CNC MACHINING

DESIGN GUIDE

Table of Contents
Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................2
Choosing Materials ...............................................................................................................................................2
Geometry Considerations Radii ....................................................................................................................2
Material Shape and Size......................................................................................................................................3
Tolerances .................................................................................................................................................................3
Threaded Holes ........................................................................................................................................................4
Anodizing and Chemical Conversion Coating.............................................................................................4
Undercuts ..................................................................................................................................................................6
Total Surface Profile .............................................................................................................................................6
Bilateral vs. Unilateral Tolerances..................................................................................................................6
Countersinks and Chamfers ..............................................................................................................................7
Designing and Machining Plastic Parts........................................................................................................7
Threads and Plating ..............................................................................................................................................7
Raw Material sizes .................................................................................................................................................8

Introduction
Thisdocumentoutlinessomedesignsuggestionsandfactorsthatdrivethecostsofmachined
components.Itisintendedtohelpengineersmakechoicesduringthedesignprocesstohelpreduce
endproductcosts..

Choosing materials
Whenselectingmaterials,allowtheuseofdifferentformsofmaterialssuchasbarstockandplate.
Therecanbesignificantdifferencesinthecostandleadtimeassociatedwithacquiringdifferent
materialforms.Considerthestrengthvs.machinabilityratingaswellwhenchoosingmaterials.For
example,choosinganannealedbuttreatablealloyofsteelandthennotspecifyinganyheattreatwill
drivecostwithlittlebenefitinmaterialperformance.

Geometry considerations Radii

Oneofthebiggestcostdriversformachinedpartsistime.Therigidityandstrengthoftoolscan
determinethetimeittakestomachine.Theshorterthetoolandthelargerthediameter,thefasterit
canfeedbecausemorematerialwillberemovedwithalargerdiametertool.Beingabletoincreasethe
feedrateandremovemorematerialinonepasswillcutdownonthetimethepartisinthemachine
andthecostoftheproductwillbereduced.Cuttingtoolsaredeterminedbythepartsdesign.
Althoughpartgeometrywillultimatelydeterminethecuttingtoolsused,addinglargerradii,where
possible,willhelpdecreasethetimeittakestomachineapart.

Followtheserulestoreducemachiningtime:
BecauseCNCmachingusesrotatingtools,squarecornerscannotbeachievedfortheintersectionof
internalcornersandpockets.Forpartsthathavepocketsorfeatureswithverticalcorners,aradiusis
neededinyourdesign.Theruleofthumbistoleavethelargestradiipossible.

KeyConsiderations:
Thelargerthetool,thefasterthefeed.
Thedeeperthecorner,thelongerthetooltoavoiddeflectionandbreakage.
Foreverydoublinginlength,thefeedrateismorethancutinhalf.
Fromacoststandpoint,adoubleoftheratioequatestoadoubleofthecostofthatfeature.A
goodratioislessthan3:1.
Withthesesimpleguidelinesyoucanachievesignificantcostsavings.Itisimportanttobecognizantof
thewallandfloorradiibecausesometimestheycanvaryinsize.Itisstillpossibletoreducecostwith
evenwithdiffereningcornerandfloorradii,itjustrequirespropertechnique.Forexample,usingtwo
toolsmaybeanoptioninsomecasessothatthesmallertooldoesnothavetoremoveasmuchmaterial
whenalargerdiamtertoolcanacommplishthegoal.

Material shape and size

Functiondrivesthesizeandshapeofyourparts.Constraintsareusuallyhardandfastbutsome
flexibilityexists.Youcancutdesigncostsbydeterminingtheboundingboxofyourpartandlimiting
yourmaterialsizetoonlywhatisneededtomeetyourdesignrequirements.Asstatedpreviously,bar
stockischeaperthanplate.Ifbarstockischosen,consideringwhatsizestockthepartfitsintois
recommended.

Forexample,considerapart.74thickx3.3wide.Thiswillfitwellintobarstock3.5wide,butwould
notquitebeafittobemadefrom.75material.Withonly.01clearanceallottedbetweenthepartand
thematerial,neithertolerancesnorcleanupofthefacescanbeguaranteed.Asaresult,a1thick
materialwouldhavetobeused,whichwouldaddanadditional25%tothecostinadditionto
additionaltime.Bydesigninga0.65thickpart,astandard0.75thickbarcouldbeusedandlesswaste
andlowercostwouldbetheresult.Theruleofthumbistoconsultwithyourmanufacturerearlyonin
thedesignprocesswhenchangescosttheleast.

Designingaparttoexactsizeisnotanimpossibletaskaslongasthetolerancesandcosmetic
requirementsareminimal,lessthanperfectstocksurfacefinishesareacceptableandhighertolerances
canbeaccepted.Ifafinishmachinedsurfacefinishisrequiredforallsides,asafebetwouldbetoleave
aminimumof0.100lengthandwidthandatleast0.125thickness.Thicknesswouldbemeasured
alongwheretheprimarymaterialremovalisoccurring.Sometimesthisisnotclearsoitdoesnthurtto
ask.

Tolerances
Thefastestwaytodriveuppartcostsistoencountertighttolerancesthataredifficulttobothmachine
andmeasure.Understandingthemachiningprocesswillallowtheengineertospecifyatolerancing
schemethatsuitsthembutdoesnthityouinthepocketbook.

Withtolerancestherearetworulesofthumb.First,featurescreatedbymachinetoolcapabilitywillbe
easytoholdtoahightolerance.Second,featuresaffectedbytheoperatorhandlingandloadinginto
subsequentfixturesaremuchhardertoholdatahightolerance.Bottomline:themorecomplicatedthe
fixturing,setup,loadingtimesandscraprate,thehigherthecost.Thelooserthetolerances,theless
expensivetheprojectbecomes.

Diminishingreturnsdoplayafactorwhenlooseningthetolerance.Therecomesapointwhereitwont
lowerthecostofthepart.Iftheprocessemployedcaneasilyholdthetolerance,thenmakingitlooser
willnotreducethepriceunlessitissoloosethatanentirelydifferentprocesscanbeused.Anexample
wouldbeswitchingtolasercutting,abrasivewaterjetorrouting.Itisalwaysgoodtocheckwithyour
manufacturerfirstifchangescanapplytoyourparticularsituation.

Itisquitepopulartoapplyaglobalprofiletolerancetoanentirepart.Whileitseasyforthedesigner,it
requiresasignificantcostinspection.Proofwouldbeneededtoensureitsvalidity.Withproof,
additionalcostisalsocreatedthroughhandmeasurementsandafullCMMreport.Profiletolerancesdo
haveapurpose,butonlywhenusedeffectively.

Threaded holes
Nothingimpactscostvariancelikethreadedholes.Depthsofthreadedholesarehardertocontroland
costscanincreaserapidlyfortightdepthtolerances.Thehighcostsoccurduetotheverylowfirstpart
yieldandrequalifyingareplacementtapandsubsequentscrap.Themostcommonmistakeistoleavea
threadedholedepthdimensionwith3decimalplacessoitdefaultstothetitleblocktolerance.The
reasonforthisisthattapsarenotconsistentbetweentheirtipandfirstfullthread.Therearentmany
instanceswherethreadedholesneedtobeheldtightly.

Thebestpracticesforthreadedholesinclude:

1. Avoid632threadsorsmallerifpossiblebecausethereisagreaterchancethatthetapwill
break.
2. Avoidspecifyingblindthreadedholesdeeperthanyouneed(expenseisaddedthedeeperthe
tapsgoandthemorelikelytheyaretobreak)
3. Ifyouhaveathreadthatisnotthroughthepart,specifywhethertappingfrombothsidesis
necessary.Sometimesshopswillassumetheyare,butthatmightnotworkwithyourdesign.

Threadscanbemadethroughavarietyofformsincludingcuttingtaps,rollformingtapsandthread
milled.Formedthreadsarestrongerthancutthreadsbutoffertheirownchallenges.Ageneralruleof
thumbistoleavetheoptionuptothemanufacturer.

Anodizing and chemical conversion coating

Chemicalconversioncoatingisatypeofconversioncoatingusedtopassivatealuminum,zinc,
cadmium,copper,silver,magnesiumandtinalloys.Itisprimarilyusedforcorrosionprotectionor
decorativefinish.Conversioncoatingprovidesacosteffectivesubstituteforanodizingwhenabrasion
resistanceisnotneededbutyoustillmustretainelectricalconductivity.Themilitaryspecificationfor
thisplatingprocessisMILDTL5541F.Therearetwoclasseswithinthisspecification:1Aand3.

1Aisthickerandprovidesmaximumcorrosionprotection,butgreaterelectricalresistance.
Class3isthinner,withlesscorrosionprotectionbuthigherelectricalconductivity.

Fordesignpurposes,notethatchemfilmdoesnotaddanyadditionalthicknessandischeaperthan
anodizingonaperpartbasis.

Anodizing,ontheotherhand,isanelectrolyticpassivationprocessusedtoincreasethicknessofthe
naturaloxidelayeronthesurfaceofmetalparts.Thislayerprotectstheunderlyingmaterialfrom
corrosion.Itsmostcommonlyusedwithaluminum.ThetwomostcommontypescontrolledbyMILA
8625AareTypeIIandTypeIII.TypeIIisconsideredcosmeticanodizingandvariesinthicknessand
coloring.Thecoloringaspectisimportantbecauseitcangreatlyimpactthecostandproduction.

TypeIIIiscalledhardanodizing.ThenamealoneindicatesthatitismuchthickerthanTypeII.Thisisa
methodformakingaluminumstronger.Thismethodofferssignificantwearandscratchresistancein
additiontothermalandelectricalresistancecomparedtothecosmetic.Pleasenotethatifmaximum
abrasionorwearresistanceisneeded,aplatingcompanyshouldbeconsulted.Colorresultscannotbe
guaranteedwithTypeIIIbecauseitisnotconsideredcosmetic.Hardanodizingcanstilllookgood,but
notconsistently.
TypeIalsoexists,butistheleastcommonandisthethinnestofthethree.Itisreferredtoaschromic
anodize.
1) Cautionmustbeobservedwithanodizing,specificallyduetoitsassociationwiththickness.To
ensurethefinishedproductfunctionsasneeded,considerthefollowingapproach:Properly
machinefeaturestoaccommodatetheplatingthicknessexpected.

2) Askforzerogrowthoftheafterplatingdimensions,orMaskcriticalareasbeforeplating.
Beforeandafterdrawingsworkthebest.Thisapproachrequiresamoredetaileddrawingbut
eliminatestheguesswork.Whenitcomestocost,notethatpluggingholesandthreadsis
relativelyinexpensive,whilemaskingbroadsurfacesaddsconsiderableexpenseandleadtime.
Applicationswherebothmethodsareneededarenotuncommon.Whilethisapproachisexpensive,itis
notimpossible.Twooptionsexist:partialmachininganodizingmoremachiningchemfilmor:
machiningcompletefirstplatingprocessmaskingsecondplatingprocess.Thecomplexityand
shapeoftheareawiththeopposingfinishwilldeterminethebestapproach.Theformerhasthe
advantagesofnomaskingcostanddelineationbetweentheplatingtypesthatisverycleanandcrisp.
Thedownsideislongerleadtime,shippingcostsandanadditionalmachinesetup.

Itisalsopossibletoinstallstainlesssteelhardwarebeforechemfilmplatingbutnotbeforeanodizing.
Usecautionhowever,dependingontheapplication,becausechemicalsmaybetrappedbetweenthe
hardwareandthepartandmightleachoutatalatertime.

Ifplatingoncertainsurfacesisrequired,orevenpaintwithmasking,theclearestwaytocommunicateit
iswithcoloredisometricviewsonthedrawing.Most3DCADsystemscanaccommodatethis.

Undercuts
Insomeinstancesafeatureiscalledforthatcantbemadewithastandardendmill.Whattodo?This
mightcallforanundercut.Thesefeaturesarepricybecausetheymayrequireacustomtoolandslower
cuttingfeedsoradditionalsetupstoachievetheundercutfeature.Thecuttingdiameterratioandthe
heightofthecutvs.theneckdiameterandneckheightdeterminethespeedanditspossibility.There
arenotsetrulesonthisratioandnoguaranteesitwillbecheap.

Anengineerspecifyingimpossibleundercutsisnotanewthing,butfortunatelyitispossibletoavoid
thesesituations.Whenmodelingafeature,sketchboththecuttingandneckdiameterswithinthe
drawing.Aslongastheratiosarefairlybalanced,thepossibilityofbreakageislimited.

Inshort,byfollowingthesestepsandbeingawareofthecuttingtoolsnecessary,youcanreduceboth
thecostsandthefrustration.

Total Surface Profile

TheuseofGeometricDimensioning&Tolerancing(GD&T)(doyouneedtodefineGD&T)hasincreased
significantlyrecently.Engineersarebeingtrainedtouseitandarebecomingmorefamiliar.Itcanbea
greatwaytospecifywhattolerancesandfeaturesareimportanttoyourdesign.Ontheothersideof
that,however,isanewtrendpushingformoreminimaldesignsrelyingon3Dmodelstocontrolits
shapeandfeature.Unfortunately,thesetrendsbuttheads,whichleadstoadditionalcostandpart
inspection.Amisusedprofiletolerancecalloutisthefastestwaytoaddcost.

Foranycompanywithacomprehensivequalitysystem,ifacustomerrequestsaqualityrequirement,
thenthemanufacturermustguaranteethespecificationshavebeenmet.Thistendstobethecruxof
theproblemwithaprofiletolerancecallout;addingtherequirementforallsurfacesspecifiedtobe
guaranteedtotheprofiletolerance.Typically,onlyafewofthesurfacesdirectlyaffectthefunctionof
thepart.Sowhencreatingyourrendering,thereisnoneedtospendtimecreatinginfulldetailwhen
onlythefunctionsarenecessary.Thiswilldecreasetheinspectiontime,inreturnreducingethepart
cost.Ifyouusethistechniquewithaprofilecallout,thenyouhavedonetheopposite.Askingthe
manufacturertomatcheachelementwithinacertainsizeisextremelyexpensive.

Tosolvethisproblem,theruleofthumbistoavoidspecifyingaspecificnumericalvaluewithyour
tolerancecallout.Thecalloutcreatesthecostbecauseitmustbeverified.

Bilateral vs. Unilateral Tolerances

Bilateraltolerancingisamethodoftolerancingadimensionusingequalplusorminusdeviationsfrom
thenominaldimensions.Unilateraltolerancesspecifyadeviationonlyinonedirection,eitherplusor
minus,fromthespecifiednominaldimension.Inyearspast,itwaseasyforamachinisttodecideona
dimension.Now,however,difficultieswithsuchtolerancesarisewiththeprogrammingofthepart.It
occursmoreoftenwithedgesandsurfacesandislesscommonwithholes.Holesizeisusually
determinedbythetool,nottheprogram.

Countersinks and Chamfers

Anymachinedpartthathasholesprobablyhascountersinks.Countersinksareusedasaleadinfor
threads,forflatheadscrews,andasageneraledgebreakorchamferonanytypeofholewherealeadin
isnecessary.Normallythecountersinksdiameterisnotcriticalandshouldbedimensionedatalower
tolerancethanthestandardonesforthepart.Unfortunately,threedecimaltoleranceisassignedata
higherratethannecessarycausingthecosttorise.Itisalwaysimportanttotakeintoaccountthe
diametervs.depthrelationshipwhenmachiningcountersinksandchamfers.

Designing and machining plastic parts

Therearemanyapplicationswhereitmakessensetodesignamachinedparttobemadefromplastic
ratherthanmetal.Manytypesofplasticsexist,eachwiththeirownstrengthsandweaknesses.Itis
alwaysgoodtoresearchthesesoyouareawarehowthesematerialsrespondtomachining.Themost
commontypesofplasticsinclude:ABS,acetal,acrylic,nylon,polycarbonate,polyethylene,
polypropyleneandultem.

Rememberallplasticsarelessstablethanmetals.Theyhavemuchhigherthermalexpansionand
respondtohumidity.Havingthemachineshopverifythatthesepartsareintoleranceisagoodruleof
thumbwhencalculatingcost.Itisrecommendedthatatoleranceof+/0.010isallowedforpart
dimensions.Becauseofplasticsthermalandgeometricstabilityitcanbecostlytoachievehigher
tolerances.

Threads and plating

Whenaparthasthreadedholesandisplated,potentialforproblemswiththreadclasscanarise.Aswe
statedearlier,allplatingprocesseshaveathickness.Thesmallerthethreads,thehigherapercentageof
thepitchdiametertolerancewillbeusedupbytheplatingthickness.Thesinglebiggestfactoristhat
theplatingisappliedtobothsidesofthethreadprofileonbothsidesofthehole.Thistranslatesto4x
buildupofplatingonthethreads.Thereare2waystonegatetheeffect:

1. Masktheholeduringtheplatingprocess
2. Useanoversizedtapduringthemachiningprocesssothatoncetheplatingthicknessisadded
ontothethreadsitstillmeetsthethreadclass.

NOTE:Neitheris100%butbothofferaviablesolution.

Blindholesandtrappedchemicalsalsoposeproblems.Trytoavoidplatingblindholeswhenpossibleby
maskingtheholesduringtheplatingprocess.Ultimatelythiscanbeleftuptothemanufacturer.

Raw material sizes

Earlierinthedesignguide,wediscussedhowtoreducecostsbyminimizingthesizeofrawmaterial
usedinyourdesign.Whataretheavailablesizesthatonecandesignaround?Thisanswerdependson
whattypeofmaterialyouareusing.Italsodependsonwhatyourlocalmaterialdistributorshavein
stockorifyouwillhavetogetsomethingshippedatadditionalcost.Availabilityvariesaroundthe
country,sostartbycontactingyourlocaldistributor..Herearethemostcommontypeofmaterials
workedwith:aluminum,aluminumplate,stainlesssteel,brass,copper,andsteel.
Foryourconvenience,aspreadsheethasbeencreatedlistingtheseandothermaterials.Thetablecan
befoundonourwebsiteatwww.nextlinemfg.com/cncmachining.Ifthereareanyitemswemissedor
thatyouwouldliketoseelisted,donthesitatetocontactusatinfo@nextlinemfg.com.