Deciding on a tool

[TomG]

First of all, you should always buy end cutting end mills. One that only side cuts is kind of a waste because they cost pretty much the same. If you have a rigid machine, pretty much any size end mill will do. If your mill is light duty like a bench mill, choose an end mill twice the diameter of the cut you are making (1/2" in this case). That will reduce the tendency of the end mill to pull the work into it.

Here is the procedure I would use:

1) Touch the top of the work and zero the Z axis.
2) Crank the table up .240".
3) Touch the side of the work and zero the Y axis.
4) Move the end mill in .240" and take a cut. Climb mill if you are using a rigid mill, otherwise take the backlash out of the screw, lock the table and take a conventional cut.
5) Move the table up to .250" and in to .250" and take a finish climb cut.
6) Flip your part around and do it again.

If unsure, you may want to check the dimension of the part before taking a finish cut.

As you can see, there are many different ways to accomplish the same thing in machining. How you do it depends on your experience, and the type of machinery you are using. There is no one right way to do it.

Tom