CNC capable to make stair spindle

[Tom Godley]

First thing .. I know nothing about CNC machines I am about to start a big home rebuilding project and will be needing custom made stair spindles. The spindles are flat -- So not made on a lathe. My builder mentioned getting them made on a CNC.

So ......... got to thinking it maybe fun to invest in a CNC and play around with it. Make something for the house.

Where do I start .. Thanks!

[Bruce Page]

What is your budget?

[Tom Godley]

Have no idea ... not 25k

[Bruce Page]

This is an old thread but there is still some valuable info to sift through. Affordable CNC...
I bought a Camaster Stinger 1 with a 24"x36"x5" work envelope. You would need something along that size to do the cutting in one setup.
FWIW, there's a nice Stinger 1 for sale on the Camheads site right now.

[dan nelson]

How about a drawing or picture? I would suggest subbing it out. Reason being your not going to make quality parts right away. Once you have honed your skills then maybe.

[Mick A Martin]

First thing .. I know nothing about CNC machines I am about to start a big home rebuilding project and will be needing custom made stair spindles. The spindles are flat -- So not made on a lathe. My builder mentioned getting them made on a CNC.

So ......... got to thinking it maybe fun to invest in a CNC and play around with it. Make something for the house.

Where do I start .. Thanks!

The learning curve to operate a CNC is anywhere between 1 to 6 month (one month being fast learner)

[Tom Godley]

Saw one at a show years ago .. remember thinking how useful it could be. The architect specified painted popular for the spindles. Thinking it would be a good project for me and I get to justify the CNC. I need quite a few of them -- a bit more than 100 -- if the current design does not grow.

[Jerome Stanek]

The better way would be to have a template made and use a template router bit.

[Art Mann]

I agree with Mick that it takes quite a while to learn the ins and outs of a CNC router usage. After 13 months, I am proficient at only a few of many applications in which I am interested. However, if your first challenge is to build 100 or more of the same thing, it might not take too long to perfect just one setup. You can certainly come back to Sawmill Creek and get advice from people who are good at it. If you buy a Camaster, Mick has created some great how-to videos that helped me get started on that specific machine.

[Keith Outten]

Simple flat shapes are relatively easy to master in just a couple hours after you get acquainted with the software. I was cutting complex shaped sign blanks on my ShopBot the next morning after I got the machine installed and setup. From there the sky is the limit and it seems to be rare to find anyone who can master every technique that a CNC machine is capable of performing. IMO this is what makes CNC routers so interesting. The software necessary to design and run CNC routers has improved dramatically over the last ten years and that has made a big impact on the learning curve.

The CAMaster router that I use today is so much easier to run than my first machine. WinCNC is a huge improvement in the control software that I started with as far as the learning curve goes.

[Ted Reischl]

If you are talking about making the flat sawn victorian type spindles and you are interested in have a cnc in your shop, my advice is DO IT! About ten years ago we redid an old victorian, all the porches needed to be rebuilt. They originally had the vase shaped flat sawn spindles. I did it with a router template after bandsawing the rough shape. If I had a cnc then it would have been much, much easier.

If and when you decide to buy one, do some serious shopping. I recommend avoiding any machine that uses plastic as part of the structure of the machine. I built mine using 8020 extrusions with rack and pinion drives from cnc router parts. It was essentially a bolt together process. Mine rapids at well over 600 IPM and will cut at over 300 ipm. There is no way rough sawing and then templating a stair bannister is easier or faster. If I did it now I would have two setups on the machine to keep it running continuously.