Over the years, manufacturers and milling contractors have jointly developed specialized milling methods for many different applications. The most commonly used techniques are introduced below.
Standard milling
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Fine milling
The adjacent photograph shows a fine milling drum with a milling width of 2 m and a tool spacing of 5 mm.
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Slot cutting
Slot cutting is a special application to produce narrow cuts in asphalt pavements. The slots can be up to 10 cm deep at widths of 1.5 cm to 2.0 cm, and up to 30 cm deep at widths between 4 cm and 10 cm.
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Milling tie-ins
Wedged tie-ins are produced for butt connections or tie-ins to existing, intact pavement surfaces. Small milling machines are generally used for this purpose. This method allows solid compaction for the new pavement and produces a gentle transition from the existing pavement to the new, overlaid road section or a grade transition to existing fixtures respectively. Tie-ins produced with this method constitute a lasting repair and offer high riding quality.
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Milling profiles
A milling drum profiled on one or both sides is used for milling profiles. This method is particularly suitable for the removal of road markings or for the repair of cracks. These milling drums normally can mill to a depth of approximately 10 cm. |
The removal of asphalt pavements by milling off individual layers or the entire
pavement structure is referred to as standard milling. With standard milling,
the tool spacing - meaning the interval between one cutting tool tip and the
next on the milling drum - is approximately 15 mm. Subject to the type of
machine used, milling widths range between 30 cm and 4.30 m.
Possible milling depths range from a few millimetres to up to 35 cm.
Traffic areas, for example, are fine milled for the purpose of
restoring the skid resistance, the evenness or the slope of the pavement
surface. As a rule, no more than a few millimetres of the surfacing, 4 cm at the
most, are removed. 
Special fine milling drums with a tool spacing of maximum 8 mm are used
for fine milling. Depending upon the demands placed on the texture of the fine
milled pavement, the tool spacing may be even less (e.g. 5 mm). Fine milling
drums with working widths between 35 cm and 2.20 m are available in the market
for use in series machines.