Please see my follow up video for answers to questions and more info: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pNKHi8ydyru3kok.html If you want the 3D files and wiring diagrams, check here: github.com/BenMakesEverything/Ben_CNC_v1

Not an engineer!?!? You may not be formally trained, but you are absolutely an engineer. Great job!

I am a very well experienced machinist of 25 years. I am impressed. You took on a huge project and came out successful. Great job!

My jaw dropped when you showed what your machine is capable of (although the build process itself was already hella impressive). Kudos to you and your skills!

It wasn't until you said that this was your first project with a CAD tool I truly realized just how much of an enormous task this must have been for you, truly impressed.

I am an engineer (electronics) and I would not attempt such a project as you have. I have to say, though you're not an "engineer", you are in fact what an engineer is. That you have been successful is a reflection of your careful and studied approach to such a monumental project, weighing the pros and cons and tradeoffs to each decision. That is to a great deal what real engineering involves. You mention in your video that it took you almost 1 year to complete your project. I can appreciate the time involved. Complex projects do take time and usually more than we initially realize. One thing I would have asked myself considering such a project as yours is whether it would be cost-effective for me to spend the time and money and do the entire job myself vs. purchasing a pre-built CNC. There are advantages and tradeoffs to both approaches of course. With your approach you learned things that someone purchasing a CNC would likely not learn. And of course, building it yourself gives you the unique feeling of satisfaction that one does not get from purchasing a similar CNC. That you built it yourself also gives you the ability to repair and/or modify your machine in ways that one ordinarily would not be able to do. On the other hand, purchasing a CNC allows you to get to the job(s) at hand almost immediately. Those are just some of the tradeoffs with building it yourself vs purchasing. In any case, your results are quite remarkable. You might consider offering your CNC as a kit; I'm sure it will sell. Of course, putting together a kit and making it into a money-making proposition is a completely different kind of challenge. But considering your excellent approach I think you'd be equally successful. Unless I missed it, one thing you don't mention in the video is the resolution in the X, Y, and Z axis - something that would be of interest to others. Best of luck with your future projects and congratulations on a very impressive result!

I just finished building the handrail on my deck kzfaq.infoUgkxfQ5_mgwq6PcudJvAH25t-I4D-3cTPz4z and used this great little router to clean up the top rail before the final sanding and stain. It was light weight but packed lots of power. Either size battery didn't seem to make it top heavy and I'm a 64 yr old women so I really appreciated how easy it was to use...................... CORDLESS only way to go !!

Algorithm has spoken! Hello from Poland! 😃

This is what I mean for a REAL Tutorial. A design, main measures, components list. A great help to understand what to do. Really good job, Ben. Not for the object only, but for the excellent way You followed to present it.

Sir, this is EXCEPTIONALLY well done. Definitely the best and most practical DIY CNC build I've seen on KZfaq. Just the right amount of detail too. 👏🏻

Just going down the rabbit hole of KZfaq videos on building your own CNC. Nice job on your build!

My compliments to your ingenuity and resourcefulness! I first built a pcb mini milling machine in 1995, pre maker explosion, wrote code in VB4 and wrote step bit patterns directly though FETS to motors via the pc parallel port. I know the task is multi faceted and can appreciate your efforts. Proffessional results!

I’ve never seen you channel before but this came up recommended. I already own an open builds workbee v3 kit. And to be honest, even though I have spent over $3000 and many, many man hours setting it up, I think yours is way better! Absolutely brilliant. Well done and congrats

"Far from perfect" you say. One of the fist things you learn as a machinist is nothing is "perfect". You did a great job , much respect.

Great project! Amazed you could put that together for around $1000. Can’t wait to see what you will build next. Make sure you show us your tool collection as it grows. I imagine you’ll have a shop with all kinds of stuff in there in no time. Good luck!

Unbelievable that such a small youtuber makes so high quality videos. Keep going such a great vid!

This is really well done! Looking forward to future projects!

Watched this twice I enjoyed it so much and it flowed so well. I usually can't even watch something ONCE w/out getting distracted. GREAT job, esp with crappy hand tools. Super impressive.

Great build, best practical tutorial I have seen so far! I like that you condensed everything in a 15 minute video while still remaining clear. One tip I have from building my CNC is that those loose wires going into your arduino might cause you problems in the future. I would suggest making a shield with screw terminals to effectively lock the wires in. If a step or direction wire vibrates loose during machining, one or more axis can fail, resulting in a crash.

You are absolutely an engineer. Great job. What you made is incredible

Nice! You've given me the practical, not ridiculously expensive inspiration I've been looking for all week. Much appreciated.

I subscribed after I saw your finished projects. People can talk a good game but the proof is in the production. You did well, better than I thought it would turn out.

As others have already stated .. this randomly came up in my recommended videos. Great effort there, really like what you've created and the decisions you made.

My friend, you now have a product. Don't keep this to yourself. You genuinely have an opportunity to give yourself the chance to never have to worry financially, as well as your kids You did amazing. I showed my dad, who is also a CNC machinist, and he too was both impressed and jealous. I'm truly amazed. Congrats

"I'm not an engineer" (after engineering and fabricating a very capable and functional CNC router) ;) Great video by the way.

Wow, your DIY CNC machine build is seriously impressive! 🙌 Great job on tackling such a big project with limited tools!

Such a great video. From the build to your explanations to your projects to editing it was all very well done. On the way to build my own now

I was mesmerized by your work!! Very impressive. You were extremely descriptive and informative. Thank you for sharing your wonderful build with us 😊

legitimately channels like this have inspired some of my favorite projects and i can't express my gratitude more.

I’m currently going through my own CNC build and this gives me good inspiration and some ideas to implement on mine. Thanks for documenting the process so well.

Awesome, great results. One day I'll do mine too. Waiting for more videos!! Congratulations Ben.

Very good job you did there! Not only the video is top tier, but also youre CNC is looking good and works just fine.

I'm just speechless 😶...... And totally envious! Magnificent machine and carvings.

WOW, you are one very clever man, to take on something so complex and achieve something so good. My hat goes off to you, and you've inspired me to see if I can achieve something similar. Hope to see more great videos from you in the future.

Good Job, look forward to more from your channel. I went down the same rabbit hole over the last couple years and it's amazing how similar our results are. I went with large spindle/vfd and ESS to Gecko drives. Also had several large pcs of 1" T6 and access to lathe & mill but overall design turned out very similar. Keep em coming.

Mate like wow. I really don't think I've ever seen someone do what you have done here. I work in fabrication and we use industrial branded machinery and I kid you not, I haven't met someone who can produce a detailed and accurate product on a million dollar machine than what you have produced here. Also, your knowledge on CNC programming and CAD drawing is up there. I commend you sir.

I was not prepared for the product showcase 😳 this is bloody inspiring!

Nice. I love finding new channels like this!

Further proof that hard work and determination, make a successful outcome! Great job!

Just about to embark on the same journey so your project was a must see and an inspiration. I love the way you housed the electronics, I'm stealing that idea.

Wow. You clearly are an engineer at heart! Great video. Very helpful and inspiring. Thanks

My God! You are a talent. My hat off Mr. Ben Makes Everything. Best regards from Melbourne, Australia.

I cant tell you how many iterations I went through I had a reliably built CNC.. Yours looks and works great on your first try!

Wow, looks amazing and really inspires me to try this out, though I am a bit hesitant regarding the electronics and programming aspects. Great project and great video!

I watched your entire video and I am impressed, I started with a Buildyourcnc 4x8 kit, and is amazing how much you learn by putting one together and the ups and downs, I then purchased a Laguna IQ for our shop, 2x3 ft. And later a Industrial Artisan 408 to replace the Buildyourcnc ( Way over priced but they do work). And I was imaginging this taking you awhile to do and when you said 1 year, I was like, yes this stuff goes through so much that people will never understand in a 14 minute video. With all that said you did a very impressive video and kept it to the point, clean cut and full of the right knowledge that matters to someone wanting to build one. And remember this, you have to build the machine so it can build the machines, now you can mill all your parts on it and fine tune it, But you did an amazing job and I am very proud to become a new subscriber to your channel. I hope you find your place on the KZfaq platform because you deserve it, pulling off a video that good so early on. PS, lasers are fun too :) Started with a cheap 400.00 Ebay laser and now have a Laguna EX-C 36x50. You should give one a try, they are far more amazing than a CNC when you learn how to use it to your advantage where a CNC cannot do tight corners.

Dude your a pretty sick artist way beyond your mechanical skills. A true craftsman. Nice work and beautiful art.

That surely wasn't cheap as people would imagine it to be... Nice build... coming from an engineer-constructor, props for your first time... welcome to the club!

OMG that's art I made one out of plywood and threaded rod . You've inspired me to do it right. Great Job

Omg I'm so glad I found your video bc I've been going on about the different tools and various uses of the same basic framework designs

Incredible video. Perfectly paced. Clearly described. So awesome

I know many engineers that cant do 20% of what you do. The difference between them and you, is that you are a born engineer and they just have an education. Good job👍🏼🙏

Excellent! So well done and so nicely presented!

I love the wiring thing too! I beginning to think this machine is better than you would get commercially.

Thanks. Appreciate that you reported that it took a year. That is helpful.

This is amazing, I would love a cost break down and maybe a build guide. I know I'm asking a lot but I would love to build one on my own.

Fantastic work. I love your example pieces. You definitely made a quality machine. You should be very proud of yourself.

Pure genius Ben, absolutely brilliant!!

Thanks for sharing your design and the assembling process. I have the same fascination with CNCs and manufacturing in general, that you have. Probably, I will make one in the near future here in Brazil.

Holy shit. You are dedicated, my dude. It turned out looking fantastic. And your projects look awesome.

This was wonderfully educational!! More power to you ❤ keep creating!

Really great job! I followed a similar route, but I built a WAY smaller prototype (roughly 400 x 500 x 150mm) out of MDF first. Kind of a proof of concept designed in SketchUp. All the electronics for a larger machine were installed, though. It worked fantastically well - so much so that I used it as is for more than a year! During that time, I designed V2 of my CNC using Fusion 360. This one built out of aluminium extrusions and 16mm aluminium. The biggest change was to use 2 motors on the Y-Axis due to the size of the new machine. A lot of lessons were learnt from building the first machine, so all of those were incorporated into the new one. The new one was 1500mm x 1000mm x 450mm. The best part was that I used my MDF CNC to cut the parts for the new CNC. It was slow, but it worked, and it was accurate enough to enable me to assemble the new machine in less than a day! The only tools I used in constructing V1 were a jigsaw, handheld drill, screwdrivers, Allen keys, taps and glue. With V2 it was pretty much taps and Allen keys. I recently upgraded to a 1500W liquid cooled spindle, which made a MASSIVE difference. I have my eyes set on building me a similarly sized 100W laser CNC over the next couple of years… Happy CNC-ing!!

"How hard can it be?" Having this mentality and being stubborn has helped me a lot in life. Pretty quickly, or at the latest half way through what ever it is I thought I could do, my naivity usually dawns on me, but then the stubborness kicks in and I see it through any way. I've learnt so much this way, and I am really thankful for my slightly stupid but positive naivity. The only real way you can fail at things is by never trying at all.

Very impressive! Great job with both the build and the tutorial!!

Amazing video , nice editing and really to the point ! You helped me understand a lot of things about CNC . I m in the research of making one for my self and I m pretty sure that I will return to this video again for answers

Impresionante compañero.....Toda una obra de arte.....Mil gracias por su aportación a la comunidad.....Ya me he dado de alta de inmediato en su canal......A la espera de que siga subiendo más contenido tan interesante.....Un gran abrazo desde Las Islas Canarias (España).............Bendiciones.................

That's pretty impressive. Thanks for sharing. Subscribed!

I do love the fantasy-themed end-products you created! thanks for sharing your year of work! XD

Hey! I just made a very similar CNC at home myself, although a bit smaller than yours and added a tiny 4th axis. You make it look easy my friend! ...I wish I'd seen your video before I started my project because you got some pretty cool ideas there. Kudos! A fellow "not an engineer"

An absolutely brilliant achievement. Well done !!!

Great job and video. Congrats!!

Nice work all around.

Very interesting build, i like the surface with the inserts and the way you did breakouts for the motors

Very nice project. You have done exactly what I would like to do!

You're doing something right, YT just recommended this video to me. Nice work.

Wow! That is very impressive. Well done.

WOW, Top quality content, subscribed!

Well you certainly can be proud of that machine!!! Great job!!

Like others here, I am totally impressed by how good the projects are that you made...and the machine that made them!

Fantastic build Ben!

Yes! Someone has actually used DIY in their title and actually did a DIY project without tools that cost six figures! This is awesome. I’d love to build one. Maybe sometime in the future you could attempt building a 4th axis mod!

This channel is one of the best recommendations KZfaq has ever given me. Fantastic work! I immediately subscribed. I have an idea for another project as well. DIY tabletop lathe :)

Thanks for this easy understandable view. 👍

Shielded motor cables, nice tip. Especially useful on bigger machines.

This is awesome... I want to do the same thing for years!! Great job my friend. Now that I have a lot of time available could be the time to start. But I really need to watch the budget.

Very well done. In case you ever have to tap tons of holes in metal in the future, opt for threaded inserts/helicoils. That way if you ever damage threads you can reuse the hole and not have to retread a hole.

Great work. Thinking about building my own

Absolutely incredible. This is incredible.

Excellent work!

Incredible! What an amazing job!

Awesome! Great video.

You did an amazing job, when there is a will, there is a way.

The algorithm has led me to you and i accept the challenge in a year I'll take your lead and work on this thank you

Loved the video. 😊 Good luck on your journey.

Awesome job!!

Your 3d carved work is great

Alright man, this is my next project. Thank your for making such an easy-to-follow guide!

Fantastic. I don't have words

Awesome project

What a great video. Short but detailed enough. Also your cnc looks verry well though out exept the missing dust shoe.

Excellent and inspiring video.❤