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Post by edward on Dec 2, 2020 17:29:24 GMT -5
Hello! I have been considering purchasing a Axiom CNC. I am 71 years old. Retired. Been working with wood since i was a kid. Have a 30 x 40 work shop. I also turn wooden bowls, still do some stained glass, fused glass, pottery. I make a lot of different things for our own use. I also have several old cars that i drive and maintain. My questions has been , i am not sure what i would do with a cnc, Not interested in making things to sell. Should i just buy the machine , learn to use it, play with it and see what happens. O r should i have a plan/goal in mind? Any input would be appricated. Thank you Edward Westminster, Maryland
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johnb
Full Member
New owner @ March 2019, AR16 Elite, Aspire, 4th Axis & Laser
Posts: 326
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Post by johnb on Dec 2, 2020 19:21:10 GMT -5
Sit down and make yourself a list of things you WANT to do that you haven't done or cannot do with what you have. Do you have an interest in live edge work...but haven't done it because you don't have a good way to flatten a slab? Do you have (as I do, after "only" 69 years) a lifetime collection of quotes or fractions of song lyrics you'd like to carve or engrave into something? Do you have an interest in etching glass and/or granite? Maybe you'd like to do some intricate screen carving or 3d work? Do you enjoy the "designing" as much as the "making"? If you're a technophobe, know that the software programs are as much a part of this as the machine (and you can download trial of the Vectric products free that will enable you to do everything BUT carve. )
Go to YouTube and look at the myriad of things beyond "normal" that people are doing. Something may pique your interest. I'm about to make a cat litter box enclosure on the Axiom...mostly because of all the vent holes that will be involved...my last project was the Seal of the State of Texas engraved (with a diamond drag bit) on a 16"x16" sheet of tempered glass. My next will be a V-Carve of a line from a Jimmy Buffet song "I just want to live happily ever after...every now and then". There's plenty of possibility for the mundane as well. A friend of mine (Andy Rawls who's on YouTube) is mostly a "classic" woodworker and uses his almost exclusively to make jigs for the work that he produces with hand and hand held power tools. Go figure...
If you decide "Yes, I've gotta DO this"...then a few more questions are in order Does rotary intrigue you?...if so, you'll need a machine with that capability, whether you order it initially or move up. Is your financial situation secure enough that you won't regret laying out the cash to do what it is you want to do? Would you be "thrilled" at the thought that you never need to "buy" another Christmas, graduation, or wedding gift? Is 2'x4' enough...or do you need 4'x4' capability for the work you envision? Is your projected use sufficient to justify the added expense of a (much quieter) spindle rather than a router based unit?
Answer all these questions for yourself...and feel free to ask more. It will guide you on the path to your decision Be sure and keep us informed, and feel free to ask me about any of this...either in the forum or by private message.
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Post by gerry on Dec 2, 2020 20:58:50 GMT -5
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Post by gerry on Dec 2, 2020 21:07:28 GMT -5
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Post by gad5264 on Dec 3, 2020 6:51:42 GMT -5
Nice collection of projects Gerry
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Post by edward on Dec 20, 2020 18:07:22 GMT -5
Thanks to all. Ordered the CNC, Supposed to be delivered tomorrow,
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bef
New Member
Posts: 10
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Post by bef on Dec 21, 2020 0:41:10 GMT -5
Edward: Good decision to order the CNC! I have been woodworking for over 50 years, mainly cabinetry, but also the little things that need to be done like wedding favors for my kids, night lights, etc. I don't sell anything. I, too, was "on the fence" about buying a CNC; I only bought it when I had found 10 projects that I wanted to make.
I have had a CNC now for just under two years and it's hard for me to look back and understand my hesitation. There have been so many times when something I now can do easily (or more accurately) that perhaps I *could* have done before. I *could* have scroll-sawed out a design for a nightlight; now it takes me an hour of design and an hour or so on the CNC. If I need a simple wooden washer as a foot for a stool that got lost, it is faster to do it on the CNC. A friend needed a curved leg for a stool - it was easier cutting it than bandsawing out a pattern, spindle sanding it to the curves, then pattern-cutting the several pieces on the router table. And anything like carved boxes is incredibly easy and truly awesome.
You'll have fun. Tell us what you eventually bought and how it is going.
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lesad
New Member
Posts: 50
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Post by lesad on Dec 26, 2020 17:49:42 GMT -5
Hey Gerry nice projects is there somewhere I can purchase that sled file?
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Post by gerry on Dec 26, 2020 18:20:20 GMT -5
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lesad
New Member
Posts: 50
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Post by lesad on Dec 26, 2020 19:42:10 GMT -5
thank you so much I love it
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