Thread: Would you buy an Australian built CNC Router ?

Hi Russell

If I just wanted a CNC Router for hobby work as you suggest, I would be very happy to buy Australian Made. And, I would be confident that whatever you came up with would be very good value. Having built my own machine and being aware of the costs involved, something around $3000 would be excellent value if you could do it.

Whilst I am a hobbyist, the building of my machine itself has actually been a large part of my hobby activities, so, for those of us that get pleasure out of the build itself, we would likely not be in your target group

However, I am aware of quite a few people who have no interest in building a machine but would love to produce all manner of items either as a hobby or a small business. A CNC machine such as you are suggesting would be ideal for them. So, there would definitely be a market out there for your machines.

I wish you success if you do decide to launch into production.

Cheers
Geoff

I have been looking at a CNC machine with those sorts of specs, so being able to buy an Australian made machine would be an attractive option.

But, and I think it is a big but, wouldn't it just be an Australian assembled machine?

AFAIK most of the components for these types of machines are sourced from China, I would be surprised if any of the major components would be made in Australia, or am I wrong?

One of our members here has been building/assembling these sorts of machines for some time and he frequently states that he can't buy the parts for what these Chinese machines sell for.

Hi Russell,
You are probably asking the wrong people as the readers here already know it would be worth paying another $1k for a much better machine.

As you know I have been making and selling machine sometimes break even and sometimes at a loss just to amuse myself and fund the next machine. It is increasingly harder to find first time buyers for my machines so I will no longer be doing that. Incidently Tubot after being on the market for around five months sold a couple of weeks ago and was moved to the new owner today. I dropped $2k on the build price and that's not considering my build time but I had been using it a bit so it was second hand to the new owner.

The Chinese machines are very good value. They have warts but for just about every new hobby buyer they are excellent value and they work. I brought one in just to see the build quality and I don't think you can beat them for price.

The reason I am saying all this is the work I do now I would not own one as I expect a lot more than the Chinese machine can deliver. First time users find it hard to justify $3k when you can buy a table saw, bandsaw and jointer and still have change for that sort of money. Somebody who is a serious woodworker would pay $3k just for the table saw.

So instead of limiting or even compromising your machine to compete or be a better alternative to the imported machines just ignore that market and make a machine to your own specification. My mistake was adding on the bells and wistles like console, computer, stand, air pump, etc which are standard operating items for me but hard to justify the cost for a new user.

Hopefully you will get more opinions.

If you think that you can do a machine for $3000, then I think you should aim for bigger and better.

CNC shark is sold for just under $5000 and PEOPLE ARE BUYING THEM.

My mother used to say "If you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything".....so I won't say what I think of the shark. I have used one, this is not second hand knowledge. You don't have much to beat.

One clever thing they do, is include Vcarve Pro software.

Greg

Hey guys, excellent feedback, just what I was hoping for.

OK one at a time, Geoff, you are right, a lot of people want to build their own stuff and we are not aiming at taking away that pleasure from them Our target is those that wish to purchase a machine, plug it in and start making things. At the moment I don't think we are looking at supplying controller software or hardware, and leave the user to choose that, Mach, EMC2 and so on, there is certainly enough support for users to make those decisions for themselves, I see a lot of good machines (not all Chinese) that have propriety software that do more to limit their function than enhance it.

Big Shed they would be as made in Aus as possible, obviously we are not going to make our own ballscrews or motors, but source as much from Aus distributors as much as possible. Even so there is more than just assembling the machine, there still needs to be a base frame assembly for everything to bolt onto, one option is to offer just that, a carcass that can be purchased with machined surfaces ready to accept whatever the customer wishes to install.

Hi Rod, yes as we have talked about on several occasions it will be difficult to purchase parts for less than the Chinese offerings let alone manufacture a decent quality machine to boot, but if it can be incorporated into an existing manufacturing process with little extra time then it may be viable. We are talking small margins but a little profit is better than no profit. At the end of the day we will start with a target price, factor in costs and come up with the best bang for buck machine we can put together. If it happens to be something that we would be happy with in the shed then we will think about selling a couple, otherwise there will be an extra lucky door prize at the next CNC BBQ, lol.

Hi Greg, I didn't realise the Shark sold for that much...and I am with you on the not saying anything nice part ! It may be that the end price will be higher (you guys can't quote me on the $3000 by the way !) or that we replace ballscrews with belts or rack and pinion, linear rails with hardened v bearings to come in under budget, so long as the end result is something worthwhile.

Keep the comments coming, it may not turn out to be a viable idea, only time will tell, but we are willing to give it a red hot go.

Cheers.

Russell.

The Shark sells because it is retailed through a reputable dealer and is a turn key solution. I have worked on a couple and provided support and like the Chinese machine they do work. I agree with previous comments about the quality though.

An experienced CNC user would be looking at more substancial machines but an entry level person wants either a cheap machine or the safest path. The Chineses machines offer the first option while the Shark meets the criteria of the second. That is why they sell.

I encourage you to have a go but be aware of your market. You really need a turn key solution to capture the first time user. The electronics is daunting to most shedies but is easy for somebody with your background. Transport will not be cheap from FNQ so think about that as well.

Software can be overcome by providing configuraqtion files for the different platforms.
I hope you are thinking of marketing with steppers and not those mumbo jumbo servos - sorry couldn't miss you on that one.

I have just run another BBQ event over here so must be getting close to Queensland's turn to host one. Actually Melbourne has been a bit slack of late.

MMMMMMM a machine built in FNQ with local support and less freight cost.
Sounds VERY good to me
Cheers
Wolffie

Russell,

I think you Need to think bigger. For all the effort that you would put into making the machine, dealing with the hobbyist would frustrate you. We just went to Ballarat last weekend to help a fella out with his new machine?

This one Legacy CNC Woodworking - Artisan II CNC

Now, this is a $50k unit delivered to Aus, so why not try something this size with a $30k price tag and better quality. It has 5 axis's but the 5th just raises the 4th to make tapered work.

At that price you can make some good profit and the support you would have to put in would pay for itself.

My over inflated Australian 2 cents.

/M

For 50k, I would feel ripped off looking at that machine, it looks like junk.

If I was to pay someone to make one, then rod would be my first choice. If rod reckons its not viable then I would whole heartedly accept that as gospel.