Makita router thermal management

LowRider CNC Troubleshooting
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Hello Lowrider users

I was attempting to cut my work holding table tonight - a very long job in MDF milling the slots for the T slot rails and my Makita router got VERY hot and softened my mounting clamps and the router slid downwards through the print, ruining the job

I have it running at speed 1 for 10k rpm which seems somewhat optimal from a feeds and speeds perspective but I read that the spindle speed determines airflow through the router so speed 1 is minimum cooling

I am curious what others are doing about this? I’m reprinting my mounting brackets and vac hose mount in ASA which should help. Are y’all using higher speeds than 1?

Is there a better spindle option than the makita that stays cooler longer?

Are you limiting your cut time below a certain threshold, using multiple jobs with cooling breaks in between?

Would love to know what strategies are working for you

Cheers,

Ryan

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The thing is: the slower the router turns, the less effective the cooling is.

Maybe turn it up to 3 to 4 and increase feeds and speeds as well. Faster cutting and less heat.

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Or add a supplemental fan blowing on the mount?

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Lowrider 4? Were the first mounts printed using PLA? Able to share pic showing your Vac hose and dust shoe setup (curious if they’re a factor)? Ensurr router housing vents are clean and clear.

Curious if slow feedrate is a factor, and/or if the machine is making dust instead of larger chips, with limited vac air flow, then… I could imagine a combination of factors contributing to heat building up.

LowRider 4 core has better airflow imo than LR3. I’m using PETG mounts, 2-1/2" vac hose and dust shoe. Tuning faster feedrate (that still cuts accurately and precisely) to make larger chips will help shed heat better.

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At the time of failure I was using speed 1 on the Makita, federate of 40mm/sec and cut depth of 6mm

The Makita got really, really hot over a 1 hour cut - like I couldn’t even touch it

Curious what kind of feeds and speeds you’re using for MDF?

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and yes this is an LR4 build - I since reprinted the mounts and dust shoe holder in ASA which seems to be working better

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1800mm/min with a 3mm 1-flute, 6mm DOC. Setting 3 or 4.
The Makita is air cooled, the slower it runs, the less effective the cooling.

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I’ll give this a try and see how it goes - does seem like the Makitas need to be kept on speed 3-4 to really work in a CNC context

Does make me want a spindle with less thermal constraints

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I’ve now got a watercooled spindle, it sounds like a dentist’s drill, incredibly quiet. Can not recommend highly enough. :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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I can see one in my future for sure. Im thinking my upgrade path might go something like:

  1. better dust collection and separation than a shop vac

  2. spindle upgrade

  3. fancier tools that stay sharp longer once I get a real handle on feeds and speeds

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Not needed, get a box with a cyclone in front and you are good to go. For the CNC we explicitly want the velocity of the suction, not the volume. For a planer you’d need the volume but not the velocity. :slight_smile:

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ahh yeah I’ve been looking into 3d printed cyclones - could be a fun thing to try!

my shop vac definitely has enough power when the filter is clean

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Just buy one, they cost like, 30 bucks. Get the cheapest. :smiley:

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I went down a rabbit hole with the various 3D printed cyclones and other dust collection things. I think it’s cool to see people pushing the envelope like that, but at the end of the day I got a 20L bucket, mounted a cheap Chinese cyclone to the top and then cut some baffles to stop it getting crumpled by the vacuum.

I think I’ve emptied that bucket 10-15x while still on the original filter bag for my Makita shop-vac. I really just don’t think there’s actually that much benefit to having 99.99% dust collection vs 99% dust collection in most cases.

My one thing is that I wish it was easier to see inside to know when it needs emptying. That would be a much bigger quality of life improvement than preventing a few extra grams a week from getting into the Makita bag.

And it keeps up with my thickness planer pretty nicely, too. The bucket fills up bloody quickly, though.

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Have 3.5 gal (~13 litre) translucent bucket that’s easier to see when full…

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I wouldn’t trust the filtration of this setup for frequent use of fine particle generating cuts, anything carbon or toxic woods.

Ideally, detaching/reattaching the Dust Stopper would be easier, or, bucket would be clearer with easy removable drawer bin (similar to home shredders), while still having decent vac seal. There’s some interesting diy options/videos out there.

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Yeah, in my case I just went with the cheapest 20L bucket that was there. I also went with 2 of them so I could slide the inside one into the outer one and screw the outer one to the cart I made for it, so even if they were clear, it’d be hard to see through.

I saw a couple of designs based around clear square storage tubs that looked good. I intended to laser cut an acrylic window for the lid to glue in place before I lost access to the laser cutter. Oh well, I just lift it and give it a shake every now and then.

I also did solid PVC pipe and swept angles for the connection between shop vac and cyclone. No idea if that helps much but at least it’s an attempt to limit some of the pressure drop over the corrugated hose.

Edit: As for the filtration, the Makita vac I’ve got is HEPA rated and it wasn’t too much more money to upgrade to the class that’ll handle asbestos, so that’s particulates sorted at least. For anything worse than that, I tend to work outside, anyway.

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At some point the Makita routers changed. There seems to have been a batch that are much hotter than the others. That is why I actually changed out the tool mounts to PETG or better.

I hope they fixed it in the current batches. If you do have one of the hot ones I would stay in a higher RPM range like you mentioned.

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I had a hot one… had to switch it for a Kobalt

It would nearly burn my fingers touching the collet to change the bits

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Maybe a box fan blowing across the table to keep air moving past the router would help in the short turn?

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Maybe buy 65mm ID round heat sinks, or, maybe CNC cut one for router body section between the PETG mounts… e.g. CNC cut T shaped alu fins that insert into inside of adjustable strap notches? Lots of thermal paste, lol.

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Have to double check flir capture for the asmr/test for my kobalt router, but vaguely recall most thermal increase is near the collet, so, no idea if/how-much a Macgyver router body heat sink would help.