I am on the cusp of purchasing a Shapeoko, and have some questions that I was hoping the community/support could help with:
I want to spend some time designing a cabinet before it arrives, because without one, dust and noise will keep me from really using it.
So, specific questions:
. If it is possible, should the electronics be separate in my cabinet to remove them out of the path of dust? How much slack is in the wires?
. Has anybody taken noise measurements with the makita and dewalt?
I read enough to know that a water cooled spindle is quietest, but I am not ready for that. Maybe after a year, or so. Looking to understand which router spindle is quieter, and how much sound abatement I need )
I don’t necessarily think keeping the electronics outside of the enclosure is necessary. Just make sure there’s air movement so it doesn’t overheat. If you’re using dust collection, then obviously that won’t be a problem. The wires are frustratingly short, at least on the SO3 XXL that I have. There was very little slack after installation, and some wires I really thought were too short to reach without tension.
Regarding noise from the router, I switched from a DeWalt to Makita primarily due to the Makita’s better range of speeds, but I notice that it is significantly quieter than the DeWalt 611. I’m sure it’s nowhere close to as quiet as a real spindle though.
I agree that there is very little slack with the wires and some are too short and always have tension on them. I was worried about dust and noise before I bought mine too, but it’s in my garage and you can’t hear it inside the house or halfway up my driveway (I have checked), so it’s not a problem. I have a water cooled spindle, but I did have the Makita at first, besides, the sound of the cutter in the wood is louder than any router. As for dust, get the SuckIt dust boot and a decent shop vac and that won’t be a problem either.
I have the Makita and many of the cuts use the router at low speed so the noise level is not very high especially with smaller bits. I have a temporary setupo in my workshop. In my case most of the noise comes from the shopvac I use for dust coillection, the router only is much less. The Makita is indeed much quieter than my other routers (Makita, Craftsman) I have made noise measurements with the shopvac in and out of a cabinet and I get just above 80db out and 70db inside. Since db is on a logarithmic scale, the reduction is substantial. I think the sound will be further reduced when I build my final setup where I will add noise attenuation when I build my enclosure for both the Shapeoko and dust collection.
Agreed that dust collection from a shop vac is usually louder than the router/milling. If you have the space, I’d suggest using a dust collector and cyclone along with the Suck-It dust boot. You’ll have much less dust, and very little noise from the dust collector. I have the Harbor Freight 1HP version that I added a trash can and cyclone lid to. It’s very quiet.
Thanks for the information. Harbor freight locally looks to be having a sale this weekend. If I purchase the dust collector from there, I will let you know what the noise readings are.
I haven’t measured the noise level, but with it installed in my garage (concrete floor, small, enclosed space) it’s quiet enough to have a conversation nearby, without yelling. Nowhere close to the noise of a shop vac.
You can get free db meters for your phone to make sound level measurements, no need for special equipment as it is not an official measure but an indication of the noise level.