Coated carbide in composites is a waste of money and they don't work as well. Edge prep is everything and duller edge requirement of a coating often results in the adhesives melting to the tool. This creates a thermal shock condition that just erodes the edges at an impressive rate.

Hope this helps.

 

[missed]

+1 on Chad's recommendation. I use the same in composites. I mainly use mine for electrical insulator components. I do run the vacuum with them to help with chip evacuation and control any dust that can be generated.

 

[sirmixalot]

I find that most any end mill works well on fiberglass. I haven't had to use anything special and mine come out clean when done. I have also been using an exacto knife lately and cleaning up the bedding just before the epoxy cures. I keep a sample on cardboard and test it every few minutes when i think its constant enough, I pull the BA and clean up the area with the razor minimizing my need for mill work. Works good for me at least. probably better ways to do it, but i have had impressive results

 

[CCW1911]

I'm a cheap ba... and I've found that cheap two flute mills work fine and use ball end often even when not called for.