I am wanting to upgrade my router for my Pro XXL. I started with the carbide router and the bearings went out. I put my Makita in while waiting for the replacement and after a while I started having issues with the rpm dial dropping from 3 to 2 due to not clicking into position like the carbide router. But now with the replacement router from carbide, I’m still getting a mild squealing when it is on even when it’s not cutting. Almost as if there is something loose in it and two metal surfaces are vibrating or spinning against each other. I wasn’t sure if the Bosch PR20EVS would fit the 65 mm mount or if anyone had other recommendations.
Technically anything 65mm will fit. They also have the 80mm mount for the HDZ Z axis. The readily available ones you’ve been thru…After that you are looking at spindles like the C3D 65mm VFD spindle. I run that in our SO4Pro at work and love it. In fact I have one on order with my SO5Pro. 
The Bosch fell out of favour a while back, and I don’t believe it fits a 65mm mount.
The noise from your Carbide Compact Router sounds like a bad bearing — please write in to support@carbide3d.com and we’ll get that sorted out.
There was a lengthy discussion on this a while back:
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So if you want a router then the Dewalt 611 at 69MM is a champ. C3D used to sell the Dewalt and changed to their own brand which is a Makita clone. In 4 years of use I have only had to change my brushes once. I see that the Makita/C3d router owners have to change theirs quite often. Plus both the Makita and C3d seem to have bearings go out on a regular basis. I bought a SO3 XL with a C3D router. The man I bought it from could never seem to get a good outcome. The reason was the C3D router had bad bearings and the router shaft wiggles easily. I got a bargin and bought a Makita. I eventually sold the XL.
The Dewalt takes a 69MM mount. The advantage of the Dewalt over the Makita/C3d is it has a longer base so it can cut deeper. The one disadvantage that has never affected me is the Makita/C3d router has a slightly lower RPM if required. The Dewalt is sturdy and has never let me down.
The other router as Josh mentioned is the C3D spindle. at $750.00 it is more expensive than a DIY effort but it is plug and play with no figuring out all the settings. Plus you get support from C3D and not some 800 number in China that no one ever answers. However a lot of people have the air cooled spindles and some have the water cooled. I dont run my machine hard enough to get a water cooled spindle and the added maintenance and potential leaks. But if you are in a production environment a water cooled unit might be better.
Just throwing the Dewalt out there if you want a reliable router. If you require more UMPH then a spindle will be better. Either way you will likely need a new mount unless you stick with a 66MM spindle. The Dewalts are $150.00 at Lowes and I am sure you can get it cheaper if you shop.
Like a lot of things now days products are made cheaper and cheaper and we have a throw away society. If your tool breaks you throw it away and get another one. There are repair kits for the Makita/C3d and it seems easy to rebuild. The problem is the same cheap bearings that failed are in the kit. So it is an endless cycle.
I looked up the Bosch and could not find the specs of the router body. I guess they dont want that know because it is super secret. I am sure someone has measured those but I did not look too hard. I have never heard anyone mention using the Bosch with a Shapeoko.
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Other than the shorter cord, the Makita is a better routher than the carbide. The only mention I’ve seen about frequent brush and bearing failure is for the carbide 3D router. Not having a detent for the speed control on the Makita, and a shorter powercord is inconvenient, but a piece of tape can take of the speed control, and the cord for the Carbide router will work in the Makita.
Thanks for the input. I think I’ll give the Dewalt a try. Of course now I’m having an issue with my cnc itself. I power it up and when it initializes and requests tool change, I click on resume for it to move to the bitsetter to measure the cutter and it moves over the bitsetter, goes down about a quarter inch and stops. then I get a pop up saying probing cycle failed. I’m getting pretty tired of this machine. Getting close to looking elsewhere for something new.
Unless you got the different mount, the DeWalt won’t fit since it’s a different diameter.
For the error… so you have a BitZero? If so, it may be grounded.
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Note that for the DeWalt you will need to buy a 69mm mount:
For the probing issue — what do you have the Z-axis configured for? What is your Z-axis Travel Dimension set to?
Please write in to support@carbide3d.com and we’ll get this difficulty sorted out.
I’ve been running the machine months with no changes to anything. Wed i ran it for hours and now all of a sudden i go to fire it up and it wont probe.
This is what I’m showing for travel dimensions.
X(mm) 865.000
Y(mm) 850.000
Z(mm) 140.000
Do you have a BitSetter? Where is it? Where is the ground lead?
What is the temperature in your shop? There have been some reports of false triggers of the Bitsetter at colder temperatures.
That’s why we’re asking about the BitZero… if it got sat on something that is grounding it, it will cause that error. If it wasn’t sitting on something before, but it is now, that is an explanation as to why it is suddenly exhibiting that behavior.
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I believe Will was right. The temperature of the shop was cold and it was making it error. Once the room warmed up I pressed up and down on the bit zero button and I heard a click. The red light went off and it has been working fine, I have a mini split for my shop to provide heat and air conditioning. I’m going to have to get someone out to get it installed pretty quick here. Thanks for the responses.
Sounds like the lubricant froze. That happened to my HDM BitSetter. I ended up using dry PTFE lube.
That’s what I’m thinking. Next is to find out where I can get a bracket for a 69mm router. I think I’m going to try the Dewalt. I’m not in a position to but the veriable frequency spindle right now.
We have a 69mm mount in the shop:
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I just saw that a few minutes ago when I went under the shop tab. I haven’t had much luck with routers so I was thinking about giving the Dewalt a try. My first Carbide router ended up frying the bearings, so while waiting for a replacement, i installed my Makita. That one worked fine for a short time but the dial would drop from 3 to 1 all at once due to not clicking into position at the dial. I installed the replacement router and now the bearings are starting to squeal in that one. I haven’t pushed it hard at all and it really doesnt have a lot of use on it.
I’ve had good luck with routers most of the time. But the honest truth is that they are just the cheapest way to get the job done. 
None are made for extended run times.
My Dewalt 611 has run fine for 4 years. Only one brush change. I turned it on and it just sat there and starred at me. I had a set of brushes and installed them in a few minutes and bam it was running again. I have run many long 12 hour jobs. I have dust collection and the router fan keep it cool as a cucumber. Now any brand can fail but the C3D and Makita seem to have a higher fail rate as reported here on the forum. Originally C3D offered the Dewalt but later got their own manufactured and the more recent new machines come standard with the 66MM where the Dewalt needs a 69MM. The Dewalt has a longer body so you can cut deeper than the Makita/C3D router. When the Z-Plus first came out many could not get the bit to touch the spoilboard. C3D has since fixed that but I am not sure how. The Makita/C3D router can run slightly slower but that has never been an issue for me. That does not mean that the slower speed is not beneficial for some but for me a non issue.
The bottom line is Dewalt has been making the 611 for a long time and I have a lot of Dewalt tools that run flawlessly. Are there better tools, likely. But for me staying in a single eco system seems to work fine for me. Like any brand you dont want the ones made on Friday or Monday because the workers are either trying to get out of work or come in hung over from weekend activities. Not sure if that applies to Chinese workers because likely every day is like a Monday with their labor conditions.
Kelly,
Take a look at the Carbide ER-11 Compact Router. They down play it a bit saying the only reason to choose it over the standard Carbide Compact Router is the ability to run tools with shank sizes other that 1/8" or 1/4". To me, that’s reason enough. ER collets also hold the tool much tighter with less torque meaning less chance the tool will pull out on you. But the huge difference is the accuracy of the collect. An ER colltet when properly mounted will have TIR of <0.0004″ (10 µm, Standard Precision) and ≤0.0002″ (5 µm, Ultra Precision). Less run out means smoother running, better surface finishes and much longer tool life. Think of it this way, the more the tool runs out, the fewer teeth you are cutting with. With enough run out on a 2 flute end mill, you could be cutting with only 1 flute. With a size range of 1/32" to 1/4", it comes in very handy when you need metal cutting tools that do not adhere to the wood cutting shank diameter convention. Dollar for dollar, I would choose the Carbide ER-11 Compact Router for the accuracy of the spindle as well as flexibility to run standard wood cutting or metal cutting tool shanks.
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