New small build, looking for advice on final details

LowRider CNC Advice
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I already have a full sheet LR3 (which I’I’ll hopefully have the time to upgrade to an LR4 soon) and I’m now looking to add a new sturdier, faster (and thus inevitably smaller) LR4 sibling. It will replace a modded dremel cnc which has given me enough headaches already. The target size is 350mmX450mm work area. However, with LR design, having extra Y space seems “almost free” in terms of performance as the gantry width is fixed. So my first question would be:

  1. Is there any performance downside to having a larger Y axis? All I can think of is more stretch on the belts at the same load, but I don’t know how much of an issue that is with correctly preloaded belts.

Second order of the day is: I would love for it to cut metal as well. I know many people have had amazing success cutting aluminum, but I wonder how finicky the correct settings for that are and how hard they are to find. A while back there was a post by someone who had implemented a gear reduction on the motor pulleys to increase torque by 2x/3x. Considering this is a small machine, I think it would be worth a try.

  1. Has anyone tried the belt reduction mod? Are there any thoughts on the performance and whether it’s worth trying or not? How finicky are the optimal settings for cutting metal?

Then there’s the noise issue. This will sit in an apartment, so the neighbors aren’t too pleased with noise and also I don’t want dust all over the place. I need an enclosure, but also can’t be running a loud vacuum for hours on end. Right now I’m using a simple enclosure without dust extraction and vacuuming after every job. It’s not tedious but the LM bearings are taking a beating and so are the lead screws.

  1. Is an enclosure without dust extraction a terrible idea? I’m afraid it will mess with the linear rails in no time, but I don’t know if other people have used one this way. Maybe I should build a soundproof box for the vacuum as well haha.

Finally, I have an idea for an ATC for Makita type routers which I’ve started to design. If it turns out good this will be the perfect test subject and I’ll report back.

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No, as long as you aren’t trying to go crazy.

Not hard to find at all. There are several threads around here with screen shots from estlcam.

Zero need for this at all. I do remember that thread but not the outcome. The LR4 does not need this

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Belt or gear reduction drive on an LR4 is wasted time and money with no performance advantage.
If there’s one spot to watch in the drive system it’s the single stepper on the X axis, but this is a case where you should be sure you use a good torque NEMA 17 like the one Ryan sells, and watch the temps and drive current carefully.

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Yes, I’ll go with a small stock config. I’ll keep it short in the Y axis as well so I don’t have to spend extra on a larger enclosure. If I ever upgrade to a longer setup it’s a small investment in a rail and some belt.

As for the gear reduction drive, my thoughts were that since this is a machine with quite a small footprint (300mmX420mm work area) the rigidity of the machine might allow for more aggressive settings. But you are 100% right, people already get up to great specs with bigger machines with stock LR4s, so it’s much better to go stock and in the remote case (which I don’t see happening) that I need extra torque, consider the reduction.

Thanks for the input! I’ll post pics when the machine is ready