Millright CNC Power Route Max

About the Machine

The Power Route Max has a 1275 x 1275 x 158 mm (50 x 50 x 6.25 in) working area with 5.5 in gantry clearance. It runs 16mm precision ball screws on X and Y (dual on Y with an auto-squaring gantry) and a 12mm precision ball screw on Z, and ships with a router mount for the DeWalt DW618 (router not included) or an optional 1.5kW air-cooled, 2.2kW water-cooled, or 2.2kW automatic-tool-changer spindle. Assembly is required; expect at least a full weekend. It expands on Millright's earlier Power Route Plus XL.

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 Power Route Max's spindle depends on what you order: a router mount with no spindle included, or an optional 1.5kW air-cooled or 2.2kW water-cooled VFD spindle. Check whichever unit you have for its actual RPM against the chart. Its dual ball screws on Y with an auto-squaring gantry and a ball-screw Z axis are built for real rigidity, a step up from the rack-and-pinion Mega V line. 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. With the VFD spindle option, the Power Route Max gets close to that bar; with just a router mounted, treat it more conservatively and take shallower 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. This machine's spindle depends on what you order, so check the RPM on your spindle's plate or VFD readout and use that number if it differs from 16,000. With the bit maker's 0.025mm per tooth (0.0010 in), at 16,000 RPM: 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.