What is the correct end mill and speeds and feeds for Dibond or MaxMetal?

MaxMetal/Dibond is a very common material used in the sign world.  It is basically two thin pre-painted sheets of 0.012″ aluminum with a solid polyethylene black core.  Some, as in our sample video, come as brushed aluminum or in a brass color which have the look and durability of aluminum without the price.  The material is very easy to cut on a CNC.

The best settings to cut MaxMetal/Dibond on a STEPCRAFT D-Series CNC System are:

End Mill/Cutting Tool: Amana 51411 1/4″ shank, 1/8″ Cutting Diameter
Feed Rate: 33 mm/sec
Pass Depth: 0.0625″
RPM: 16,000
Ramp: 1″ smooth

NOTE: Be careful NOT to have double-sided tape under the cutting path or it can gum up the end mill and cause melting on the plastic core and/or affect the finish quality of the final cut on the metal.

The Video below shows an example of cutting this material with the above settings on a STEPCRAFT D.840 with an MM-1000 Spindle.