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The process of milling is a vital part of the engineer's, and the model engineer's, armoury. Stan Bray's detailed book on this important subject covers different types of milling machine and describes milling techniques with the aid of photographs and specially prepared drawings. Including much advise and warnings of potential pitfalls, this book is the perfect companion for the amateur engineer who wishes to become better acquainted with this vital skill.

Milling is the process of cutting away material - usually, but not exclusively, metal - by feeding a piece of work past a rotating cutter. The cutter is able to move vertically in its mounting in the milling machine, but all other adjustments are made by changing the position of the machine table holding the work. The cutting action of the milling cutter's teeth provides a fast method of machining, and the machined surface may be flat, angular or curved. The surface may also be milled to any combination of shapes.

Although in large industrial concerns the milling machine has largely been superseded by the use of computer-controlled machining centres, the skilled milling-machine operator is still in great demand for smaller engineering establishments, and the process of milling is a vital part of the engineer's, and the model engineer's, armoury. But to operate a machine without any knowledge of the techniques involved is a recipe for disaster: not only will work and tools quickly become damaged and spoiled but there is also an element of personal danger to the machinist.

However, it is quite possible to teach oneself to become a competent operator without the extended apprenticeship of years gone by, and in these pages the techniques required are explained in detail. The book covers in considerable detail everything from buying and setting up a machine, through the basics of operating it, to more advanced operations that at one time would have been considered the province of the highly skilled professional milling-machine operator. It also covers the necessary aspects of safety. It is therefore suitable both for the person to whom the use of a milling machine is a mystery and for the more advanced operator, and in addition the author has made every possible attempt to bring the subject into the modern age by describing the use of up-to-date tooling and equipment.

FOR most of his life Stan Bray has had his own workshop, and during that time has made many tools, models and clocks. Though he left the engineering industry after completing an apprenticeship, the interest in metalworking remained and he continued to study at college for further qualifications. For a period he taught metalworking in schools, but he left to become involved in editing and writing. He is the founder and former editor of the magazine Model Engineers' Workshop, former editor of Engineering in Miniature and associate editor of Model Engineer. He has regularly entered models for display and competitions at exhibitions in Britain and in Europe. He has written twelve previous books on engineering and associated subjects, and is a regular contributor to Model Engineer with a series of articles entitled 'Bray's Bench'. In recent years Stan has developed an interest in computers and their application in engineering.

Code No. 011194, ISBN 9781847973023