Avid cnc 5X10 -> 5hp spindle upgrade worth it?

[DAAD]

Hello,

My first post here.
Something about myself:
I'm running a small one man cabinet shop, with a lot of output.
To do this i make use of other self employed people.
If i have a big cabinet run, i provide the drawings to a collegue and that makes them on his pro grade morbidelli cnc.
I will keep it this way, big cnc cabinet projects -> colleague. But smaller projects / special ones i would like to produce myself.
Due to the limited space in my shop, i'm looking to put up an avid cnc 5X10 build and not a more pro machine.
Begin this year i dabbled into cnc with a shapeoko xxl and it served me well, but the machine is way to small and cumbersome to setup.

Because i would handle sheet goods mostly (mdf plywood/melamine:laminate 18mm thickness) i'm hesitant if the 2.2 kw router will be sufficient.
I have 3phase 220 in my shop so i would like to upgrade the spindle to a 4 or 5 hp model.

So here is my question:
1)Will i benefit from this upgrade in routing speed/ cutting depth or will the machine be the limit in this configuration and do i stick with the 2.2 P&P option?
2)Would a 15kg spindle weight be a problem on the machine?
3)Would 18000 RPM be sufficient foor woodworking or should i look for a 24000rpm motor

Thanks in advance,

DAAD

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[ger21]

1) I'd go with a 3-4KW spindle, as long as you get the Nema 34 motors.
2) You'd need to ask Avid about that. I would think it would be a problem, but you may find the Z axis will drop with the power off. SO you would probable need to add springs or something to counterbalance it,
3) 18,000 rpm is fine. The 15HP spindle on our Morbidelli is only 18,000, and we cut 5x faster than you will on the Avid.

[DAAD]

Thanks for your valuable input!
How hard will it be to wire up a spindle/vfd myself to the machine? If i look at the torque curve the 3 to 4 kw spindles make a lot of difference over the P&P setup.
Looks like it's worth the trouble.

[andrewwong2000]

I run servos with a 3.5kw spindle on mine.

Wiring was more complicated for the servos but the vfd and spindle is pretty straightforward - just bigger wire. Make sure you get the super flexible drag chain rated cable... and check how good your 3 phase power supply is ..

3.5kw lets me 1/2” slot a 1/4” deep at 400ipm... that’s a lot of slot in one pass.. but I’m not doing production speed stuff.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MGHood]

I run a CNCRP 48x96 and have a 5.5kw Colombo spindle and Clearpath servos and don't have any problems with the Z axis dropping down. The biggest thing someone notices is how quiet the spindle is compared to other brands. My spindle has an electric fan instead of a shaft mounted one. I do have a spare Colombo spindle that has a shaft mounted fan and the difference is unbelievably louder.. I bought the 7 1/5hp model because it was only $100.00 more than a 5hp model. I do not have three phase and run it on a Hatachi 11kw inverter still no problems. The CNCRP handles the extra power very well.
MGHood

[DAAD]

Late to the party but thanks for the info!

Bought the avid cnc and should arrive soon.
At the moment i will set it up with a dual z axis. One to run with the avid cnc p&p spindle and one for a future 5hp spindle.

DAAD

[DAAD]

@ MGHood & andrewwong,

Can you tell me the reference of the used servos?

Many thanks!