Regardless of our Aluminum CNC Machining Service industry, choosing the right material is one of the most important components in determining the overall functionality and cost of your part. Here are some quick tips for choosing the right material.

Metals

As a general rule, softer metals, like aluminum and brass, as well as plastics machine easily and will take less time to remove material from the part blank which in turn reduces machine time and cost of machining. Harder materials, like stainless steel and carbon steel, must be machined with slower spindle RPMs and machine feed rates which would increase the cycle times versus the softer materials. As a general rule, aluminum will machine about 4 times faster than carbon steel, and stainless steel will machine half as fast as carbon steel.

The type of metal is a critical driver in determining the overall cost of the part. For example, 6061 aluminum bar stock is approximately half the price per pound of aluminum plate, and 7075 aluminum bar stock can be 2 to 3 times the cost of 6061 bar stock. 304 stainless steel costs about 2 to 3 times what 6061 aluminum costs and is about twice as much as 1018 carbon steel.Depending on the size and geometry of the part, the material cost can be a significant portion of the overall price of the part. If the design does not warrant the properties of carbon or stainless steel, consider using 6061 aluminum to minimize the material cost.

Can you guess below CNC Milling Aluminum Parts time cost?

By Team Xometry