CNC feeds and speeds for cutting wood slat walls: MDF, plywood, oak, walnut, pine and bamboo

Feeds and speeds control the chip load — the thickness of material each cutting edge removes per revolution. Too slow a feed (or too high an rpm) rubs and burns the wood, dulls the bit and leaves scorch marks, especially on oak and bamboo. Too aggressive a feed chips the edges, strains the spindle and can break the bit. The sweet spot gives clean edges, good chip evacuation and long tool life.

For decorative slat walls and wave panels the finish matters, because the shadow lines expose every imperfection. Dialing in feeds and speeds is the difference between a crisp, gallery-quality panel and a fuzzy, burnt one.

Spindle speed (rpm): how fast the bit turns. Feed rate (mm/min): how fast the bit moves through the material. Depth per pass (mm): how deep each pass cuts, usually 4-8 mm for a 6 mm bit in wood. Plunge rate (mm/min): how fast the bit descends into the material, always slower than the feed.

These are linked by chip load = feed / (rpm x number of flutes). A typical target chip load for a 6 mm two-flute bit in wood is roughly 0.1-0.2 mm. Keep the bit sharp, use a compression or down-cut bit for clean top faces, and take multiple passes rather than one deep cut.

MDF: feed 1500-2500 mm/min, 18k rpm, 6-8 mm per pass with a 6 mm bit. It has no grain and machines identically in every direction, but produces heavy fine dust — extraction and a mask are mandatory. Plywood (Baltic birch): feed 1200-2000 mm/min, 18k rpm, 4-6 mm per pass; use a down-cut bit against top-face tear-out and watch for glue-line tool wear.

Oak: feed 1000-1500 mm/min, 16-18k rpm, 4-5 mm per pass; sharp bits are essential because dull tools burn oak. Walnut: feed 1200-1800 mm/min, 18k rpm, 5-6 mm per pass — it machines like a dream with crisp detail. Pine: feed 2000-3000 mm/min, 16k rpm, 6-8 mm per pass, but clean resin build-up often. Bamboo: feed 1000-1400 mm/min, 18k rpm, 3-4 mm per pass, carbide only, prone to splintering — use sharp down-cut bits.

A two-flute compression bit gives the cleanest result on both faces of plywood and veneered panels, because it shears fibres up and down toward the middle. A down-cut bit protects the top surface (ideal for pre-finished panels), while an up-cut bit clears chips best and is fine for MDF where the top face is painted.

The bit diameter also sets your minimum internal radius and your G-code cutter compensation. In Parametric Wall Studio you enter your tool diameter and the software offsets the toolpath correctly — outlines outward, holes inward — so parts come out at the designed size.

On through-cuts, add holding tabs so slats do not come loose and get thrown mid-cut. Choose climb milling for the cleanest edges in most wood (the bit pulls into the material), or conventional milling if your machine has backlash. A light finishing pass with a small stock allowance removes any fuzz and leaves a smooth edge ready for oil or paint.

All of these — tabs, climb/conventional, ramp entry, depth per pass and allowance — are parameters you set once, then the tool writes correct G-code for every sheet and shows you the estimated machining time.

Parametric Wall Studio bundles per-material machining guides with these indicative feeds and speeds, and generates GRBL/Mach3 G-code with your tool diameter, pass depth and feed rates baked in. You can simulate the toolpath before cutting to catch a wrong depth or feed before it reaches your material. Start from a template, set your material and bit, and export.