# Went looking at new CNC's



## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

at the Detroit Woodworkers show and online and found too too much to digest. Firing the basement shop up after 25 years and have discovered many of my old tools are outdated. I'm just retired and just looking to do family and home projects ... until somebody wants to pay me to do something. Then look out.

I found the

Legacy - heard a lot of talk about them being in financial trouble and bad customer service

Shark - - not very sturdy from what some say

Laguna - - seemed pretty pricey but looked like a heck of a machine

Stinger - - depends on who you ask

Woodpecker - too pricey and poor customer service

Shopbot - - also a bit pricey but I can pick it up and do the 2 day class when I visit my son and first grandbaby.

And a bunch more.

I'm officially confused. 

Looking to spend around $6k. The reviews have good and bad to say about all of them. All opinions would be appreciated

Woodworking and shooting are not cheap hobbies.


HJ

PHD from the School of Hard Knocks


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## 4DThinker (Feb 16, 2014)

Hi John. I don't know if Probotix made it to that show, but they make a great range of CNCs from small kits to fully assembled with PC included up to 37" x 48". I have one of their Meteors (25" x 49") and like it so much I convinced my college boss to buy both a Meteor and Nebula (37" x 49") for the furniture design shop we have. The frame design with two Y motors means you can open up the bed to clamp vertically or at any angle under the bit. A simple stand from four 4x4 posts and some wide plywood stretchers will support their Comet/Asteroid/Meteor/Nebula designs with nothing underneath. For a small fee they'll include additional cross beams making it easy to clamp work inside the outer frame. All their CNCs are under $5k. They have a rotary axis available, are working on a dust shroud for using a shop vac. You can also spend a little more and get a water or air cooled spindle with your order. 

No, I don't work for them.

CNC Routers, 3D Printers, & CNC Stepper Motor Control Systems :: PROBOTIX™


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## Crosetti (Mar 21, 2013)

Hi John,
Well... speaking from my experience which is only a couple years all of the above are good choices, it depends on what you are doing. I have a Chinese 4'x8' CNC at work & a Shark at home.
The Chinese 4'x8' is a joke. Breaks down all the time, so much that we returned it. On the "new" replacement one they sent back, we had to replace 1 power supply, Y axis linear bearings & the power box (forgot the proper name) that controls the spindle ... all in the 1st month! So stay away from the bargain chinese makes. They aren't a bargain in the long run. But when it works it's a beautiful thing. Going from 60 - 80 imp on my Shark to 600+ ipm @ work is nice.

The Shark is a fine little machine. Doesn't cut fast or super accurate, but for my hobby uses it's a great little machine. I haven't found the plastic gantry flex ppl talk about to be a problem. 

If I were to do it again...
Work would be a Camaster Stinger 3.

Home would be PROBOTIX Nebula. Stronger frame, good parts & a 37"x50" work area for 500 bucks more than the Shark.

Good Luck!


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## Fasteddie58 (May 18, 2014)

I think you should look into Axion CNC as well, they are sold thru Rockler and Woodcraft. I spoke in length to an Engineer at this company and their machines are really built well.


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## Scottart (Jan 8, 2015)

*Hard to pick*

My Shark paid for itself in the first months and just paid for a CNC router parts Pro48 96 which will give me an up graded work area. But if you look at my posts, everything listed was made on my little shark Great machine. not fast, and the flexibility has not shown itself to be a problem for the art work i do. I am just setting up the CNC router parts machine this week so can 't report on it much yet, but I am sure excited about it, and they have smaller frames that would fall in your budget.

Decide what kind of work you want to do. Down load Aspire for free. Software pretty much determines what you want to do. V carve pro is a lite version of Aspire and will do most home stuff. Aspire adds 3 d Modeling to the V Carve features. With the free down load you can try anything out. the only missing element is you can't convert your designs to carving paths... but a great way to test drive the brains of the system . Check out my other posts to see what Aspire and a Shark can do. 

The attached picture is a mantel i designed in Aspire and carved with Shark..


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## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

Nice work, Scott !!

Can u do spindles or etch stuff like glasses with your shark???

HJ


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## Crosetti (Mar 21, 2013)

posting this so I can insert links (10th post)


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## Crosetti (Mar 21, 2013)

A cnc can etch with a diamond drag tool
Diamond Drag Engraving Bit for CNC Machines - Use Your CNC Machine to Engrave Metal, Plastic, Glass, and Granite - WidgetWorks Unlimited

Umm, I just read the price of the tool I linked ... that's way 2 much. I bought mine (exactly the same 1) for about $60.00


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## Scottart (Jan 8, 2015)

honesttjohn said:


> Nice work, Scott !!
> 
> Can u do spindles or etch stuff like glasses with your shark???
> 
> HJ


That would be outside my range of experience... but now I am curious..


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## honesttjohn (Feb 17, 2015)

Spent some time talking to Len at Probotix this afternoon. I can get a Nebula with all the trimmings all assembled (just got to connect the parts with the cables) for less than the cheapest Shopbot without the accessories. Don't have to supply anything but a little muscle to get it down to the basement and on a table.

$800 extra for a liquid or air cooled spindle - but it needs a 220 feed. Can get the Rotary attachment for $495 more. Debating whether to go with the router or spindle.

Can have it all for under $6k or around $5k with the router instead of the spindle.

Plus the table size is something like 28 x 50.

Went looking at the Aspire products ........... WOW! ... they sure think a lot of their stuff !!

Can have it made and shipped by the end of next week if I call him back tomorrow. Just got to make the decisions on the set up.

Nice thing - - he said that all the parts used in making these can be obtained off the shelf at most component places if anything was to happen to him or the company.

Spent a lot of time picking his brain. Left a good impression.

HJ


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## 4DThinker (Feb 16, 2014)

Aspire seems pricey, but includes all the features from their cheaper products and then some. You'll need it for 3D creation/toolpathing and rotary axis work. They also support it very well, with a busy/active forum and responsive support staff. 

The price is hard to swallow, but a CNC is pretty worthless with nothing to create tool paths for it. They let you upgrade for essentially the difference in price. You could start with VCarve Pro then later upgrade to Aspire for the difference in price. 

4D


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## cjskelton (Feb 27, 2015)

Scottart said:


> My Shark paid for itself in the first months and just paid for a CNC router parts Pro48 96 which will give me an up graded work area. But if you look at my posts, everything listed was made on my little shark Great machine. not fast, and the flexibility has not shown itself to be a problem for the art work i do. I am just setting up the CNC router parts machine this week so can 't report on it much yet, but I am sure excited about it, and they have smaller frames that would fall in your budget.
> 
> Decide what kind of work you want to do. Down load Aspire for free. Software pretty much determines what you want to do. V carve pro is a lite version of Aspire and will do most home stuff. Aspire adds 3 d Modeling to the V Carve features. With the free down load you can try anything out. the only missing element is you can't convert your designs to carving paths... but a great way to test drive the brains of the system . Check out my other posts to see what Aspire and a Shark can do.
> 
> The attached picture is a mantel i designed in Aspire and carved with Shark..


That is some incredible work, Scottart! Can't wait to see what you will be carving on your new machine.


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