Kyocera Corporation is pleased to announce a new development in the field of cutting tools. Inserts made from new materials, newly designed cutters and a range of other new items will be offered beginning November 22, 2004 as part of Kyocera’s popular “MEC Tool Series” that was introduced in September 2003. These new additions will dramatically expand the repertory of products Kyocera offers. There will now be 34 items in two material types available in the insert range, where previously there were three items of a single material type, as well as 31 end mill items and six cutter items.

Background

Production and manufacturing plants are constantly being asked to produce smaller and more complicated designs for machine parts. To produce these parts, they need tools that offer even higher levels of precision and efficiency. In September 2003, Kyocera introduced its “MEC Tool Series,” a series of metal cutting tools that feature a newly designed holder called the “Ultra Hurricane End Mill,” which realizes the strong rigidity and durability essential for stable work in steel and stainless steel cutting processes, and the “PR830” insert that has a PVD coating and offers exceptional wear-resistance. These tools have served to dramatically enhance working efficiency by eliminating the need for the separate finishing work previously required, and thus have been extremely well received by many factories involved in metal cutting.

Now, Kyocera has dramatically expanded and enhanced the MEC Tool Series repertory with the addition of inserts made from new materials suitable for cast iron cutting work, the addition of newly designed cutters that enable the smooth working of flat surfaces on large-scale work materials, the expansion of the “Corner R” line-up of inserts and the introduction of newly designed chipbreakers that realize even lower cutting resistance. With this expanded line, Kyocera aims to provide its customers with the wide variety of cutting processes they demand, while also shortening work time and reducing overall costs.

Features of new additions to the “MEC Tool Series”

1. “PR905” with PVD Coating for cast iron

Kyocera’s proprietary developed FS coated (TiAlN) film makes for a smoother insert, as well as improved wear-resistance and stability at high temperatures. This also expands the service life of inserts. Moreover, the use of a high-strength carbide substrate that exhibits outstanding strength and plastic deformation resistance works to curb the progression of wear caused by chipping, and realizes high efficiency and stability in milling (circular cutting) operations on gray cast iron and nodular cast iron.

2. Newly designed “Ultra Hurricane Face Mill” cutter

A new type of face mill has been added to the end mill series line-up that is capable of working with large diameters from φ40mm-φ100mm. Previous end mills were only capable of working with diameters up to 40mm. This will facilitate highly efficient cutting processes for those large surface areas that cannot be worked using end mill cutting processes.

3. Expanded line-up of “Corner R” inserts

The line-up of Corner R inserts (with rounded angles) now includes a total of six items: the previous R0.8 insert with 0.8 mm radius, and the new R0.4, R1.2, R1.6, R2.0, and R3.1. This new line-up of designs caters to users’ various cutting needs. The small-diameter Corner R inserts that produce a sharp edge are good for finishing work, while the larger-diameter Corner R inserts have a long service life and offer stable cutting.

4. Introduction of low-resistance “JS” chipbreaker

The new “JS” chipbreaker has been added to the chipbreaker design line-up. It reduces the cutting resistance of inserts during cutting by around 20% compared with previous chipbreakers, and realizes smooth cutting of sharp edges on low-carbon steel and stainless steel materials. Along with providing stable operation like its predecessor “JT” chipbreakers, this low-resistance “JS” chipbreaker can cater to a wide variety of cutting applications.