A journey, it is said, begins with but a single step. I've lots to learn and experience, yet prior experience has enabled me to shorten somewhat the learning curve, I feel. I am an IT pro for many years, a locksmith by vocation and heavily trained in electricity and electronics by the US Navy. The decision to delve into CNC seems a natural one that will let me loose my creativity AND, hopefully get paid for it. The machine will be a LEAD 1010, fed by Vectric Pro for design, using just a Dewalt router for now.. A VFD equipped spindle may be in the offing, my table saw is a three phase late 40's Unisaw currently being restored. I have two questions. Is Vectric the best place to start, and would the gantry extension for the Lead 1010 justify its cost. I'm likely not going to mill thicknesses above 8 quarter oak, walnut or maple to start. All replies will be appreciated. I think it's gonna be a good ride!
Welcome to the world of hobby CNC. IT pro here as well as being retired Army. The lead1010 is my second CNC (should have been my first) though I did learn a lot building the first one. The larger capacity is worth the price. The Blackbox controller really simplifies things. Vectric is absolutely the best option for design software in my opinion. I recently upgraded to Pro and the fact that they give you 100% credit on your previous purchase(s) made it a no brainer for me. I see Aspire in my near future for doing my own 3d design work. I also just ordered the high Z mod. I got it for two reasons. First I want a more substantial spoilboard and with the standard Z axis that 1/4 inch really makes a difference in clearance height. I'm not so interested in the whole 8 inch clearance but I plan on setting it for about 4 inch of clearance. This will give me a lot more distance before I trip the Z limit switch.Go ahead and pull the trigger and don't think twice.
