Interesting thread, and I’m glad someone else mentioned this. The Makita that was on my 1F when I sold it always ran nice & cool, never any heat issues. The unit on that was a “refurbished” router I got in 2021. The new Makita I bought for my replacement machine ran quite hot, with the spindle nut becoming so hot you couldn’t even touch it. I returned that unit after about a month, and got another one (from Home Depot). The 2nd one was exactly the same, running very hot. I think it was the lower spindle bearings, because I can’t figure out where else that much heat would reach the spindle nut. Fed up with that, I returned that one and ended up getting a Bauer from Harbor Freight for half the price of the Makita. First run it was also running somewhat hot. But the up side is that at least it came with a spare set of brushes, and if and when it does die, it was half the price of the Makita.
I should add that none of my cuts were pushing the router at all, just little 1/8" straight or V bits, mostly running on ‘1’.
It sounds like it’s really hit-or-miss. Some literally catch fire; I saw the blue flames inside mine and shut it down just in time. I had a pair and made several trips to the Makita warranty facility until they turned me away for “improper use case that voids warranty.” And then some run for 10 hours straight with no issue.
One thing is for sure: I wouldn’t completely depend on the Makita in a business environment where money or reputation was on the line. Also, the reduced noise of a quality spindle was something that I had heard about but the reality was even better than I imagined.
I am currently running a Jet 1-1/2hp dust collection system with a 4" hose running to a dust boot. I certainly have plenty of airflow around the router.
I have made sure to be very conservative with the feeds & speeds. My woodworking past taught me early on with routers that many small passes made for better & safer results than aggressive hogging. I have a Jet 1-1/2hp dust collection system with a 4" hose running to a dust boot ensuring good air flow.
Good other than using a big bit or cutting to deep, I don’t understand why it’s getting hot. Unless you just got unlucky with the router’s. I do believe the spindle is the way to go. I am currently putting 10% of every project aside, so I can afford one also. Sorry I couldn’t help more. Good luck.
P.S. did you catch the info on the Bauer router at Harbor Freight?
I started out with a cheap Von Haus router from amazon. after around 3 days I couldn’t stand the noise anymore, I then fitted my trust Dewalt router which is a fair bit quieter and happily runs for 4 + hours at a time when fitted in a small table for rounding over edges on projects. After a short time the noise and the need to use the Dewalt for other things sent me down the spindle route.
A 63mm Hunyang 1.5kw was purchased, lots of YouTube was watched. The install and set up was fairly easy but high quality fittings were used screened cable proper grounding deionised water top quality automotive coolant a flow indicator a temp indicator, I haven’t as yet linked the spindle to the Onefinity controller as without a tool changer I cant see the point.
The runout is far better than required for working on wood the collets give access to a wider range of cutters and even the collet nut is balanced.
The machine has to earn its money and some days will run for 10 hours profile cutting items in solid Oak using 1/4 or 1/8 spiral bits and the temperature of the spindle, collet, coolant never really rises much above the ambient temperature, I am by no means conservative on my feeds and speeds as a lot of my work is batch work and cycle time is important only last week the machine produced 1400 items profile cut from 1/4 oak.
A further benefit is that you can adjust the spindle speed on the fly changes of 100 rpm make a big difference to chip loading on the cutter and with the massive frustration of not being able to alter the feeds on the Onefinity on the fly is a big help in achieving a balance between finish, time and noise.
If any part of my spindle set up fell over i would replace like for like without hesitation.
As some others have said in the grand cost of setting up a CNC even for hobby use a basic spindle setup isn’t a luxury item.
Totally agree. To make things simple, wish 1F would offer a spindle package for their machine and support it. Many other manufacturers do. There are other hidden costs like proper electrical circuits that most wouldn’t have available in their home or shop. I think 1F “dumbed it down” for price point and ease of setup practically anywhere. Once you have your feet wet, you quickly realize all the advantages a spindle kit has to offer! Appreciate your insight, you read my mind.
Yes, it’s been said many times before; if only 1F would step up and offer a spindle package it’d be a large plus for their customers. I just installed a spindle and it (and the Z-20) was a piece of cake. It costs a little more than going building/integrating it yourself but it was reasonable and there is enough learning curve already. And the reduced noise is so nice. A hand-held trim router on a beefy CNC is just not real solution. That being said, somebody posted a lion head carved shield on the “Post up them projects” thread and it was like 11 hours; all on the Makita…
@CSM Darren, changing the RPM on the fly (instead of the feed rate) isn’t a bad work around. Is this possible on all VFDs, I wonder? Would one change the G-code midflight or is it a manual thing? I guess the idea would be to push it a little and if it starts to chatter just up the RPM?
Jim
Not sure if its possible on all VFD’s. My VFD has a digital display which can be programmed to show various information, mine is set for RPM. My VFD has a rotary knob that is rotated to increase or decrease the RPM, I’m not sure if rpm can be changed on the fly via G-code, i have the break out board to link to the VFD but as yet haven’t made use of it
My RPM is usually set at 18k I tend to adjust it up or down by sight and ear not looking at the display. I have a max of 19.5k RPM set in the VFD
Hope this helps
D
The idea that these things literally catch fire should be taken seriously. After seeing the blue flame inside one of my pair I realized I could never leave it unattended again. Your shop (and what ever structure is attached) burning down is a possibility even if you feel it’s a remote one. And when you’re doing these hours long carve it’s hard to always be next to the machine.
I can’t imagine saying to the fire department and my spouse “Well, to be honest, some folks on the 1F forum actually told me this might happen and I can’t blame Makita because they clearly indicate that they didn’t make the router to be used this way.”
Hey Glenn,
I’ve been running a Bauer that looks like the Makita for 8 months now with zero problems. I got it at Harbor Freight for $79.00. I think it’s worth looking into.
I just purchased a router from Carbide 3D for $80. It is designed to work on a CNC. I just installed it so I don’t have experience with it yet. It comes with a 12 ft cord, 2 collets (1/4 and 1/6) and 2 brushes.
They do the job. I just got mine a couple days ago and paid $200.00 Canadian plus $41.00 customs. Still worth that as I have a bunch of ER11 collets and bits from my old General CNC.
A trim router that’s made for a CNC looks/sounds like a good solution. Cheaper than a spindle and fits right into the Z-16 mount. I’m not sure that 1F’s “official support” for the Makita that you’d theoretically lose would set you back that much. When all is said and done, they must realize that their experienced customers need an alternative spindle/router.
That being said, I love my spindle. The VFD keeps the RPM steady, much more powerful, it turns off after the cut, the ER20 collet keeps the bits not just tighter but the spin seems much more centered and accurate (and the 1/2" shank end mills are a plus), it’s much quieter, etc.
There is another thread in this forum that broaches the question as to why people bought their CNC. I take from reading that thread that most buyers bought into a hobby.
I want to learn how to carve signs. I don’t want to have to change circuits in my house. I bought in a Onefinity and set it up and plugged everything in and once I got past the over/under messages at the beginning I have had a trouble free system.
FYI
I read this post and pulled out my new (Jan/23)Makita router and ran it for about 5 min on multiple speeds just sitting on my bench with no load and no bit in it; the chuck was so hot it could not be touched. Gonna try and send back to Makita under warranty.
It sounds like it’s the lower bearing that’s the issue. Ball bearings have different clearances depending on what they are going to be used for. If the clearance is too tight the bearing will heat up, expand, and not spin freely. It’s likely that Makita is using multiple brands of bearings, or maybe they just changed brands. It wouldn’t surprise me if they are made in China. It’s most likely why the hottest part is the spindle nut as it’s very close to the bearing. If I had a Makita that ran hot I think I would replace the bearing with a good name brand one with a C3 clearance and see if that help before doing damage to the windings.
I purchased a makita router. I used it once and the second time the controller wasn’t working anymore and the speed was irregular plus not controllable. I went with another router since a new controller was about the same price as this cheap router (https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B09VTDC8ZS/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1)
which as of two months is running perfectly. Even got it stuck a few times when I was away from the machine and no problems there. No idea why Makita is recommended since it doesn’t seem to hold up as well as any other router.
I just received a Makita router from Amazon. It was a refurbished unit. I tested it with no load on 3 for about 25 seconds and the bit nut was very hot. Almost too hot to touch. I’m going to return it and try again for a new one.
