CNC Options?

[Andrew Blair]

This thread is a sort of spinoff of this "budget machining" thread. http://www.chiefdelphi.com/forums/sh...386#post447386

Our team has been fortunate in that we have a very large machining resource at our school. However, with the exception of a rather finicky PlasmaCam, we have no CNC equipment. However, we may be in the position for some grant money, and we have looked at several options for what we can buy.

One possible option is to buy a small, solid state laser. They range between $20-25 grand. We had one for a time, as a demo, and the CNC ability was very nice, but it was only capable of cutting wood and plastics. No metal capability whatsoever. Very useful for fundraising stuff, classroom education, and some plastic pieces on the robot, but again, no metal capability.

I am looking for other potential options, that have the metal option, ideally while retaining the other niceties: ease of use, low consumeable cost, low maintenance, and hopefully, non-metal material friendly still. The budget stands at up to 15k, but obviously the lower the better. I have seen some low priced CNC mills, but are there more friendly CNC options? Are there retrofit CNC mill kits?

This is a hypothetical question, as there is no money guranteed yet. But what are some options?