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I built a CNC, what can I make to pay myself back?

2 points by randomnumber314 ↗ HN
I figured that if I built a machine that can make stuff, I can make stuff to sell to others to pay myself back, and save up for a nicer machine.

I just don't know where to look / who to ask about "what can I make you?"

Thoughts?

6 comments

[ 2.6 ms ] story [ 12.0 ms ] thread
justinclift
How many axis, what's the volume, what rigidity/accuracy, which materials are you comfortable with?
randomnumber314
3-axis, 12" x, 7" y, 5" z. Accurate to 0.001. Plastics, metals.
justinclift
With the 'accurate to 0.001"', how was that measured?

Asking because a lot of people new to CNC (as you question seems to indicate) build their machine and don't know they have to spend a fair amount of time fine tuning to get the accuracy to where they want it to be.

Not sure if that's the case for you, but pointing it out, just in case. :)

With the 'metals' thought, be careful there. Soft metals (eg most aluminiums) are a lot easier to mill than the harder ones (eg cold rolled steel). It might be better to stick to soft metals for a while unless you're sure. :)

randomnumber314
I've worked with steel on it and it does well. Fair point on the accuracy issue. Any thoughts on something I can make that's in demand?
justinclift
As a thought, talk to the people involved with bio-med prototyping. If you can work in stainless steel, that build volume would likely be of interest to them. (assuming your actual accuracy is workable, but talk to a few places to find their requirements first)
detritus
Ah, exciting! We're wiring up our home-built CNC this week!

Keep a notepad to hand and every time you see something novel that you like that you could make on your machine, make a note of it your first thoughts about what you specifically like about it and how you'd like to make a version that is your own.

Make things for yourself that you want without much thought towards profit. Document and photo these things, and share them with people around you - in time someone will either want one, have their own tangent they'd like to investigate, or know someone who's in the same sphere.

A wee thing I'm doing at the moment with my laser-cutting, having hit a bit of a creative block earlier this year, is I've set myself a wee project to force myself to do an iteration every day or so. Doesn't need to take long - I'm budgeting half an hour or so to design then cut and treat at the end of each day, and I'm already staring at a couple of pieces now that I'm really happy with and wouldnt've bothered coming up with otherwise.

.

Also, short answer - signage :) A good 2.5D domain to practice in and make things that 'everyone wants'. particularly good in terms of finishing too, as there are sanding painting and varnishing challenges to be met too (where wood or MDF, etc, is concerned).

Good luck and, most of all - have fun!