Cheap Ali Carbide - Recommendations?

[MetalMonkey]

I'm thinking of taking advantage of the sales on Ali Express and stocking up on some cheap carbide inserts before any new customs charges kick in.

I know they can be a mixed bag and there are a lot of questionable suppliers out there – anybody got a go to seller on ali for cutting tools they have had good luck with?
I’ve got some decent tips, but I’d rather save those and have a few cheap ones as well for general pratting about with.

 

[Kram]

I dont know if they have a shop on ali, quite possible, but theres a good seller on ebay called ZimiHK, or PMQ234, they only sell tooling and most, but not all of it is good quality, and a vast range.

 

[Agroshield]

It would be useful to say the type (shape) and size of insert you seek (i.e. the holders you already have). It is no good having five recommendations for TPUN 1603 when you use CCMT 0602.

A few CBN and PCD inserts are always useful. A box of the aluminium grade ones will also be good value.

 

[Misterg]

I'm thinking of taking advantage of the sales on Ali Express and stocking up on some cheap carbide inserts before any new customs charges kick in.

I know they can be a mixed bag and there are a lot of questionable suppliers out there – anybody got a go to seller on ali for cutting tools they have had good luck with?
I’ve got some decent tips, but I’d rather save those and have a few cheap ones as well for general pratting about with.

Not Aliexpress, but look at 'Carbide Direct' on ebay. I've bought from them quite a few times, and always got really good quality inserts - I use their aluminium ones (CCGT060204) for pretty much everything on my little lathe.

Security measure | eBay

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[MetalMonkey]

It would be useful to say the type (shape) and size of insert you seek (i.e. the holders you already have). It is no good having five recommendations for TPUN 1603 when you use CCMT 0602.

A few CBN and PCD inserts are always useful. A box of the aluminium grade ones will also be good value.

CCMT 06 and 09 mainly, some RCMT and 16ER AG60 for threading. APKT for milling.

 

[tigdlo]

I got some knock off korloy ccgt 060204 and similar size in tcgt, vcgt and dcgt from here, https://www.aliexpress.com/store/32...e=bestmatch_sort&SearchText=&shop_filterType= and here, https://www.aliexpress.com/store/32...e=bestmatch_sort&SearchText=&shop_filterType= same shop but the catagories are a bit of a mess.

 

[tigdlo]

I've just realised you didn't specifically mean aluminium cutting inserts....

Lek official store and DEMK are the the stores I go back to. DEMK have been good for solid carbide small hole boring bars and the solid carbide ccmt boring bar I got was good.

 

[Bdog507]

Good morning All.


Carbide inserts are an absolute minefield. Not least due to the many different profiles & types available.

I tend to stick to known makes of insert such as Sandvik Seco & Kyocera etc. which can often be bought on eBay for a lot less than they should be. Which did fine providing one knows what to look for.
However, I recently had to make some handlebar end weights that had a very short M17x1mm thread. When threading on my lathe I like to run the lathe in reverse & thread away from the chuck. In order to do this one needs to use a left hand insert in a left hand holder mounted upside down.
I have many left hand inserts, but not 1mm ones. So I bought some from APT who I believe are in Glasgow. I have to say they were very good, & a mere £4 each. Which for a 16il insert is more than reasonable.
They did the job very well, & produced a nice thread.
I think it's better to buy from a UK company such as APT for they have a reputation to protect & if they sold crap they'd soon get found out.

I think it's worth mentioning that as most of us aren't production machining we don't necessarily require the 'best' insert for the job, as a couple of extra minutes to complete a part is neither here nor there.
In a production environment saving 30 seconds per part matters. Think of a run of 1000 parts. A 30 second saving per part is slightly over an 8 hour day.
Aside from parting & threading I use 4 different types of insert for everything. A mixture of Carbide & Cermet in CNMG, CCMT06, SNMG, & DCMT.


Cheers.


Stewart.