A single-sided three-way indexable milling insert for 90 shoulder milling operations, includes a positive basic shape, a rake surface, a peripheral surface including side abutment surfaces, a base bearing surface and a screw hole connecting the rake and base bearing surfaces. The insert has three main cutting edges which lie along an imaginary equilateral triangle. A material volume V.sub.F of the cutting insert and a void volume V.sub.S of the insert's screw hole fulfill the condition V.sub.S/V.sub.F0.30.

An indexable milling or drilling insert having a 180-degree rotational symmetry about each of the first, second and third axes (X, Y, Z) of a three-dimensional euclidean space. The insert has opposite first and second main surfaces and a peripheral surface extending therebetween. Each main surface has a main abutment surface and at least two rake surfaces. The insert has a through clamping bore which extends along the third axis and opens out to the main surfaces. The peripheral surface has two opposite front surfaces connected to two opposite side surfaces. Each front surface has a pair of outward abutment surfaces and each side surface has a pair of at least partially planar inward abutment surfaces. Each pair of outward abutment surfaces converge outwardly away from the third axis and each pair of inward abutment surfaces converge inwardly towards the third axis.

A virtual plane obtained by a locus when a tangent line, which passes through a tool distal end edge, of a virtual circle formed when a tool distal end edge of a cutting edge is rotated in a tool circumferential direction is moved parallel to a tool axial line is a reference plane, an angle (ARt) at which a cross line of the reference plane and the cutting edge virtual plane, is inclined with respect to the tool axial line projected onto the reference plane, is in a range of 30 degrees to 60 degrees, an angle (RR) at which a cutting edge tangent line which passes through the tool distal end edge and extends outward in a tool radial direction, is inclined with respect to a predetermined tool radial direction, which passes through the tool distal end edge, is in a range of 30 degrees to 75 degrees.

An indexable cutting insert has opposing upper and lower end surfaces, and a peripheral surface including three side surfaces circumferentially alternating with three corner surfaces. The three side surfaces define an imaginary triangle and an imaginary hexagon. Each corner surface intersects the upper end surface to form an upper corner peripheral edge having a primary cutting edge. In a top view, each triangle side traverses two upper corner peripheral edges, imaginary lines tangential to the end points of each primary cutting edge are either collinear or form an obtuse angle greater than 175 degrees, each primary cutting edge has a primary length greater than half the hexagon side length, and at least one triangle side traverses each primary cutting edge. The insert is removably secured in a rotary cutting tool such that one of the upper corner peripheral edges contains an axially forwardmost point of the insert's upper peripheral edge.

A positioning tool is configured for retaining an undersized, bore-less indexable cutting insert. The cutting insert may have a triangular or trigonal shape. The positioning tool has an outwardly facing insert retaining surface which has an elongated shape which corresponds to a shape of a side of the undersized cutting insert. The positioning tool is configured to retain the cutting insert using magnetic force, electrostatic force and/or adhesive force. A milling kit may include such a positioning tool, along with one or more such undersized cutting inserts. The milling kit may optionally also include a milling tool having one or more insert pockets configured to accommodate such cutting inserts, and may further optionally include one or more clamping screws configured to clampingly and externally secure such inserts in the pocket without passing through the inserts.

An undersized indexable cutting insert being devoid of a through bore and has exactly three main cutting edges. The cutting insert has an inscribed circle which tangentially contacts only and all main cutting edges, and has an inscribed circle diameter of under 3.8 millimeters.

A cutting tool has a tool body having at least one pocket, at least one cutting insert releasably fixed to the pocket and a fastening device for securing the insert in the pocket. The pocket has a raised portion) with a flat upper support face arranged to be received in a recess of the insert and support the insert by receiving a bottom surface of the recess bearing on the support face. A projecting member of the raised portion has delimiting walls designed to bear against border walls of the recess of an insert for establishing mutual contact therewith and prevent rotation of the insert in the pocket by receiving a rotational moment acting on the insert in an active chip-removing state of the tool.

A toolholder includes a bottom abutment surface, a projection extending upwardly from the bottom abutment surface, the projection including an internally threaded opening, having a central axis that is offset from a central axis of the projection in a first direction, and a clamping screw having external threads for mating with threads of the internally threaded opening and a head having a bottom clamping surface shaped as a truncated cone for contacting an insert clamping surface and urging an insert substantially in a first direction when the clamping screw is tightened relative to the toolholder and the insert. The toolholder also includes at least one abutment member extending from a side wall of the projection in a radial direction, each abutment member having an abutment point, at least which is closer to the central axis of the projection than to the central axis of the internally threaded opening.

A cutting tool includes a cutting insert having an anti-rotation stopping indent formed in a transition between a bottom surface and a side surface thereof and includes a first stop surface. The insert seat has at least one anti-rotation stop, which protrudes with respect to a side wall of the insert seat and includes a second stop surface. The anti-rotation stop is arranged to inhibit rotation of the cutting insert in the insert seat by contact between the first and second stop surfaces. The second stop surface is completely located within the anti-rotation stopping indent when the cutting insert is mounted. As seen in a section perpendicular to a common central axis, an angle of less than 180? is formed between a tangent to the second stop surface and a tangent to the first duct at a transition between the two.

A milling tool includes an internal indexing mechanism arranged to displace an indexable cutting insert between an inner supported position and an outer indexing position. The indexable cutting insert has a multi-sided shape as seen in the direction of an insert centre axis and side support surfaces are included in the sides of the multi-sided indexable cutting insert. The internal indexing mechanism is arranged to provide a rectilinear movement along the shaft centre axis, between the inner supported position and the outer indexing position, wherein the indexable cutting insert is free to turn in both directions around the insert centre axis in the outer indexing position. An external indexing device for the milling tool and an indexing system is also provided. A disc member is configured with an annular geometry arranged to engage one of the side support surfaces and turn the indexable cutting insert toward the next index position.