Bob savage1 CNC start up advice

[Bob Savage]

Gary, thank you very much for the advise and suggestion. I really hadn't considered an evening/weekend apprenticeship, but that sounds like a very good idea.

I got the message several posts ago.

As did I regarding tooling and shop setup costs.

I only broke down my assessment of your situation and goals based on the posts that you have made and the reply's that others have given in return.

Understood.

You seen to be a bit light on direction and planning; yet you are considering purchasing a 20k machine to accomplish something, but you do not seem sure exactly what.

If this turned out to be nothing more than a fullfilling hobby making a small amount of expendible income while staying with my IT carreer, I would consider it a success. A $20k machine is not going to be a part of this. That much, I have decided.

In my opinion, that seems a recipe for failure.

Some years back, I decided it was time to release an album of my own. Despite the fact that I had the skillsets to write, produce and engineer the album, I also knew that there were many requirements that would cost in the thousands. While the thought of at the least, making back all the money I spent producing this album was a nice one, I also did the math determining the number of copies it would take to acheive this ROI. In the end, it really didn't matter. It was something I wanted, perhaps needed to do, and if I didn't make back a dime of the money I spent, it did not matter. To this day, I am still giving away the CD's...

The shop in my garage is another one of these "albums" for me. I am quite busy managing a successful career in IT, and while I would prefer to be in manufacturing (I do have a background in manufacturing and assembly, by the way), if this hobby never makes me a dime, as long as I'm having a good time, it's worth it.

A well thought plan would enhance your possibility for success. Make the plan then purchase the equipment, not the other way around.

I do not disagree with the first statement. My plan is to have fun. Even without machinery, I'm already accomplishing this by playing around with the Aspire demo. Today I was successful in creating a sign using a logo I designed for an electrician friend who's self employed, and even figured out how to deal with tool paths. The thought of experimenting with cheap materials and eventually giving him a nice sign for his business is an exciting one. I have far too many ideas to execute on all of them, but I'm also not quiting my job and starting a business without a plan. What I'm doing is spending more money than many would likely deem wise, on a hobby. If I find a niche or two and can make some money, all the better.

Everything I have written is only is my opinion.
Whatever you decide to do, I wish you the best, and look forward to hearing of your success.

Understood, and again, I'm not trying to be argumentative. I am expressing my opinion as well.

Where I could fail is if I were to buy all this equipment, become frustrated trying to learn how to use it and quickly get bored... selling it all for a loss.

I have yet to be challenged with something where I have failed, and a spring chicken, I am not. This gives me a positive outlook on my future hobby.

Thanks again for the input, James. It may not seem like it, but I do appreciate it.