Shapeoko 3 vs 5.1 Pro XXL

CNC Machines Shapeoko
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Hi all!

I used to have a Shapeoko 4 Xxl in college and it was great. Now that I’m done with college and have my first engineering job, I can now afford an upgrade and I purchased a 5.1 Pro XXL. I have several questions. The machine should be ready to go this weekend!

  1. I read a review of a guy who was testing the 5.1 and it missed some steps with a 1/4” end mill. I want to run 3/8” end mills. Has anyone had any problems missing steps with 3/8” end mills?

  2. How aggressively/fast can you cut with a 3/8” compression end mill before the machine starts to get near its limit? I’m curious what the real world experiences are.

  3. Has anyone used Sorbothane pads under the machine to decouple it from the table to reduce vibrations?

Sound deadening is a top priority for me so I have build a fully enclosed enclosure. 1/2” ply on the outer walls, then a layer of green glue, then 3/4” MDF, then some Kilmat, then moving blankets draped on the walls in the interrior. And everything is sealed and airtight. The biggest noise I’m getting right now is from the machine moving and vibrating table and thus the enclosure.

Thank you all for your input!

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  1. In my use, the spindle and dust collection have been the limiters. I can bury a cutter to the point that a spindle stalls in many cases. Or with a bigger cutter, I end up generating too many chips (or they’re too big) to get them into the vacuum. I don’t think a 1/4" cutter will be a problem for a well-maintained machine.
  2. I haven’t used compression cutters before because I usually don’t like anything downcutting anymore. (Too many broken cutters from poor chip evacuation) I’d probably rough it with an upcut, then finish with the compression.
  3. Foam/Sorbothane should work fine.
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I have the 65mm 1200w. VFD spindle