I would say that cnc is the next logical step toward having machines that would greatly increase usability and production. CNC is the present and future of manufacturing and prototyping. CNC will not only speed things up for you, but will give you valuable skill sets in order to expand things in the future.
It takes time to simply wrap your mind around the various softwares that you might need to run cnc's, but once accomplished, it basically becomes simple.
I found this to be the case on all but the lathe. The lathe for me is more difficult, because I can't just make a flat drawing and expect a cam program to follow those lines. This is where I am trying to learn more now.
However a lathe can be run just as easily in manual mode for prototyping. CNC only becomes productive when you have quantities of a product to produce.
A mill on the other hand, works great to start with in cnc for prototyping. A good one can interpolate holes for you, which is difficult in manual mode, but can still be done with the right tooling. A router is much the same, but less rigid usually and allows cutting of larger materials.
You already have a torch, so I think logically the next step for you would be a 4 x 4 machine under it. That will give you something to start learning cnc and software on. A plasma or oxy torch machine can also be made less rigid than a router and can use smaller motors and parts because there are no real cutting forces induced on such a machine.
Personally I can up with a product first. I was unable to meet demand using hand tools and thought that cnc would help. It does, but I'm still not able to meet demand in a timely manner. I have had a lead time of from 3 and now to 8 weeks. CNC did allow me to increase accuracy and increase production about 3 times what I was producing by hand.
If all I had to do was just build the product, then I could make many more of these. However when you run a garage business, there are many hats that must be worn. Some weeks actual production is only about half of what I do. The business is still growing though.
Good luck with your endeavors. I would suggest you just start with an oxy cnc cutter first. This will get your feet wet and get you started on the software side of things. I don't think I would cnc anything else though unless you have a product in mind. The machines you build once you have something in mind would then be what you need to accomplish the job.
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Lee |