Shapers

the long version

The processes done by manual metal shapers when this book was first published have long been overtaken by high-speed milling machines in the first world, therefore most large machines in the United States have gone for scrap. Across the globe, other countries still make shapers, and small job shops still use shapers to advantage, utilizing inexpensive cutting bits to perform in the place of expensive high speed cutters in smoothing, keyway and gear cutting operations. Though shunned by modern practices, the superior finish of a shaped surface combined with the difference in tooling cost means shapers still have a place in many small machine shops.