Drilling and cutting brass

[sim]

I'm interested in making some knuckle weights out of brass but I've heard it is very different to work with than steel, aluminum and plastic.

I'll need to saw, lathe (turn), mill, drill and tap the brass. Anybody have tips on what to do and not do? Thanks.

[SMR 510RR]

I would rate it somewhere between steel and aluminum. Its not bad, dont be scared of it. Generally it is a little bit stringy kinda like turning plastic (delrin, abs, teflon) and quite dense like steel but much softer.

Sharp tools are a good idea (when are they not) and I would suggest doing some test cuts on the lathe, I suggest starting with a slow speed and a quick feed. Sawing and drilling it wont give you any trouble and like always plenty of cutting fluid for the tap.

[BigSki]

I've always noticed that the hotter the brass gets, the 'stickier' it gets, which will draw in the cutter, so be sure to keep the speeds and feeds slow and use a little cutting oil on it while doing the machine work.

[Crawling Calvin]

Sharp tools, I swear by them and everyone in the machine shop class im in thinks im dumb till I show them why...

Brass is VERY nice and easy to cut in my opinion. Just be careful with drilling since it can be a little "grabby" on the drill but other than that just mess around a little and don't make to big a mistake since its expensive stuff

Two little notes: The shavings can be SHARP like steel {OUCH!} and obviously don't let it get into anything electronic or it will release the magic smoke, and that's not pretty metal particles are mean like that

What machine do you plan to use it on just out of curiousness

[sim]

Thanks guys.

I'll be turning, drilling, milling and boring them on a Sherline mill and lathe. I'm not too worried about the size of the machines, but just safety and best practices.

I'll try and use new drill bits and newish HSS tools. I've heard about the drills grabbing. Is it then a bad idea to drill from small to big holes? I'd like to drill a hole bigger than 1/4" before I start boring.

[tarmo120]

Actually it shouldn't be an issue just to drill the bigger hole.
Just don't drill too fast. Take it slow and you'll be fine.

[C*H*U*D]

The important thing to know when machining any metal is knowing it's cutting speed. This is expressed in Surface Feet per Minute. From there you can find the calculations to determine your feeds and speeds that will give you the best results and longest tool life.

If you search online, there are calculators for all of that and can get you started in the right direction. Good luck and post pictures of your procedure. I'd like to see how you set up and make these.

[sim]

Thanks. Will look up the cutting speeds. My machines have a variable speed knob but no DRO so I never know how fast they are turning. I'll see if I can figure that out first.

The brass projects are kind of on hold now as I'm rushing to get a Bully up and running first. Thanks for all the help, guys. Will keep all these tips in mind when I get back to making the brass weights. Soon, hopefully.

[generalee7]

I know this is a couple months old but when drilling brass, it's good to grind small flats on the cutting edges of the drill bit. The drill bit won't want to get sucked into the material if you do this. I do it at work all the time. Otherwise, brass is very nice to machine; one of the nicest IMO.