CNC router guides and explainers

Understand the machine before you spend. These guides cover the parts and choices that matter.

How it works and what matters

A spindle or router head spins the bit, the gantry moves it across X, Y and Z, and the controller follows a toolpath generated in CAM software. An automatic tool changer (ATC) swaps bits mid-job without stopping to do it by hand, a real time saver once a job needs more than one bit. Nesting software packs multiple parts onto a single sheet to cut waste, which matters more than it sounds once you are buying full sheets of plywood or MDF regularly. Feeds and speeds, how fast the bit spins and how fast it moves through the material, decide whether a cut comes out clean or burns and chatters; too slow burns the material, too fast overloads the bit and the spindle.

Power and software

Many small shop routers run on single phase 110 or 220 volt power, but most spindles above roughly 3 kW need three phase supply, which is a real added cost if your building only has single phase, sometimes requiring a phase converter. For software, CAD designs the part and CAM turns it into a toolpath the machine can run, sometimes in one package (Vectric’s VCarve and Aspire, and Fusion 360, are common starting points); check what file formats and post-processors your specific machine’s controller actually supports before you buy either the software or the machine. Get the power and software questions answered before you shop for a specific machine in our buyer guides.