Carbide is more expensive per unit thanother typical tool materials, and it is more brittle, making it susceptible tochipping and breaking. To offset these problems, the carbide cutting tip itselfis often in the form of a small insert for a larger tipped tool whose shank ismade of another material, usually carbon tool steel. This gives the benefit ofusing carbide at the cutting interface without the high cost and brittleness ofmaking the entire tool out of carbide. Most modern face mills use carbide inserts,as well as many lathe tools and endmills. In recent decades, though,solid-carbide endmills have also become more commonly used, wherever theapplication's characteristics make the pros (such as shorter cycle times)outweigh the cons