u/Boosher648

I had to cut out 2 profiles out of this 3” thick 15lb density HDU foam. Which would mean full slot engagement in the interior sections. In the past I’ve cut up to 2” HDU thick using a 3/8 upcut oflute. No problem there. Using the same logic I thought I wouldn’t have any problems and purchased this bit shown in the picture 3/8” x 3.5” cut length (4.25” stick out) 2 flute upcut. The result was terrible chatter to where I just abandoned through cutting all together. I ended up cutting 2” deep using my other bit and simply did the rest by hand.

After the first test cut. I tried a variety of parameters to no avail. 18k rpm 120ipm .75” cut depth adjusting feed / rpm higher, 1” cut depth lowering feed to 70ipm because maybe more engagement would cause less chatter, .125” cut depth same feed as .75”. I even dropped to like 20ipm just to see if I could possibly stop the chatter but no luck.

Is it simply my machines rigidity? The length of bit ratio to diameter? Too long of flutes for the diameter? Full slot issue? Density of material? All of the above?

Any advice / discussion would be greatly appreciated.

I’ve been working in live events for nearly 4 years and it kind of sucks. Perhaps it’s my specific situation but it’s so frustrating. There’s only one client that I’m even excited about to see on the calendar.

Music festivals are a drag, trade shows are boring and detail demanding, hotel takeovers are extremely stressful, lightning fast turn arounds for a one off event is lame.

There is so much effort put into decor just for it to be for one night or a weekend and it’s dumpster food. It’s so wasteful. My carbon impact from live events is probably 1000’s of tons, endless dumpsters of one off decor. Nobody even cares, the more elite of an event the worse it gets. We’re building gorgeous high end finish decor for people that only care about an instagram picture. Perhaps I’m jaded because I’ve seen behind the curtain.

It’s not like I haven’t seen the appreciation for my work. I’ve attended events here or there and seen firsthand how cool it all is. There’s just a tremendous amount of effort put into physically crafting someone’s vision for just a few hours where people will actually experience it. Some of my most impressive work just brings back bitter memories of the time spent making it.

Chatter to the point of being unusable, where did I go wrong?