Selecting and purchasing the right CNC machine cutting tools for a project can be difficult—with so many options, it’s hard to be certain how effective any specific choice will be. You often have two options to base your decision on: rely on 2D prints and interpret them based on your historical experience, or machine prototypes to find the right combination of cutting tools.

But both approaches have shortcomings. Machining prototype parts takes time, and the costs can add up quickly. And if you rely solely on a 2D drawing, you may overlook critical design elements. This can lead to unexpected costs late in your process if you need to purchase additional cutting tools.

At 3D Parts Unlimited, we take a different approach to this choice. As a branch of MSC Industrial Supply, a leading vendor of metalworking tools, we benefit from a unique set of resources. By leveraging MSC’s expertise in cutting tools alongside our robust additive manufacturing services, we create 3D printed prototypes for toolpath visualization, enabling you to easily select the best tools and workholding solutions for your project.

Enabling Toolpath Visualization and Workholding Selection with 3D Printed Prototypes

When you work with our partner MSC to purchase your cutting tools, the goal is to enable you to manufacture your parts accurately and cost-effectively. This means knowing exactly what tools you need, and clearly understanding how they’re used during the machining process. With the wide variety of tools available, selecting the right tools for your project is essential for accurate and high-quality results.

To facilitate the process, we create 3D printed prototypes of your parts that MSC representatives can share with you to help you evaluate your tooling options. There are several benefits to using a 3D printed prototype to help determine your manufacturing techniques:

Easy Toolpath Visualization

It can be difficult to visualize how specific cutting tools are used to manufacture a part without having a physical product. While you might be able to simply visualize the part, that can often lead to errors, especially with complex parts.

But rather than waiting for a machined prototype to see how a cutting tool can best manufacture your parts, we offer a faster and more cost-effective solution—a free custom 3D printed prototype included with your tooling quote.

Using a 3D printed prototype, you can quickly and easily visualize toolpaths to determine exactly which tools are right for the job.

Improved Workholding Solutions

Beyond helping you determine the cutting tools you need to machine your parts with precision, you can use these 3D printed prototypes to accurately determine your workholding requirements. This will allow you to get a head start on production planning, machine parts with fewer setups, reduce machine time, and lower overall manufacturing costs.

Additionally, if you need to manufacture custom 3D printed workholding, such as 3D printed fixtures or jigs, we can leverage our industrial 3D printing expertise to produce the workholding solutions you require quickly and affordably.

Leveraging 3D Printed Prototypes to Manufacture Precision Machined Parts

Using a 3D printed prototype is an effective way of selecting the proper cutting tools and workholding solutions for your CNC machining project. Not only do 3D printed prototypes provide greater accuracy than solely relying on 2D drawings, but they’re faster and more cost-effective to produce than machined prototypes. This means that you can streamline pre-production planning and move from design to manufacturing efficiently, knowing that you have the right cutting tools and workholding solutions for the job.

Whether you need to manufacture 3D printed prototypes or leverage our 3D printing technologies for volume production of end-use parts, simply upload your part files to our portal and request a quote today.

And if you’re looking for the highest-quality precision cutting tools for CNC machining, reach out to the specialists at MSC. Together, their wide selection of metalworking tools and our 3D printed prototypes can help you deliver accuracy with efficiency on your next machining project.