I had a nice mail back from Chris Fitch who is the author and designer of the Woodsmith CNC router at the heart of this discussion. There are over 117 replies to date so lots of good reading. I wanted bigger motors to handle the load and I wanted to source as much as I could from within Canada. the biggest being the decision to use ball screws instead of threaded rods and anti-backlash nuts. I knew there were some things I wanted to change from the original article. There is a wealth of information out there! I spent the next month Googling everything with the word "CNC" in it and watching untold hours of YouTube videos made by professionals down to aspiring CNC'ers such as myself. We discussed design ideas and I knew I was hooked. I fired off some e-mails to Chris Fitch who is the author and designer of the machine.
Yes I'd have to add in software and tooling costs but that was for later.
Some quick Excel spreadsheet work showed me I could build this thing with a custom made base unit for about $2,500 Canadian. After a few casual reads and dismissing it as being way beyond what I could do, I decided there and then to just do it. Then issue #242 of Woodsmith Magazine landed in my mailbox. Entry level machines were north of $5,000 and something that would suit my needs was more likely $10,000 to $15,000 when you add in the software and tooling costs. I priced them out a few years ago, wet my pants, and parked that idea for when I won the lottery.
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Still based on open-source Grbl v1.1 the PROVer has stepped up to more powerful but silent Toshiba TB6S109 drivers with added life and performance along with added Optocouplers to protect your mainboard from hard stops without risk of damage and eliminate signal noise for more consistent projects and longevity. Make more with the all-aluminum body and take advantage of the added stability for milling a wider range of materials while also making clean up even easier with acrylic safety baffles to help contain dust and provide a safety barrier. If a project gets out of hand the PROVer has an emergency stop control that is very visible and easy to access for an immediate shutdown of your machine.
The 1.8” display will clearly display readouts and provide manual control of your mill without any computer. Now fully assembled and power on to engrave out of the box. The Fully Assembled 3018-PROVer is the latest version of the 3018 Desktop CNC DIY Kit Series. Subscribe to Receive: 3-Month Carveco Maker Subscription is included ($45 value).