Originally Posted by maddog34

there's no other way to accurately produce the teeth than milling them.

7075 aluminum alloy is a popular bicycle frame material.
Welded aluminum is "heat treated" to reduce embrittlement from welding procedures... that treatment is called Annealing.

7075 is Heat treated during it's bulk manufacturing stage... .. "T5" is the most common procedure.. it gets rid of the garbage, and then aligns the grain structures.
"7075 T5 is an aluminum alloy recognized for its impressive strength and excellent corrosion resistance. However, it is through heat treatment that this alloy attains its full potential. The T5 temper involves a two-step process: solution heat treatment and artificial aging. During solution heat treatment, the alloy is heated to a specific temperature and held there for a predetermined time to dissolve any precipitates. This homogenizes the alloy and prepares it for the next step. The artificial aging process follows, during which the alloy is aged at a lower temperature for a specific duration. This allows the formation of fine, evenly distributed precipitates, enhancing the material’s mechanical properties significantly."

the T6 procedure is very similar.
there are other methods that can be used... "SOA" (treat + shot peening) work hardens the surfaces.
Anodizing also hardens the surfaces, but not as well as shot peening.,

Ebay has a Sugino 54T ring up for sale right now... they are known to outlast bikes And riders. @ $30, shipped, IIRC
Search: "Sugino 54T 110BCD" and see if it's still up.
i found EIGHT pages of various 54t chain rings, 110BCD...