Would you buy this Spindle kit?

Accessories
1

Hey guys!

Im in the process of replacing a bunch of machines after my workshop flooded about 3 weeks ago.

I have no experience with spindles, but I would like to upgrade the Makita router I have on my Journeyman x-50. Im hoping those of you with experience could shed some light on a few things please?

  1. Water-cooled seems to be the way to go if you are working with both timber and metal (aluminium) to avoid getting metal shavings inside the spindle as well as dust potentially being blown around by the fan on an air-cooled spindle.

  2. I was considering the PwnCNC 1.5kw kit, but with shipping to Australia + import duties you are looking at min $1477USD. This kit is nice for the fact that it is ready to go, no additional soldering or anything required. However, I can get this Huanyng kit locally for pretty much HALF the cost at $701USD.

Im assuming this one will require a bit more work to get it going, but I don’t mind soldering wires and so forth if I can get proper instructions. Even better if I can just buy the wiring made up somewhere else! So, does anyone have some thoughts on this particular point?

  1. Would I need to upgrade the standard z-slider on my Journeyman to the z-20 to accommodate this spindle?

I would appreciate any feedback or suggestions if you have any experience going down this path! Thanks in advance!

Josh

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I purchased the PwnCNC air cooled 1.5Kw 80mm kit a few months ago and have been very happy with it.

I just didn’t want to deal with running the coolant lines and dealing with that extra component. However, after a few months of running it, I believe I would choose a water cooled version if I ever have to replace mine in the future. I think they are even more quiet and as you said should eliminate any ingestion of dust.

I purchased before the rush of Christmas gifts and just didn’t want to deal with the days or week(s) it would take me to configure everything. I more than have the skills, but as with many things in life that are less expensive, you can save money if you don’t value your time.

Yes, you can buy just the premade cables from PwnCNC, or there’s a guy on eBay (and YouTube) named Vince – Corvetteguy50 – that makes and sells high quality CNC electronics including cables.

I did not upgrade and still running the default Z-16 slider on my X35 Woodworker. I had to replace the mount to the 80mm version, but this was extremely easy, to the point that it puzzled me why other people reported having so many issues.

Edit: If you use the stock Z-16 slider you need to install the 80mm size mount and spindle in order for the motor to clear the stepper motor. I am not sure if you need to to this on the HD Z-20 mount?

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Thanks very much for the reply!

After doing a bit more digging I reckon a water-cooled spindle is probably the way to go then. I will have a look at the link for cables as well. It would be great if the standard Z-slider will do the job with only an upgrade to the 80mm mount…

Thanks again!

4

I bought the air cooled spindle also and if the water cooled is quieter then it would have to be silent. There is some noise but but it’s so quiet sometimes I need to look at the bit to double check that it’s running. As far a dust being blown I have not noticed hardly any.

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Same here, I run air cooled and would not go with water cooled for the additional system to deal with. The fan that cools the air cooled model, mine is a G Penny actually does not move that much air, it draws from the top and blows downward making me wonder how folks would get chips up in the spindle. The only noise I hear in my shop is the Vacuum, my spindle is very quiet.
As far as setting it up there is a ton of info here and also more on Masso forum site if you go with the Elite which I also encourage anyone buying a 1F to do, it is worth the extra in my opinion.
Pat

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Thanks for that feedback guys! Much appreciated.

As far as brand goes, would it make any real difference what spindle you go with then? I read something somewhere about one particular brand having ceramic bearings or something and another with 4 bearings and then there is the collet size as well. I would like to be able to use 1/2’" end mills as well.

The longest I ever run my current Makita is about 3 hours at a time, so Im pretty sure an air-colled spibndle would be more than capable of doing the same.

The other thing I noticed was that some sites show speed ratings as 8000-24000rpm while others rate them as 6000-24000rpm or even 0-24000rpm. What is the go here if you work with soft metals like Aluminium for example?

Thanks again!