Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Making money from CNC - in a home enviroment

John Heritage wrote:

>Hi,
>
> I wanted to ask how many of the members have been sucessful in making some money, or a living, back from their interest in CNC.
>
> CNC and physical productivity has always been something that's really interested me and I'd like to be able to do something that I enjoy as a job. However, I'm a bit unsure of just how achievable this is when looking towards the competition.
>
> To keep this thread within the bounds of CCED, I mean CNC equipment that can realistically be owned by a home user. That doesn't require 50MW for the spindle alone, cost a million dollars or require a degree in mathematics to run. Rather plasma tables, converted knee mills, desktop mills and such.
>
> What makes me wonder is that the highest earning work is being done on machines tens of times quicker and stronger than something like a converted knee mill.
>
> So, I'd be really interest to hear if anyone has managed to turn CNC at home into something they can make something back from.
>
>
>

I think this is probably off-topic, but I'll venture one quick response.

It is probably hard to run a "job shop" out of your house and make money
at it.

On the other hand, if you have "captive products", ie. your own designs
that you are
making parts for, it makes a lot more sense. I have been making
electronic gear
for some years, and lately it is turning toward CNC motion control systems.
I make servo amplifiers, and they have a mounting plate that needs to be
cut, bent and drilled. I do the finishing to size and the drilling &
tapping on a
converted Bridgeport. I've started making CNC drive boxes, which require
a bunch of odd holes cut in metal sheet and then it is bent in a finger
break.

Before I went with CNC, I made stuff manually. It was really stressful
to have
hours of work in a part, and be worried that one moment's lapse of attention
would turn it into scrap. Now that I have CNC, I still find ways to
screw it up,
but I don't have hours of work in the part. I fix the mistake and push
a button,
and the next piece comes out OK. Second, I never could get bolt holes to
line up. Everything needed to have the holes filed until the bolts
fit. (I did
get a Bridgeport optical measuring system that did allow accurate
positioning,
but it is a bit difficult to use.) With CNC, the holes in the cover fit
perfectly
over the other part, every time! No more filing! That alone is worth a
pile of money!

Jon