Quote:
Originally Posted by Chak
I keep hearing on CD that 6063 is awful for FRC and just bad in every way. So why is it so common, and why does it exist at all? Is there someplace where 6063 aluminum is a good choice?
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The fundamental pieces of the most successful subsystem on our 2015 robot was manually-milled from 6063 2x1x0.125 tubing. The problem is that it took an expert mentor & student combo an entire Saturday for just the two ~68" rails. The bit likes to heat up, which means we slow down and add extra cutting fluid via squeeze bottle & paint brush (we use Tap Magic, cinnamon flavor).
6063 isn't all doom-and-gloom. We've been able to make any precision piece we want with 6063. It's just slow. And 1/2 the price in some cases. Since it can gum up a bit when going too fast, I have reservations about CNC'ing 6063 - but it's probably doable. It also welds just fine - our frames have been 6063 since 2013 and have come back 99% fine each year.