Forty years ago, in the wonderful world of big corporate manufacturing, computers started making their way in to the factories. Computer Numeric Controlled (or CNC) machines, that ran off a stack of punch cards with intricate patterns of holes punched into them, ran huge milling machines and lathes. They were cumbersome, but fast, and each machine cost greater than a nice house.
Fortunately, for you, the house craftsman, those days have died. It is now entirely possible, practical, and affordable to own your own CNC router, CNC mill, CNC lathe, CNC laser cutter, or CNC plasma cutter. With only the most basic PC computer, a couple of hundred dollars worth of software, a similar investment in hardware and electronics, as well as your own ingenuity, You might have a CNC machine in your house workshop.
A CNC machine can be quite a great supplement to a hobby that you already have... like building model airplanes, model railroads, or woodworking. If you are into electronics, a small CNC router can etch and drill printed circuit boards. In CNC Cutting Gwent have kids at home, a CNC machine could be a terrific way to help them with science fair projects, robotics projects, or making arts and crafts projects.
CNC machines can cut or machine intricate detail, and do it very quickly. You've probably admired some of those intricate wall hangings that are cut with a jig saw.... where the craftsman spent literally thousands of hours drilling through the workpiece, detaching the saw blade, threading the blade by way of a hole, reattaching the blade, making the cut, and repeating the procedure. A CNC router can do exactly the same work in a fraction of that time period, and much more accurately.
A CNC Router is just about the most versatile type of machine. It can make heavy cuts and do sculpting in three dimensions, or you can put a swivel knife cutter in to the router chuck, and do vinyl sign and graphics cutting. With the correct software, it is possible to digitize (or "Reverse Engineer" a part) using a probe mounted in the router chuck to "trace" the contours of a component. The computer will "Remember" the form of your original, and permit you to duplicate the spend the the router, cutting it from a block of wood or other material.
And a CNC router can be the start of a part-time.. or even full time business. You can carve beautiful wooden signs, cut right out wooden toys, or model airplane or railroad components. It is possible to carve original patterns, and make molds from their website, to create figurines, plaques, picture frames or other cast parts. Perhaps you have admired wooden clocks ? A CNC router is an excellent way to make one... or dozens. If you are a frustrated inventor, you can cut mechanical parts for prototypes, from the selection of materials including wood, plastics, aluminum, composite materials like carbon fiber laminate, or printed circuit board material.
So how do you get started? An excellent place to begin has been the ABC's of CNC video. This two hour long DVD takes you through the whole CNC workflow... you start with the fundamentals of machine designs, G Code, CAD and CAM software, and finally through the actual cutting process. You'll see sample parts start as a design, sketched on a napkin, taken through CAD software, and on to the Computer Assisted Machining (CAM) software where in fact the actual cutting paths to help make the part are created. The output from the CAM program then would go to the specific machine controller, which converts the digital information into actual motion... to slice the part.
You do not need to be an electronics whiz... nor a computer programmer... nor a machinist. The ABC's of CNC video will highlight where to start, where to search for parts and resources, and how to put it all together.. to make your OWN CNC machine. It's fun and rewarding. It will open up a whole " new world " of precision, speed, and repeatability.