Evidence of ductile fracture leading to material separation has been reported recently in ductile metal cutting [S. Subbiah, S.N. Melkote, ASME J. Manuf. Sci. Eng. 28(3) (2006)]. This paper investigates the effect of finite edge radius on such ductile fracture. The basic question of whether such ductile fracture occurs in the presence of a finite edge radius is explored by performing a series of experiments with inserts of different edge radii at various uncut chip thickness values ranging from 15 to 105 μm. Chip-roots are obtained in these experiments using a quick-stop device and examined in a scanning electron microscope. Clear evidence of material separation is seen at the interface zone between the chip and machined surface even when the edge radius is large compared to the uncut chip thickness. Failure is seen to occur at the upper, middle, and/or the lower edges of the interface zone. Based on these observations, a hypothesis is presented for the events leading to the occurrence of this failure when cutting with an edge radius tool. Finite element simulations are performed to study the nature of stress state ahead of the tool edge with and without edge radius. Hydrostatic stress is seen to be tensile in front of the tool and hence favors the occurrence of ductile fracture leading to material separation. The stress components are, however lower than those seen with a sharp tool. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.