Inventables X-Carve (Original)

About the Machine

Inventables no longer sells this model, but it remains fully supported in Easel. The original X-Carve was sold in three rail sizes, 500mm, 750mm, and 1000mm, each with a 65mm Z travel, and shipped with a DeWalt 611 router (7.0A, 1-1/4 HP, 16,000 to 27,000 RPM no-load speed). It ran GRBL on Inventables' own X-Controller.

Cut Settings on this Machine

Every cut starts with one formula: Feed Rate = Spindle Speed (RPM) x Chip Load x Number of Cutting Edges (flutes). Chip load is the thickness of material each cutting edge removes in one revolution of the bit. This number comes from the manufacturer of the bit, which publishes a chip-load chart for each bit diameter and material. Look up your exact bit and material, start from the middle of the published range, and you have the third number in the formula. The chart below shows the recommended spindle speed for each material and bit type.

The original X-Carve's DeWalt 611 router has a no-load speed of 16,000 to 27,000 RPM, so most of the chart is in range, but cap any chart recommendation above 27,000 at the router's actual maximum. The X-Carve uses a GT2 belt drive, with open-ended GT2 belts on the X and Y axes and a direct-drive ACME lead screw on the Z axis (an 80T belt-reduction upgrade is optional), plus NEMA 23 stepper motors on all three axes, so treat it as a light hobby kit and lean conservative on depth per pass. A truly rigid machine with a powerful spindle can cut as deep as the bit is wide in a single pass, but that takes real spindle torque, a drive train and clamps that hold firm, a gantry that will not flex, and enough mass to soak up vibration. Belt-driven X and Y axes flex more than lead screw or ball screw drives, so take shallow passes. Push too deep and the bit deflects and chatters, leaving scalloped edges, or it rubs instead of cutting and burns the material. The fastest way to dial in a cut is to see what has already worked for other people.

Worked example for feed rate: 1/8in (3.175mm) two-flute solid carbide end mill in hard wood. The chart says 16,000 RPM, and the DeWalt 611's 16,000 to 27,000 RPM no-load range covers that, so run 16,000. With the bit maker's 0.025mm per tooth (0.0010 in): 16,000 x 0.025 x 2 = 800 mm/min (31 in/min) feed. For depth per pass, start shallow and check Community Cut Settings in Easel for what works on this machine. If the cut sounds strained, reduce the depth, not the feed. Slowing the feed below the chip load makes the bit rub instead of cut.

Community Cut Settings shows the spindle speed, feed rate, and depth per pass other makers actually run for your machine, material, and bit.