Spindle speeds
Using the correct spindle speed for each specific job is important to yield the best results and reliability. It also helps reduce wear on your tooling.
Depending on whether you have an SC0 or SC1 spindle motor, when and how you adjust the spindle speed will also be different.
Choosing the correct spindle speed for your job
There are many different factors that affect your choice of spindle speed, including the cutter you are using, the material, and the feed rate.
Our main article on feeds and speeds is in the Cutters section of the CNC Academy; click here to open it in a new tab.
Setting spindle speed
SC0 spindle motor
The SC0 spindle motor uses manual speed control, so you must adjust the spindle speed prior to loading the spindle and starting the job.
Adjust the spindle speed by turning the dial on the top of the spindle.
A: Speed dial
The spindle speeds correspond to the numbers on the dial as follows:
|
Wheel setting |
Speed (RPM) for 110 V spindle |
Speed (RPM) for 230 V spindle |
|
1 |
10,000 |
4,000 |
|
2 |
13,000 |
8,000 |
|
3 |
16,000 |
12,500 |
|
4 |
19,000 |
16,500 |
|
5 |
21,000 |
20,500 |
|
6 |
25,000 |
25,000 |
Note that the speeds are different depending on whether you are using a 110 V or 230 V spindle motor.
|
|
The job files that you use with SmartBench will still contain spindle speed commands, but these will not change the speed of the spindle during the job. SmartBench will still be able to turn the spindle on and off. |
SC1 Spindle motor
The SC1 spindle motor is controlled via SmartBench, via commands in the job files or using speed adjustment buttons on the Console.
In the job file, the spindle speed command will look something like “M3 S20000” (in this example the spindle speed is set to 20,000 RPM).
The spindle speed can be adjusted in real time during the job using the orange arrows. The green button between the arrows resets the spindle speed to the job file value.
A: Speed adjust buttons.
B: Percentage of original job file speed, and speed reset.
C: Spindle speed, RPM.
Live speed control with 110 V spindle motors
SmartBench’s electronics are set up to work with a 230 V spindle by default.
The Console software does a smart conversion of spindle speed when you load your job file, if you are using a 110 V spindle, to ensure that your job runs smoothly.
With a 230 V spindle, the speed adjustment controls adjust the spindle speed by +/-5%.
However, due to the interface between the software and the electronics, it is not possible to exactly alter the spindle speed by +/-5% for a 110 V spindle. Therefore, if you are using a 110 V spindle, the controls will still adjust the speed up and down, but you should use the monitored spindle speed (C) as your reference.