Re: Making money from CNC - in a home enviroment

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, Jon Elson <elson@p...> wrote:

> 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

This may be off topic in the sense that it is not strictly about
build a CNC machine but I am sure in the "justification" stage of
deciding to get into this hobby most of us have dreamed about making
enough money to quit our jobs and turn our hobby into a business or
at least to make enough to pay for an expensive hobby. Some of us
have managed to do that (gasp!). I think you can get more direct
answers over on the DIY-CNC group which is a subset of the members
here and is more about what you do AFTER you get your machine built.

One quick observation. A CNC machine is not the "Field of Dreams"
concept. A large portion of the success is the same as any
business. You have to find your market place and work like heck to
build a clientel. I can address the profit from a plasma (not on
this list) but it is based on my small microchasim(sp) of my world
(North Texas). I agree with others that running a job shop or doing
work for other shops is a tough way to go. In the end it's more
about your innovations and skills that the machine itself.

We can help direct you to hobby sources and with ideas that will help
you build a machine that will at least give you a chance to compete.

Tom C