Skip to content 
Cutting tool failure, production delays, or reduced output quality are common problems businesses face when they use the wrong material. These problems can shut down entire production lines, cost you money, and make your customers mad. Whether you’re machining steel or cutting composites, the right cutting tool material can save you time, reduce wear, and give you the results you need to keep your operation running smoothly.
By understanding the characteristics of different cutting tool materials, you can make better decisions and make your operation more efficient.
Cutting tool materials can be broken down into several main groups: high-speed steel (HSS), carbide, ceramics, cermets, cubic boron nitride (CBN), and diamond. Each has its own advantages based on things like hardness, heat resistance, and wear resistance. Carbide, for example, is super hard and can handle high temperatures, so it’s great for high-speed cutting. Diamond tools, on the other hand, are good for making really precise cuts in non-ferrous materials.
Now that we’ve talked about the main types of cutting tool materials, let’s look at each one a little closer and see how they do in different machining situations.
1. High-Speed Steel (HSS)
High-speed steel (HSS) is one of the most versatile materials for cutting tools. Since it was invented, HSS has been the standard material for a lot of different machining processes. HSS can handle high temperatures, so it’s used a lot for drilling, milling, and turning.
Benefits of HSS:
Cheap: HSS tools are relatively cheap, so they’re good for small businesses and shops.
Versatile: They can cut both ferrous and non-ferrous materials.
Easy to Sharpen: You can sharpen HSS tools, so they last longer.
HSS is usually used in applications where you don’t need to cut super fast. It can handle moderate heat, but it’s not as tough as carbide or ceramics when you’re running at high speeds. So, HSS tools are good for applications where you’re running at moderate speeds and you don’t need super tight tolerances.
Applications:
You’ll find HSS in drill bits, taps, end mills, and other general-purpose tools. It’s really useful for cutting softer metals, wood, and plastics.
2. Carbide
Carbide is one of the most popular materials for cutting tools, especially in industries where you need to be really precise and your tools need to last a long time. Carbide is a composite material made from tungsten carbide and cobalt. It’s really tough and it lasts a long time.
Benefits of Carbide:
Super Hard: Carbide tools stay sharp longer than HSS, even at high temperatures.
Fast: Carbide tools can be used in high-speed cutting, so you can get your work done faster.
Lasts Longer: Carbide is so tough that it lasts a lot longer than other materials, so you don’t have to replace your tools as often.
Carbide tools are great for cutting tough stuff like cast iron, stainless steel, and even some hardened steels. They cost more than HSS, so they’re better for high-speed, high-precision jobs where the extra money is worth it for the better performance.
Applications:
You’ll find carbide tools all over the place in the automotive, aerospace, and heavy manufacturing industries. They’re used for things like turning, milling, drilling, and especially for high-speed production lines where you need your tools to last.
3. Ceramics
Ceramic cutting tools are made mostly from aluminum oxide or silicon nitride, and they’re really hard and stay hard even when they get hot. They’re great for high-speed machining, especially for finishing operations where you need a really nice surface finish.
Benefits of Ceramics:
Stay Hard: Ceramic tools can handle really high cutting temperatures and still stay hard.
Don’t Wear Out: They don’t wear out as fast, especially when you’re cutting harder metals or high-temperature alloys.
Corrosion resistance: Ceramic tools don’t react with the stuff you’re cutting, so they last longer.
Even though ceramics have a lot of good things going for them, they have one big problem: they’re brittle. Because they’re so fragile, ceramic cutting tools can break if you’re cutting really hard or if you’re doing a lot of interrupted cuts. That’s why you don’t see them used for roughing or interrupted cuts.
Applications:
You’ll find ceramics used a lot in high-speed finishing, especially in the automotive and aerospace industries. They’re also used for cutting cast iron, nickel-based superalloys, and other hard metals.
4. Cermets
Cermets are a composite material that combines ceramic and metal materials to create cutting tools that have good wear resistance, thermal stability, and toughness.
Benefits of Cermets:
Smooth Surface Finishing: Cermet tools give you a really nice surface finish, which is great for precision machining.
Thermal Resistance: They work well at high temperatures, like ceramics.
High-Speed Performance: You can run them faster than HSS, and they usually give you a cleaner cut.
While they’re tougher than ceramic tools, they can still break if you put a heavy load on them, so you want to use them for finishing, not roughing.
Applications:
You’ll see cermet cutting tools used a lot in the automotive industry for finishing steel parts and other stuff that needs a nice, smooth surface.
5. Cubic Boron Nitride (CBN)
Cubic boron nitride (CBN) is one of the hardest materials known to man, second only to diamond. CBN tools are used for really specialized machining, like cutting hardened steels and superalloys.
Benefits of CBN:
High Hardness: CBN tools can hold their cutting edge when you’re machining really hard stuff, so they last a long time.
Thermal Resistance: They work well at high temperatures, which is important when you’re machining stuff like hardened steel.
Fewer Tool Changes: Because CBN tools are so hard and last so long, you don’t have to change them out as often.
But CBN tools are expensive. So, you’ll see them used where other tools can’t do the job as well.
Applications:
You’ll see CBN used a lot for grinding hardened steels, cutting superalloys, and machining stuff that’s hard to cut in industries like aerospace and heavy equipment.
6. Diamond
Diamond tools are the hardest cutting materials known to man, so they’re really good for precision work. But you can’t cut ferrous metals with diamond because the diamond and the metal react chemically and screw up the diamond.
Benefits of Diamond:
Extreme Hardness: Diamond tools have the sharpest cutting edges and stay sharp for a long time.
Precision: They’re great for fine cutting where you need precision and a nice finish.
Wear Resistance: Diamond tools last a really long time because they don’t wear out.
Diamond tools are used a lot in industries like electronics, optics, and glass manufacturing where you need to cut stuff really fine and really precise. But they’re really expensive, so you don’t see them used everywhere.
Applications:
You’ll see diamond tools used for cutting non-ferrous metals, glass, ceramics, and plastics. They’re used a lot in industries where you need to be really precise, like electronics and medical device manufacturing.
7. Coated Tools
Coatings aren’t a separate material category, but they can make a big difference in how a tool performs. You can coat a tool with stuff like titanium nitride (TiN), titanium aluminum nitride (TiAlN), or diamond-like coatings. These coatings make the tool last longer, reduce friction, and help it handle heat better.
Benefits of Coated Tools:
Longer Tool Life: Coatings make tools last longer, so you don’t have to change them out as often.
Less Friction: Coated tools run cooler and don’t wear out as fast, so you can run them faster and longer.
Better Performance: Coated tools can be used in a lot of different applications where the base material alone wouldn’t work as well.
Applications:
You’ll see coated tools used a lot in high-speed machining and where you need the tool to last a long time, like in the automotive, aerospace, and heavy manufacturing industries.
In today’s fast-paced manufacturing world, picking the right cutting tool material can make all the difference in how productive you are and how much it costs you. Whether you’re cutting hardened steel or doing high-precision cuts on non-ferrous metals, you need to know what each material can do for you.
At PassionBlade, we make a bunch of different customizable carbide blades that are made to last in industrial applications. We have factories in China, and we make really good stuff that people all over the world use. If you want somebody to help you figure out what you need and give you good stuff, get in touch with Lesley Chan at lesley@passiontool.com.
