I have a Shapeoko 5.1 pro, and am making a lot of topographic maps. I am wondering what the max speed you could actually push this thing is.
I know through GRBL you can send commands to make it move up to 300IPM, but no more than 275 is recommended.
To be clear, this is only for a finishing toolpath, and for the X-Axis speed. I’m using a tapered ball nose end mill, 1/16” diameter. It is barely buzzing the surface, removing maybe 0.004-0.01”of material. I wouldn’t be pushing the machine with larger endmills. Would it be safe and reliable to make it move at 240-250 IPM for this toolpath? Some of my finishing toolpath take like 15-16 hours and I want to get that down. It’s a parallel toolpath so we are only using X and Z axis to buzz the terrain.
X-axis is one thing, but. I heard the Z axis is limited to 100 IPM. Is it safe to increase this to maybe 130-140 IPM?
The Z-axis is set to a default that it is intended to be safe and reliable. If you have a heavier spindle (aka VFD), higher accelerations/speeds can risk a stall. And if there’s a rapid movement or plunge that was set wrong (and/or you lost a step in Z), you’d reduce your reaction time for stopping the machine before you punch through the hybrid table.
It’s not impossible for the machine to function at a higher speed. And in most cases it will be fine. But it’s something you should only do if you understand the risks involved, and are willing to do a little experimentation to make sure the reliability of the machine is not compromised given how you’re using it. If something does go wrong that you can’t explain, the first thing support will ask you to do is reset everything back to defaults.
I might push the Z to 130 IPM, and the X to 240 IPM. I’m using the 65mm vfd air cooled spindle.
As long as there won’t be any mechanical issues with the machine, I’ll feel comfortable doing it. I have a lot of experience machining with the shapeoko 4 and 5.1 pro. I’m always ready to press the emergency stop.
Basically, if your only concern is the human reaction time, then I’ll go ahead. I’m always attentive to my machine and have good practice.
There’s no mechanical issue, just physics. The faster you ask a stepper motor to go, the less torque it’ll have. Too much resistance at high speed, and it’ll lose a step. The math on the Shapeoko 5 says 200 IPM is the sweet spot.
For light cuts like finishing passes, going faster isn’t really a problem. But not everyone exercises good judgment. There’s always going to be someone who’ll try to punch through hardwood at 300 IPM, stall the machine, and complain to us that the machine is defective. Hence the lower default speed.
In all likelihood, you’ll be fine. Just make sure you stay on top of maintenance (machine hygiene + lubrication).
@PerchPerkins35, is that " banding" on the flatter portions of the terrain physical, or just a visual illusion due to the color of the woodgrain? (i.e. if you sprayed it with primer would it be flat?) That is an impressive piece in any case…
The basic settings for the 5 pro is 200 in/minute feed and 100 in/min plunge. I’m using HDU and max that out all the time. I also have the 65 mm spindle. No problems at that speed at all on HDU
Well I’m already maxing it out and I want to go faster. But only for the finishing toolpath. I did 150 iPM with a 3/8” endmill and that was fast and scary enough. This thing handled it like a champ.
Yeah…me too! I just looked and saw that you are a 6 year member veteran today here in the community and WAY more experienced than I. Hopefully you get some great answers so I can learn something new as well!
Ok…I’m with @PerchPerkins35 now. I had figured all I would ever get is 200 in/min out of the Pro5, but reading this post (and reviewing several others) as he says:
This has always been my desire as well and it looks very feasible. What are the specific steps to get that extra 75 in/minute?
Yeah like I said it’s not so much hogging through material with a 3/8” diameter endmill that I want faster (it’s scary enough at 150 IPM, this things just hogs through it) it’s just fine detailed parallel toolpath with a super light load. I think the Z axis is the main limiter here since a lot of the parallels involve a lot of plunging and retraction. I could increase the x axis speed, but I’m still gonna be limited by Z. I’m thinking 130 IPM for the Z axis, and maybe increase the acceleration 10%, and 240 iPM for the x axis and I’ll see how much time that shaves off.
I made a finishing toolpath for the Grand Canyon and fusion 360 says it takes 12 hours but shapeoko software says 16 hours. If I could get a large map like this down to a day for finishing then I would be in great shape,
I just watch this video from CIC Workshop who used a Shapeoko 5.1 with the spindle and tested the speed differences when carving a 3D image. Based on his testing Z (plung rate) didn’t make any difference (75ipm vs 150ipm). I’m sure it does have an impact however it was so small it was unnoticible.
It is so weird–now knowing for a fact that the level areas are smooth, my brain still cannot stop interpreting the grain as shadows being cast by furrows…
With Z capped at 75 ipm and X/Y capped at 150 ipm, there would only be a slowdown of the finishing pass if the local surface angle was steeper than atan(75/150) = 26.5 degrees from the horizontal, so only on fairly steep slopes would you see a difference (to a first hand-waving approximation, ignoring acceleration etc…)
My Z is not capped at 75 Its 100 and im gonna make it 120 (probably). There are some steep areas regularly on this model so it should help. I’ll try it this weekend and let you guys know how it goes
