MLCS Ceramic coated router bits

[leehljp]

Anyone seen these yet? What do you think? Looks pretty but so does TiN.

Curious of your opinions on the durability of edges.

https://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/pages/blue_ice_solid_carbide_router_bits.html?mc_cid=a1f2bb670a&mc_eid=5409719889

[LCHIEN]

Whats the premium on the pricing over std. Solid Carbide bits?

and why arent they available on carbide tipped bits? Only for solid carbide bits?

and you can't get TiN coating on carbide anything. Only on HSS tooling.

i would venture that HSS < HSS w/TiN < carbide< carbide w/ceramic coating is the order of better performance for wear.

Looking up nano ceramic and Blue Ice the latter is a trade name for automotive oriented nano ceramic coatings applied to cars to protect the finish. Not sure what the relationship is. Of course for cars its a clear coating very hard for protection. Not actually blue as these seem to be.

so i dont actually see how this is mainstream for wood cutting tooling.

[LCHIEN]

Answering my first question:
Spiral upcut 1/4" straight 1" cutting length 2.5" OAL MLCS bits
BLUE ICE $23.95
std type solid carbide $16.95

so there is a $7 premium for this coating.

so i also see Amana and others are offering nano ceramic coatings on router bits.

https://www.woodshopnews.com/tools-machines/amana-tool-router-bits-coated-for-longer-life

https://www.toolstoday.com/router-bi...uter-bits.html

[leehljp]

I would love to read some reviews with comparisons. I am all for improved performance and will usually pay a moderate price increase to get that.

[Black walnut]

In metalworking carbide insert tooling has been coated for some time. Not sure how long because I have not been involved in that before last winter. It's hard to say how much it helps but it must be significant. I would not be believing of most reviews though since most magazine reviews are funded by advertisers.

[LCHIEN]

MLCS ad you linked is claiming "up to 3x" the life.

[LCHIEN]

To be honest, I can't say I've worn out many, if any carbide router bits.
How many have you worn out?
I assume that a worn out bit makes rough cuts with lots of tearout compared to a new sharp bit.
How many of you sharpen carbide router bits? Like with a diamond file? I don't think you can effectively sharpen carbide spiral bits, or can you?

[Jim Frye]

I have some cheap TrendLines carbide bits that date to the early '90s that are still producing good cuts. I have three grades of diamond hones and dress each edge prior to use as well as oiling any bearings. One of these bits (a 1/4" round bottom veining bit) has worn out and is producing fuzzy results, so I'll have to replace it. It is the only carbide bit that I've worn out. Since I don't use router bits on a daily basis, solid carbide seems to be a good solution for me.

[leehljp]

"Worn out" - I can't say that I have worn out many router bits either; I have worn out a few though. "Wearing Out" is an ambiguous term that feeds directly to the purpose of the ceramics, (if I have come to understand it correctly).

I use mostly HSS tools on my lathe and about 14 years ago ran into a situation that I learned what the difference between "sharp" as most people/turners use it VS extremely sharp that leaves the surface as smooth as if it had been sanded with 600+ sand paper. After learning that, - by using a scraper chisel in which I had a hone next to me when turning, and literally about every minute of turning, I made two or three swipes off the blade on the hone and kept it that way throughout the turning - I developed a "feel" for that kind of sharpness against any wood.


Carbide: I do use carbide insert tools on occasion and in the last 4 to 5 years - SOME carbide inserts come with a close degree of sharpness as I get with HSS. The NEED for that kind of sharpness is when I make segmented (mostly wood) pen blanks with brass or aluminum in it. Metals sandwiched between woods smear terribly onto the wood when sanded. Erasers or denatured alcohol do not remove the fine sanding dust from the wood. The only way is to use a scraper with a very keen edge. Smooth as a baby's behind and clear too.

That is what longer lasting cutting edges do. While I have not worn out most of my router bits, there are times when I can tell it is "beginning" and there is a bit of frayed edges that can easily be attributed to "grain direction changes"- that could also be part of beginning to "lose the edge" that a casual user may not notice. This is what I am reading about the "ceramic" edges. It holds the edge longer.