Wood CNC or metal CNC: how to choose

Wood router or metal milling machine: on paper, both "CNC machines" look alike. In practice, they follow opposite mechanical philosophies. Choosing the wrong one means a machine that vibrates, overheats or wears out too soon.

Here are the criteria that really make the difference, and how to match them to your use case.

1 — Two opposite constraints

Working wood, plastics and composites is mostly about speed and a large working area: cutting forces are low, but you remove a lot of material quickly.

Machining metals, on the other hand, generates high forces and heat. The priority becomes rigidity and vibration control, even if it means dramatically lower speeds.

2 — Frame rigidity

This is criterion number one. A flexible frame passes vibration on to the tool: poor surface finish, accelerated wear, even tool breakage.

• Wood / large area: a welded-steel or aluminium-profile structure is enough. The goal is to cover a large table without inflating the price.
• Metals: ground cast iron is preferred; its mass and damping absorb vibration. A metal machine often weighs several times more than an equivalent surface router.

3 — The spindle: speed vs torque

Not all spindles are equal, and this is where wood and metal diverge the most.

• Wood: you want a high rotation speed (often 18,000 to 24,000 rpm) with large-diameter tools. Torque matters little.
• Metal: you need torque at low speed for roughing passes, plus spindle cooling (often liquid) to last over time.

4 — Feed rate and chip evacuation

On wood, chips are bulky: a dust-extraction system is almost essential to avoid clogging the cut. On metal, chips are hot and abrasive: flood coolant carries the heat away and protects the cutting edge.

5 — Cooling and lubrication

A wood router runs dry. A metal machine needs a coolant circuit and, ideally, automatic lubrication of the moving parts to preserve accuracy over time.

6 — Accuracy and surface finish

Rigidity and cooling pay off in accuracy: a well-designed metal machine holds tolerances to the hundredth of a millimetre, whereas a surface router aims more at productivity than absolute precision.

7 — Which machine for which use?

• Large wood, plastic and occasional aluminium parts → a large-format router such as the MR Series.
• Aluminium and mild steel on a daily basis → a rigid mill such as the SCS Series.
• Small, precise metal parts → a compact machining centre such as the MCS Series.

The right choice depends mainly on your dominant material and part size. If in doubt, tell us about your project: we will point you to the machine that truly fits your workshop.