Where CNC spec sheets contradict themselves

Reading fourteen product pages line by line turned up eleven places where a page gives two answers. What they were, and what to ask.

When I built this site's record of desktop CNC routers, I copied every figure from the makers' own product pages. Reading that closely, I kept finding places where a page said one thing near the top and something else further down. None of them is dramatic. All of them are the kind of thing that matters when you're deciding whether a machine fits your bench, your budget or your box of accessories.

The list

SainSmart 3018-PROVer V2: The spec table lists the offline controller as "Optional" and the purchase options sell it separately, but the FAQ says the machine "comes with an offline controller".
SainSmart 3018-PROVer V2: The intro says assembly takes "less than 35 minutes"; the spec table says 20-35 minutes.
SainSmart 3018-PROVer V2: The discount badge says -18%; the savings line says "Save 19%".
SainSmart 3020-PRO MAX V2: The spec table names the driver chip "TB67S109"; the text says "Toshiba TB6S109".
SainSmart 3020-PRO MAX V2: The spec table lists six limit switches (X+, X-, Y+, Y-, Z+, Z-); the "What's in the box" list has "1x Limit Switch (X&Y-axis)".
SainSmart 4040-PRO: The spec table gives Z as 78 mm (3.1 in); the feature text gives 3.31 in.
SainSmart 4040-PRO: Assembly: the spec table says under 20 minutes; the feature text says about 15 minutes.
SainSmart 4040-PRO MAX: The footprint is given as 660 mm and as 26.98 in. 660 mm is 25.98 in, so one of the two figures is wrong.
Sienci Labs LongMill MK3 30x30: Weight: the description says about 72 lb assembled; the "Additional information" section says 50 lb.
Carbide 3D Nomad 3: The warranty section on the Nomad 3 page refers to "Shapeoko".
Carbide 3D Shapeoko 5.1 Pro 4x2: The spec page (carbide3d.com/shapeoko/shapeoko5pro-specs/) shows the "Machine Travel" and "Machine Footprint" rows as placeholders, "(X) x (Y)", for every size.

What kind of mistakes these are

Most fall into three groups. Some are copy left over from another product, like the Nomad 3's warranty section referring to the Shapeoko. Some are two versions of a figure, like the LongMill's 72 lb and 50 lb weights, the 4040-PRO's two Z heights, or the 4040-PRO MAX's footprint, where 660 mm is given as 26.98 inches (660 mm is 25.98 inches). And some are pages where a template was never filled in, like the Shapeoko 5 Pro's spec page showing "(X) x (Y)" where the travel should be.

None of this means a machine is bad. It means a spec page is a sales page, written and updated by people, and it can be out of date in places.

What to ask

If two figures disagree, ask the maker which one is current, and keep their answer in writing.
If a figure you care about isn't published, ask for it before you buy rather than after.
If something is described as included in one place and optional in another, check the exact contents of the box you're ordering.

The full list stays on the record page, and I'll update it each time I re-check the pages. When a maker fixes one, it moves to the changes list with the date.

Sources

Read on 1 November 2026. Quotes are copied from these pages.