Paragon Forming & Design of North
Tonawanda. N.Y., is a custom woodworking and millwork operation.
Paragon made a cost comparison for a 1/2 inch down-shear
bit. Initial cost of the diamond-coated tool was $130, compared
to $60 for the carbide tool. But the diamond-coated tool produced
4,000 lineal feet of cutting. The carbide tool needed sharpening
after 600 lineal feet.
Paragon estimated that sharpening the solid-carbide tool five times
cost $75 for the actual sharpenings, plus an additional $5O in lost
time from changing and recalibrating the machine (10 minutes lost
per change). With these costs figured in, the total cost of the
solid carbide tool was $185, and the total lineal footage produced
by the carbide tool was still only 3,000 feet. The solid-carbide
tool therefore cost $0.061 per foot, while the diamond coated tool
cost only $0.033.