Hoping to use 1/2"-shank bits

[John E]

I'm planning to buy a CNC Shark SD120 router assembly. Next Wave recommends three different palm routers, but each only accepts 1/4"-shank bits. Does anyone know of a router that I can use with the SD120 that accepts 1/2"-shank bits? Thanks.

[TReischl]

Shark forum would be the best place to ask that.

[John E]

Thank you, but Shark forum has few active members. That's why I'm coming to Vectric. Could someone please respond to my initial question? Thanks.

[Steve Misher]

I don't think any palm router can handle a 1/2" collet. I have 2 palm routers and have only used 1/4" bits in either of them.

[martin54]

Thank you, but Shark forum has few active members. That's why I'm coming to Vectric. Could someone please respond to my initial question? Thanks.

I would ask on the shark forum as well as here as Ted has suggested, while there are a lot of active members on this forum you may find that non of the active members use the same machine you do, I not only have a completely different machine to yours I also run a spindle rather than a router so no help with your question
The Shark forum may have less active members but they are all running similar machines

[sharkcutup]

I am a Shark HD3 Pro owner. My machine is setup with a water-cooler spindle which is 110 volt. It can only accept collets for 1/4" and 1/8" shank router bits. I could have purchased a 220 volt spindle which could handle 1/2" shank collets but I do not have 220 volt in my small workshop.

I also have a Bosch Router that can handle collets for 1/2" shank router bits.

It is a tedious task to change out from spindle to Bosch Router but I can if necessary. I have had my machine setup with the water-cooler spindle since March 2016 and have yet to have had the need for swapping out for using 1/2" router bits.

From what little research I have done it looks as if your machine is designed for light tasks. It is only designed for Palm sized Routers of which of course only handle collets that will only accept 1/4" and 1/8" shank collets.

Your machine could possibly be beefed up and/or modified to accept a full size router for accepting collets for 1/2" shank bits.

Just my opinion/thoughts!

Sharkcutup

[martin54]

Couple of questions, having read sharkcutup reply I went & had a look at the machine.

What is it you want to be able to do with the machine & what sort of materials are you looking to cut. A lot of the entry level/hobby machines are quite limited by things like speed & materials they can cut well which might be OK if you are a hobby user where time is not important & you are only looking to cut softer materials but if you are looking at adding the machine to an existing business or start a business it might be better to save a bit more or look at a second user machine.
Why 1/2" router bits? is there a particular reason for wanting to use 1/2" bits? If it's because you already have a lot of them then you may need to look at the type of bits you intend to use with it. Bits with bearings should not be used with a CNC machine so if you have a lot of those & it's not easy to remove the bearings then those bits won't be much good to you.

[Mikehell]

A spindle can maybe work, but you'll need one larger than the 1.5kw ones you can run off 120v power. You'll need 220v to run one that can fit a 1/2 bit. Even if you have a big spindle running on 240v, your shark may not have enough power to use the bit with the proper chip load. That bit may be asking for 600ipm or more.

[TReischl]

I try very hard not to bad mouth certain machines. That said, in my humble opinion none of the NextWave machines are rigid enough to handle a spindle/router with 1/2 inch bits. Those machines are not known for their stiffness. Putting a larger router on the machine is probably not a good idea. Just my opinion so if you are a shark owner do not get all in a huff please. I tried a Shark a while back and I returned it to them pronto.

Just found this a bit ago:



In short, the guy loved his Shark, but. . . . he wanted to use 1/2 inch bits. Sounds like you might get the info straight from the horse's mouth.

[Christopher Leech]

You need an ER20 collet to use up to 1/2 shank.
There are probably commercial shaper table sized routers that handle 1/2" shank.
But so far I have been using 6mm (1/4") shank up to 32mm 120deg Vbits in hardwood and I am using a cast iron base heavily built table with 2.2kW spindle. Sure I have experimented with lots of feeds and speeds but stick to less ambitious material removal.
May I ask what is the reason you are setting this prerequisite?
Going to 1/2" really adds to the cost of your bits if you are buying Amana CNC Tooling.
Regards.
Chris