CNC Routers vs. CNC Mills: The Difference

CNC Routers vs. CNC Mills: The Difference

To an untrained eye, CNC router and CNC mill can appear the same machine.

However, these two machines have a range of differences.

Let’s take a look:

 

Design

The first and foremost difference between CNC router and CNC mill is their design.

CNC router comes with a gantry style design and are often made of plywood, plastic, aluminum, and steel.

CNC mills, on the other hand, are sturdier and are made of steel or cast iron.

 

Cutting Area

CNC routers have larger cutting area while CNC mills have smaller cutting area.

 Since CNC mills need concentrated milling, they tend to have smaller cutting area.

 

Z-axis Travel

This is another area where CNC mills and CNC routers tend to differ.

CNC routers have smaller travel on their Z-axis while CNC routers have longer travel on their Z-axis.

 

Spindle Speed

CNC routers have faster moving spindles with an RPM between 10,000 to 30,000.

CNC mills, on the other hand, only have an RPM of 1000 to 15,000 on their spindle. However, the torque is much higher on a CNC mill compared to CNC router.

Materials

 CNC routers are used to mill softer materials such as plastic, fiber, and plywood.

 CNC mills, on the other hand, have harder materials to mill.

 

Accuracy

 CNC routers are less accurate as woodworking does not require precision.

 CNC mills are extremely accurate as metalworking requires exact same measurement.

 

Conclusion

 CNC routers and CNC mills are both great machines to practice your machining skills.

 Nevertheless, they can be quite expensive.

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