Router Warm Up Before a Day's Work?

Quick question - at the ShopBot at the Makerspace they have a requirement that if you’re the first one on the machine for the day that you have to run a spindle warm up routine. I think it runs for 5 or 8 minutes. Haven’t been in months so I don’t remember if it steps up through the RPM range or not. I’m not sure what the history with it is, it’s a script on the machine - unclear if it is factory or something the Makerspace did.

Does anyone here warm up their router or spindle with no load before using it for the day? If so, what is your procedure?

-Jeff

@jwoody18 I don’t warm mine up. I’m using the Makita router and I’m not sure what warming it up would accomplish, other than wearing the brushes a little more. :upside_down_face:

At the shop, we have a Biesse CNC router with an air cooled spindle and a Laguna CNC lathe with water cooled spindle. Neither of them gets warmed up before running all day long.

Thanks, Grant. Good to know. I wasn’t able to get anyone to explain to me other than “That’s just the rule/way it’s done” which always makes me curious.

-Jeff

@jwoody18 I still think it’s weird, Jeff, but here is an explanation why

Now this seems to relate specifically to Haas spindles and the way in which they are lubricated. How or if the same thing is relevant to my Makita router is anyone’s guess.

I’ve been reading a few sites that advocate this and they are all talking about lubrication. Spindles that have oil lines and even the axes being oiled. It makes some sense that they would want to warm things up. In my case, my Makita router has sealed bearings and our Mill, of course, has no lubricated parts.

Warming up a spindle is common if the cnc is using a spindle. If you are using a router, such as Makita, I would not think it is really necessary.

Ok, but do we know why? I think Grant’s point about lubrication is likely the reason.