Miniature general purpose carbide ball end mills are intended for milling a wide variety of common materials but are not suitable for milling hard materials like titanium or gummy materials like aluminum. Miniature ball end mills have a small diameter and provide high precision and control over material removal during detailed milling applications such as dental milling or small-electronics manufacturing. Carbide end mills provide excellent wear resistance and heat resistance, and they are harder than high-speed steel or cobalt steel end mills. Ball end mills have a rounded nose that creates a round-bottomed groove in milling tasks. Also known as ball-nose end mills, they are rotated against a workpiece to make round-bottomed slots and pockets or mill complex shapes without sharp corners.