Choose high speed steel or cobalt cutting tools for shorter production runs in non-ferrous materials and applications where machining conditions restrict the use of harder, more brittle substrates. These tools exhibit lower wear resistance and notably less heat resistance than carbide cutting tools. The maximum working hardness of high speed steel is 65 HRC.

These types of saws, drills and other cutters are not recommended for applications involving hard or abrasive materials, or high cutting speeds