Recently a Maker had a problem with a 1/4" downcut spiral bit working out of the collet about an 1/8" while making a multi-pass cut through MDF. There are a lot of unknowables including how well the cover nut was tightened, initial insert depth of bit in collet, etc.
But one thing that struck me was the generous amount of a sticky coating on the bit, collet, and cover nut. The material being cut is the dark purplish brown MDF that I’ve started to see around the workshop recently. It is new to me and I have never seen it for sale or used it. After a bit of research I found that particular board was purchased from Dakota Hardwoods who sources it from Tecnotabla in Mexico. (http://www.tecnotabla.com/en/home/) It may well be available from other suppliers in the area.
The color is due to Tecnotabla using eucalyptus wood exclusively in their MDF manufacturing plant. I am hoping other users of this material can report back on their experience with the material and any fouling of cutters and blades experienced. I have no way of knowing if the recent experience is a “one off” episode or if it is something we all need to watch for when using eucalyptus MDF.
Please report your experiences/observations. Also, if you happen to have some sizable scraps left from a project, please put them under the Multicam table and I’ll play around with it to see if it needs to be cut at different feeds/speeds, etc.
Thanks in advance,
Bert Rabbe
Multicam SIG Leader