Chip Chad

Chip Chad: Feeds and Speeds Calculator for CNC, Router, and Mill

Chip Chad keeps machine, material, cutter, and engagement tied together so you can start with a practical baseline and tune without rebuilding the setup by hand. Open the live calculator when you are setting up a cut and want the numbers to stay connected as you change them.

Open live calculator

What the calculator keeps linked

Chip Chad keeps machine, material, cutter, and engagement tied together so you can start with a practical baseline and tune without rebuilding the setup by hand.

  • Start with the machine, work material, and operation.
  • Adjust feeds, speeds, chip load, WOC, and DOC together.
  • Check deflection and constraint status before you run the cut.

When to use it

Open the live calculator when you are setting up a cut and want the numbers to stay connected as you change them.

  • Build a first pass for a new cut without hand-calculating every field.
  • Compare feeds, speeds, chip load, and engagement in one place.
  • Use the focused pages first if you only need chip load or surface speed.

From the shop notes

What's New in Chip Chad — April 2026

Version 0.3.0 brings custom machine profiles, 30+ new materials, tool life and deflection estimates, smarter engagement limits, and six shop-note articles.

2026-04 · 5 min read

Getting Better Surface Finishes on a CNC Mill

Stepover, feed per tooth, and the four fixes to try in order before blaming the machine.

2026-04 · 5 min read

Understanding Chip Load — The Most Important Number You're Ignoring

Feed rate lies to you. Chip load is what the tool actually experiences, and it's the one number that ties everything together.

2026-04 · 5 min read
All articles →