ONVENTIONAL OR RAM EDM (DIE SINKER

EDM)

Wire EDM
Conventional EDM
CNC Turning
Milling
Carbide Heading Dies &
Inserts
Steel Inserts / Punches
Cold Hobbing
Conventional EDM is commonly known as Spark EDM. This process is often used when the desired
cut or design feature does not penetrate through the entire workpiece. Electrodes for Spark EDM are
mostly manufactured from graphite or copper tungsten. RAM EDM electrodes utilize a negative-formed
shape which contains all the detail of the final workpiece. Through CNC programming, the electrode is
moved along the workpiece, never contacting the piece but creating an area between the electrode and
workpiece referred to as Spark Gap. As the electrode moves along the x, y, c, and z axes, complex
indentations, shapes, vents and cavities are created. The intricacy that can be achieved with
conventional EDM is unmatched by any other method of machining.
Typically RAM EDM applications are performed with the workpiece fully submerged in solution bath.
This fluid serves various purposes including flushing away of the eroded material, cooling the heat
affected zone and preventing damage to the workpiece, and acting as a conductor between the
electrode and the workpiece. Spark EDM has become a standard method for machining production
prototypes due to the precision and abstract cuts allowed by EDM that are not available through

alternative machining systems.

HDT electrodes are created
through a 4-axis high speed
milling process. Our electrodes
are milled to completion and
incorporate all features of the final
product with no hand-scraping
required.

Benefits of RAM EDM

A variety of shapes and
sizes inside blind cavities
Remarkable accuracy and
fine finish control with no
compromise to structural
integrity
Shapes are burned into
hardened materials eliminating the chance of size change caused by heat treating
Production with greater consistency, repeatability, and efficiency
Little required tooling means reduction in set-up time
Internal splines, blind keyways, molds
Hexes for special bolts and parts & helical cut gears and shapes
Complex shapes that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to produce with conventional
cutting tools
Extremely hard material machined to very close tolerances
Very small work pieces where conventional cutting tools may damage the part from excess
cutting tool pressure
There is no direct contact between tool and work piece. Therefore delicate sections and weak
materials can be machined without any distortion.

Small Hole Drill EDM (Hole Popping)

Small hole drilling EDM machining allows a

0.3mm-6.1mm diameter hole to be drilled
through a 100mm piece of soft or hardened
steel in about 10 seconds with an average wear
rate of 50% to 80%. This process uses a long
brass or copper electrode in the form of a tube.
The electrode is held in a chuck and rotated as
a flow of distilled water flows through the
electrode and flushes away the eroded
material.
Though small hole drilling EDM was initially
used mainly for pre-drilling holes for wire EDM,
its uses have since become more widely
recognized. Mold and part manufacturinginjection nozzles, oil drain holes, hydraulic
cylinders and dowel pins, as well as turbine blades, ball bearings and safety wire holes in hex nuts
are just some of the manufacturing areas that benefit from the use of small hole drill EDM.
HDT has found that small hole drill EDM also has a place in venting, small ID work as well as
workpieces with small diameters.

BENEFITS OF SMALL HOLE DRILL EDM

Less time spent means shorter lead times
Drilling is done into hardened materials eliminating the chance of size change caused by heat
treating
Little required tooling means reduction in set-up time

SMALL HOLE DRILL EDM SPECIFICATIONS & CAPABILITIES

x-axis movement 6.75
z-axis movement 10.75
Axis vertical movement (w-axis 8.5

Maximum workpiece weight 440lbs

Maximum workpiece dimensions (14.5 x 15 x 10.75)