I'm considering building a CNC Machine center using the R8 spindle and mount off my X2D from Little Machine Shop but replacing the tiny motor with a 2.2 kw VFD spindle as the drive motor with the stock gearing. I'm wanting to increase feeds and speeds and horsepower without going too fast for the material. I don't trust the ER-20 collet to hold the drive gear without slipping, though. Has anyone used one of these as a drive motor? How would I go about this?
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You should check out the weight of a 2.2 kw spindle, which I believe is 12 lbs. I recall people needing to put springs on the base Sherline models to help the Z axis stepper rise.
Steve.
the limit is almost always the machine, not the spindle hp.
12 pound.. "allegedly" 2.2kw motor at 24000 rpm.. no the plastic gears can't handle that! (maybe with oil mist lubrication they could)
and yes the er-20 collet is plenty capable of handling the torque. if its good for a half inch endmill, it can handle a drive belt or a plastic gear. you'll blow the gear up long before the collet slips on the drive shaft.
It's hard to find any belts, pulleys or gears rated for much over 10k RPM. I think that's the main reason this isn't something that's commonly done.