Material Classifications

Antares cutters are manufactured in a variety of shank diameters and lengths for all types of materials and applications. To meet your engraving needs, we manufacture and sharpen our cutters to exacting specifications. It is very important to use the proper cutter for the material being engraved. Cutters sharpened for soft materials such as plastic will dull quickly if used to engrave harder materials. Conversely, cutters sharpened for metals will not produce optimum results in softer materials. For ordering purposes, please specify which materials you will be engraving.

ACR: Acrylic - Specify if reverse engraving

BAL: Brass, Aluminum, Soft Metals

FLX: Flexible Engraving Stock (Rowmark®, Gravoply®)

PHN: Phenolic (Formica®, Fiberglass®)

SSS: Stainless Steel, Steel, Hard Metals

Standard Cutters (STD)
Our standard tool for engraving plastics and metals. Standard cutting tools produce a cut with a 30° side angle for plastics and a 40° side angle for metals. Standard cutters are available in a variety of tip widths ranging from .005" to the full width of the shank, in .005" increments.

Quarter-Round Cutters (QR)
Cutter with a second split, perpendicular to that of a standard half round tool. Greater chip clearance makes these tools effective for applications such as engraving acrylic and soft materials. Available in tip widths from .005" to the full width of the shank, in .005" increments.

Parallel Cutters (PAR)
Parallel tools produce cuts with straight edges and a flat bottom. The smallest recommended tip size is .060". We recommend that the depth of the cutter not exceed 1-½ of the width. Maximum depth is double the width. When ordering, be sure to specify the depth of the cut required, or material thickness if cutting completely through.

Profiler (PRO)
A profiling tool has a narrow cutting angle and is effective for fine detail engraving and cutting out shapes where a slight bevel is acceptable. The standard angle on a Profiler is 15°. Standard tip widths range from .010" to .060". Larger tip sizes are available.

Cutter-Beveler (CB)
Cuts out and bevels in one operation. A Cutter-Beveler has a parallel cutting edge and a 45° cutting edge for a depth of 1/3 to 1/2 of the material thickness. Beneficial for applications such as cutting out badges (on an engraving machine) or producing discs or odd shaped items which are difficult or impossible to do with a beveling machine.

Ballnose Cutters (BN)
Cutters with radiused tips producing cuts with rounded bottoms instead of flat bottoms. Available as a parallel cutter (straight sides) or a conical cutter (angled sides). Extremely effective for reverse engraving in acrylic or for 3-Dimensional engraving applications. Parallel Ballnose cutters are available from .060" to the full shank diameter. Conical Ballnose cutters are available from .010" to half the shank diameter.

ADA Braille Dot Cutters (BR)
The Americans with Disabilities Act has placed strict regulatory standards on the sign industry. We offer tools for cutting Braille dots and for making Cut-Out Letters.(See right.) The Braille Dot cutter is a tool that routs away the background material and leaves Braille dots with rounded tops.

ADA Cut-Out-Letter (COL)
The Cut-Out Letter tool is a quarter round tool with a 22° cutting angle used to create raised letters and numbers using plastic overlay materials in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Pricing for Cut-Out-Letter cutters is the same as Quarter-Round tools.