Right 4x8 CNC for under 6K

[jtdouglas]

Hey everyone,

I have a small primitive furniture shop and I'm getting ready to expand into the CNC world for the first time. I would really like to get a 4x8 cnc router to cut pieces out of pine for our furniture. We have around 6k saved up and I have begun to shop around but man there is a lot out there. We need the full package including the machine, motors, drivers, and software. I have looked at the cnc router parts 4x8 (not pro) and have looked at the joes hybrid. I'm having issues finding out what it would cost me for the Joes model.

So I guess my question to you all is.... Am I looking at the right things or is there another direction that would make more sense? Is the cnc router parts version as durable as the joes machine?

Any help would be appreciated as I don't want to spend my hard earned dollars on something that wont make us money.

[ger21]

Building a Joes could run you anywhere from $3000-$7000, depending on how you build it.
The original Hybrid has gone through many upgrades. Most people building Joes machine now are using the rack and pinion drives from CNC Router Parts.And if building a Joes, I'd highly recommend using the hardened steel V rails, rather than the base model angle iron.

For $1300 more, I'd highly recommend upgrading to the CNCRP Pro series, as it's a far better machine than the standard. But it'll come in over your budget, without software.
Imo, you can build a Joe's for less, but what you get will be relative to what you spend.

With your low budget, you're options are pretty limited, so you're in the right place.
Another option is a Mechmate.

I'd spend a few months doing research, before you spend any money.

[pippin88]

For business, keep saving and buy a CNCRouterparts Pro machine.

[RCaffin]

Buying a cheap router is very expensive.
First you have to pay for the cheap machine.
Then you have to cost all the lost time and effort in failing to get it going.
Then you have to buy a more expensive good machine.

I have also heard it said that 6 months after paying twice what you budgeted in order to get a good machine, you will have forgotten all about the cost.

Cheers
Roger

[MajorTendonitis]

Great info guys , thanks .
I was debating to build a CNC router table , but after the sourcing and all the other things to consider , I'm pretty sure I'm going to purchace the Pro 4848 version from cncrouterparts.
I've got about 10K saved and I could get the electronics from them to , but I would like to to build my own and go with a water cooled spindle . Thought future trouble shooting and understanding the system would be better if I assembled it myself .
I'm no stranger to electronics, so no issues there , especially with all the members expertise here . I think the software is going to be my only headache .
I'm mostly interested in 3D carvings and signs . If I had more room I'd buy the 5/10 and get it over with , but sheeesh does that have a big footprint , and I'd have to sacrifice my Chinese laser to make room .
Maybe that's not a bad idea , as the tubes dead anyways ?
I guess one good thing about CNCrouterparts tables are that there expandable in the future . Could always build a 4/8 if neccesary.
I'm not really concerned about cutting large sheet goods , but I do have a friend who has a pro audio company and needs 5' sheets of Baltic Birch cut once in a while for speaker enclosures, so that's the only time I'd need one as big as a 5/10 .
I keep on reading about people buying tables and wishing they went bigger . That always concerns me

[ger21]

I recommend air cooled spindles. They don't run that hot, and eliminate all the hassles of water cooling.

Will CNCRP build you a 5x8 machine? That'll handle your baltic birch (5x5) + standard 4x8 sheets.

[wizard]

I keep on reading about people buying tables and wishing they went bigger . That always concerns me

This will always be a problem. A guy that starts a machine shop with a Bridgeport will sooner or later have a job that ideally would be done on a larger machine. Same thing for a wood worker buying a planner or even a bandsaw. Even farmers find themselves wishing for bigger tractors from time to time. This is where you learn to embrace the competition when they have equipement you need to complete a job.

The trick of course is to build a machine that handles the type of work you expect to be doing. You also need to make sure the axises can handle a little bit over sheet size. The final consderation is that going really large explodes the cost of the machine.

[wizard]

Hey everyone,

I have a small primitive furniture shop and I'm getting ready to expand into the CNC world for the first time. I would really like to get a 4x8 cnc router to cut pieces out of pine for our furniture. We have around 6k saved up and I have begun to shop around but man there is a lot out there.

There is a lot out there and some of it pretty expensive for what you get. Frankly the higher your quality expectations the greater the machine cost.

We need the full package including the machine, motors, drivers, and software. I have looked at the cnc router parts 4x8 (not pro) and have looked at the joes hybrid. I'm having issues finding out what it would cost me for the Joes model.

Im not too sure id recommend any of those for a business with high quality expectations. This is so important without an understanding of your expectations and how they relate to machine design and construction you could easily go down the wrong path.

So I guess my question to you all is.... Am I looking at the right things or is there another direction that would make more sense? Is the cnc router parts version as durable as the joes machine?

Considering what we know now i couldnt recommend anything less than the CNC Router Parts Pro models and even those might be a bit light.

Any help would be appreciated as I don't want to spend my hard earned dollars on something that wont make us money.

Making you money is a bigger discusion. A $30k machine can make you money. It comes down to a specific machine being the right fit for a business.

One final thing here software is wide open. Depending upon your needs you can blow a good portion of your budget on CAD/CAM. The controller that processes the G-Code is another thing where capabilities and costs vary widely.

Oh one more final thing. You seem space constrained, if so realize that you need considerable space around the working foot print of the machine. The gantry motive mechanism could easily add a foot or more to the machines width probably even more to its length. That is your overall foot print and you still need room for load/offload, the computers station or CNC controller pendant and any other goodies that may crop up. So on a side loading arraingement, for a 10x5 machine, you might need 13 d 10 feet of floor space. This assumming loading of full size sheet goods. Space is always a question mark and often leads to smalker machines being purchased.

[MajorTendonitis]

I recommend air cooled spindles. They don't run that hot, and eliminate all the hassles of water cooling.

Will CNCRP build you a 5x8 machine? That'll handle your baltic birch (5x5) + standard 4x8 sheets.

I believe the water cooled spindles are quieter . I realize that most of the noise is created from the router bit as it's cutting the material, but in my case , as I am mostly interested in 3D carvings , I think the router being as quiet as possible during those small cuts over many hours may be beneficial.
I'm not the expert here though , so I'm open to suggestion .

I heard a spindle firing up on YouTube from a CNCrouterparts pro version , and it didn't sound half as quiet as one of members water cooled versions , (David F).
And yes I realize that without a DB meter , that it's not a great comparison

[ger21]

Water cooled are a little quieter, but people put too much stock in how quiet the spindle is, imo.
Do you plan on having any dust collection? Because any dust collector will be far louder than an air cooled spindle at full speed.

[MajorTendonitis]

Water cooled are a little quieter, but people put too much stock in how quiet the spindle is, imo.
Do you plan on having any dust collection? Because any dust collector will be far louder than an air cooled spindle at full speed.

Actually I have a GI dust collection system right now . Could hardly imagine how much power it would consume after a 12 hour 3D cut
Maybe this isn't such a good idea after all