A spiral-toothed cutting tool with a multiplicity of quadrilateral cutting inserts which are arranged in spiral rows in which the cutting edge of each insert is arranged in the peripheral direction at a distance from the seat of the next adjacent insert, and the cutting edge overlaps in the axial direction with the respective cutting edge of the next insert, and the radially running edges of each insert overlap with the radially extending edges of the respectively adjacent inserts, so that the cutting edges of all the inserts together form a continuous and uninterrupted cutting line with a stepped pattern.
