Tinker toy and waste of money?

[Larry Foster]

I've spent a fair amount of time checking this out.
It looks like something I'd consider.

I like the flexibility in size.
While I have neither the space or the need to make something as big as yours, for not much more money than the "better" 3018 machines on Amazon, I have the ability to make one that would be able to handle a lot more situations.

They may be out there but haven't seen any negatives yet.

I did find some info that I could upload the machine from an SD card.
That's real attractive to me

Edit to add:

I've watched some assembly videos and they look simple enough that even I might be able to do it in a reasonable time.

I've never been much for tinkering just to tinker.
I'd like something that I can have functional in fairly short order

[Bill George]

Instead of wasting time on building a machine that runs so slow and can not cut anything useful try this>https://www.automationtechnologiesin...r/3-axis-6040/

It will do up 28 by 16 inches nominal and has a "real" spindle motor. Runs on Mach4 and please get the ethernet option. I have purchased from John before and they are a fair and honest vender in Chicago. I had one of those machines and trust me it works! You can make real things, wood signs and much more. You will still need a computer, I see used laptops for $150 on Craigslist.

I had the same machine until I purchased my 48x48 one and then I sold it. You will have about $2K in the machine ready to run. What no one tells you that for Mach 3/4 to run it needs a computer with a parallel port, hard to find. Thats why you need the ESS ethernet option.

https://philadelphia.craigslist.org/...046848479.html

[Larry Foster]

Thank you for your continued support and advice, Bill.
You don't know how much I appreciate everyone sharing their knowledge and recommendations.
As should be clear, I'm a dunderhead and know zip about this stuff.

That looks like a good machine.

Unfortunately, that's way over my head.

I have to stay at the $500ish area which is way past the level where my wife will kill me in my sleep if she finds out.
Even the $250 ones on Amazon will cause me to pay dearly.

I also know myself.
While I like messing around and making things, I'm not as dedicated as I want to be.

Very ADHD.

Some of this may change soon.
My wife is getting near retirement and I may want to spend more time in the shop.



They and many other DIYers recommend a Dewalt for cutting.

Is that not adequate?

[bobby milam]

Many people find their wife likes the cnc also and use it together. Especially if she is already into crafts

[Larry Foster]

Bobby, my wife is obsessed about not spending money so there is no machine at any amount of money she would approve of or let me enjoy for the rest of our lives.

She may enjoy some of the creations and enjoy selling them at her craft shows but she would not ever accept the cost of any of these machines.

Sometimes, I work under the philosophy that it's better to ask forgiveness and not permission.

There is, also, an amount that I don't want to go over because I can't justify it to myself.

I like to look at these nice machines and am sure I would have fun with them but I either have to make do with something lower end or do without.

I am still grateful for the patient generous suggestions

[Bill George]

My wife has her money, more than I have thanks to some wise investments. I have my money from several good pensions, and investments. We both pay into the household account and what we have left is ours to spend. She is very interested in what I produce with my machines. some of it goes to one of a kind gifts for family and friends saving money that way. Yes I have sold many items.

[Larry Foster]

I'm not trying to paint my wife as some kind of Scrooge.

My retirement resources are more limited than yours, Bill.

That's enough personal info.

Suffice it to say that I can't do any more than window shop at $2000 machines.

I have made no decisions yet.
Just research and learning and this great forum is extremely helpful in my learning.

It may turn out that I just can't afford a machine and that will be the end of it.

I do have enough other woodworking projects to keep me amused if that's the case.

[Gordon Stump]

I asked a similar question a year or more ago. The members here were patient with me. All I wanted to do was carve logos on products I sell on Amazon and my website. My wife is careful to say the least. Being married to a full time musician has caused her to be that way. So I bought a small but scalable 500 mm x 500 mm Xcarve. I told her it was around $699. I bought a refurbished laptop with windows 10 at Newegg for $150. Then I upgraded to 500 mm x 1000 mm rails. That was around $200. Then I upgraded to TBDcnc risers and stiffeners. Don't get me wrong. I know my setup is basically ok for carving and not that great for cutting thick parts or aluminum.

Right after getting the little cnc my neighbor ordered 180 switch covers and receptacle covers of all kinds for around $1000. Another $500 in other stuff so the cnc is paid for. The wife can add but doing this in small increments helped my ears.

The kicker was carving her police mounted unit shield on some walnut as gifts for her and her boss, the Chief of Police. Married 52 years. Baby steps!!!
skip.jpg

[bobby milam]

Always good when you can pay off the purchase that early. I recouped about 1/3rd of mine in a month but I stopped selling while I used that new money to convert my machine to an ATC. I know it's possible to pay the machine off fast. I just haven't been concerned enough with doing it to have gotten back into selling things yet. I want to endure the machine is running perfect before I commit. If anyone commits to the time to learn the software, word will get out about what you do and they will come looking for you in maby cases. Learn to price your items correctly so that you cover the costs and actually make a profit then you should have no problems paying for your machine.

[Larry Foster]

I haven't figured out how to market much.
I am very rural.

The closest town (15 miles) is pretty poor and has a population of 2500 (a large %age junkies)

My wife's craft shows don't start until around the first of October.
My cousin goes to a once monthly huge flea market in Rogers, Oh., which is about 1-1/2 to 2 hours from me.
He sells some kind of woodworking and antiques.

There is Craigslist and Facebook marketplace.

[David Buchhauser]

Don't forget about Ebay and Etsy. There are lots of possibilities out there!
David

[Larry Foster]

I had thought of those two but wasn't sure how far I want to take this from a "hobby"

[Larry Foster]

I wanted to report back on this.

I did make a decision and went with the MPCNC from V1 Engineering suggested by Hoang.

It was in budget, flexible and adaptable and has good support by the community and te owner.

I realize it's not a "real" cnc and there will be limitations.

I have been reading forum posts there and watching tons of videos and checked out their gallery
While I wasn't looking specifically for negative reviews, I didn't run across much other than it's not a Shapeoko or one of the better machines.

Time will tell if this was a bad decision but, at first blush, it seems like it will do most of the stuff I might want to do.

I truly appreciate the patience all give here with your generous advice.

[Hoang N Nguyen]

20200212_234513.jpg20200213_002225.jpg

I recently finished my build made a few cuts with it. Here's a picture of my latest project that came off the lowrider. It's nearly 3' tall and 3/4" pine I glued up. It took 25 minutes to cut out the profile and engrave the letters.

[Larry Foster]

Thanks for sharing.
To start, I'm going to limit to 24"X 24"

How big is your table?