The differences between a Wood Router spindle and a stone router spindle

Many friends in the carving industry always have a question:

Why woodworking spindles cannot be used to engrave stone?

It seems troublesome to explain,but in fact,it is very simple.There is no need to figure out the parameters,principle,torque of the woodworking spindle and the stone spindle.We just need to realize the features of woodworking and stone carving,then we can get the answers.

01

Features of stone carving

1.High hardness.The hardness of the stone is higher than the hardness of the wood.

2.Need to spray water.During stone carving,it is necessary to spray water on the surface of material and the bit.

Purpose: 1)low the temperature of the bit  2) reduce dust

3.Continuous work for large workpiece.Due to the high hardness of the stone material and the large size of the workpiece,machine needs to work 24 hours per day!I have heard the most extreme example:a workpiece of a friend is continuously processed for nearly 30 days! Almost 24 hours per day except for occasional bit changes. The friend was tired after one month work and he gave the machine 3-day holidays.But when the machine started work again,spindle was broken within 2 hours!

Although sometimes woodworking spindles also work 24 hours per day,most of bits'shank are less than 8mm and their carving depth is shallow.The bits' shank for stone carving is normally more than 8mm,they use 12.7mm and 14mm,so spindle will have heavy abrasion.

02

To accommodate stone carving,stone router spindle has the features

The stone router spindle has a large torque,we usually call it "strength".The torque depends on the current of the spindle.In same voltage,larger current,larger torque.The details will not be discussed here.

The front end of the stone spindle needs both dust-proof and water-proof functions.

The carved dust from stone is different from the wood dust.The dust carved from stone is powder,  the dust from woodworking is granules.So stone dust is easier to go into spindles.And waterproof is also necessary.If water goes into spindle,bearing will break down in short time.

Need top-quality bearing!

Working for 24 hours/day,working time is long and continuous,there is no good solution for this problem.Generally speaking,bearing life is based on hours.Continuous working will make bearing's life become 50%!The 24-hour work is not only a challenge of the quality of the bearing, but also a challenge of other parts of the spindle.Like a car,driving 24 hours a day,all parts will work at tired status.So this is the main reason why the stone router spindle's price is higher than that of woodworking spindle!