High-speed steels are the main material for cutting tools especially for producing gear boxes in the automotive industry. Cutting performance of high speed steel depends on their resistance to wear, their toughness and resistance to tempering at operating temperature. In this project, tool-life and wear type of cutting tools made of powder metallurgy high speed steel (PM-HSS) were investigated up to a flank wear width of 0.30 mm in different steels and cutting speeds. Hardness and cutting speed had a significant effect on tool-wear, tool-life and chip formation. More rake face wear was occurred by harder materials because of higher thermomechanical loading .Three indicators were used for representing tool life and to show the relation of cutting speed and hardness with cutting performance. Difference of tool life between the softest and the hardest steels was about two times. By increasing cutting speed in every work-material more number of passes was obtained. The required data were obtained experimentally by a 3-axis milling machine. This test method facilitates simulation of gear hobbing wear type in a less time-consuming way, compared to the other methods which have the same kinematics of real hobbing.