Aerospace Bracket CNC Machining
An aerospace-type bracket is a multi-face fitting whose holes have to pick up two structures at once. The print looks like a gusset until you try to hold true position from a sloped face back to a base. If those holes walk, the assembly pulls whatever it is bolted to.
We machine to the drawing. This page does not claim airframe certification, AS9100, or flight hardware. 6061-T6 is the general bracket. 7075-T6 shows up when the load is higher. Titanium is a different quote.
This page is how we approach the part: lock the datum scheme across both mounting faces, finish the pattern after roughing, use 3+2 unless a blend will not index. Drawings and production photos stay in the shop.
The pattern is the job
Outside profile rarely scrapes the assembly. The pattern does. True position from face A to the holes in face B is the feature that fails at install — not a chain of plus-or-minus dimensions if you care about the mate.
We mark the datum scheme, the pattern, edge distance, and wall thickness next to lightening pockets. If the 2D is missing, we quote a general bracket and hold the pattern until GD&T lands.
3+2 or simultaneous 5-axis
Most of these parts want 3+2: flat faces at more than one angle, holes through those faces. Simultaneous 5-axis is for blends and undercuts an index cannot reach.
We run this on two 5-axis centers, 650 × 550 × 450 mm. Capacity is rarely the story. Keeping both patterns in one coordinate system — or probing before the second finish — is.
A flat plate with two hole patterns does not get more accurate because the head tilts continuously.
Blank
First lots: plate or bar. Repeat: plate until yearly quantity is real. An aluminum forging pays when the pockets are heavy and the envelope is frozen. We do not cast a new aerospace-type bracket on the first order.
7075 needs the temper on the cert. If the blank is not already T6, heat treat belongs on the router before finish holes.
How the bracket is cut
Square the base. Probe datums after roughing, before finish holes. Thermal drift on a long pocketing cycle is how a pattern walks.
Rough pockets and the outside. Leave stock on hole patterns that carry position. Index for the second face. Finish holes last.
Deburr mate edges. A burr on a pad shows up as a gap, not on the CMM.
Thin webs in 7075 chatter when the cut is heavier than the section. Shorter tool or a smaller axial depth. If the print does not give enough stiffness for the tolerance it asks, we raise it with the customer. We do not add a rib on our own.
What we measure first
The pattern to the drawing datums. Then edge distance and threads. Cosmetics last. A pretty pocket with a walked hole pattern is still a failed bracket.
CMM on first article when the drawing, PO or inspection plan asks for it.
First lot and a repeating lot
| Prototype / small lot | Repeating lot | |
| Blank | 6061 or 7075 plate or bar | Plate or forging if qty is steady |
| Process | 3+2 first; 5-axis only if the surface needs it | Same, dedicated fixture and probe |
| Holes | Finish after rough; probe datums | First-article CMM + sample pattern |
| Lead time | About 15 working days after stock and the process are agreed | Set by quantity and finish |
Fifteen working days is a planning reference.
Problems we look for before the crate leaves
Holes related across two faces go out after a flip
Finish both patterns in one clamp, or probe before the second finish pass.
The RFQ puts tight true position on every hole including clamp holes
We ask which pattern actually mates.
The RFQ says 5-axis on a flat plate
We quote 3+2.
Why there are no customer photos on this page
Brackets are customer-specific. We do not publish drawings or production photos without permission. We also do not put a flight-hardware mark on a page that is only a machining process.
What to send for a quote
STEP and 2D with datums. Alloy and temper. Finish. Quantity. CMM or FAI if required.
No minimum order.
Related: Aerospace CNC Machining · 5-Axis CNC Machining Services
FAQ
Are these certified aerospace parts?
We machine to the print you send. This page is not an AS9100 or flight-hardware claim.
Do you machine 7075 and titanium?
7075 routinely. Titanium is quoted separately — it is not the same cycle as aluminum.
Does every bracket need simultaneous 5-axis?
No. 3+2 covers most multi-face hole patterns.