CNC Mill Business

My dad and I have a CNC mill in our basement which we use for our business and his work. I came up with this idea; why don't we use the CNC to craft custom designs that people need for their projects but cannot do because of the extensive costs of buying a durable CNC mill. Essentially make a business out of our CNC.

My question to you is, do you people think I have a market for this. Along with yourself, is there anyone who would need a quick, relatively low cost solution to custom design production.

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Self Bump

i thought about this same thing? what kind of things can you make?

Anything in the realm of CNC to be honest. Nothing too big either.

like what?

how big is the machine?

how much did it cost?

how much does the material cost?

give me an example
of what you can make.
time it takes to make it.
the amout of material it takes to make said item and how much that material cost

Make a bunch of fidget spinners. It's the new normie thing now. $$$ idea user

So its about 2 feet in length and width, 2 feet in height. We got it for free from my dads work years ago. We are actually building a bigger, more robust by the end of the year for our other business. As for materials, thats up to the customer. It could be anything such as wood, aluminum, maybe steel?

The reason for this business is more of a side hustle for more money. My priorities lay in my other business(s).

again
What can you make?
how much time does it take to make?
how much material does it take to said item and how much does that material cost?

just name an item. calculate out if its worth doing. can you sell it for a good profit after material cost and time?

I dont think its just about the market, i think it also has a little bit to do with what YOU can do with it and if it's profitable enough to move forward with it. If you find a niche market im sure you can do fairly well, but again its all about what YOU can do with it and if you will be profitable in whatever item you are making.

How fast can you obtain the necessary material and tools to machine the parts to accuracy, finish them, and deliver them?

How is your local economy? Are there mechanics and farmers who need machined parts for vital equipment? Machine shops that are overloaded and could use some help with some parts of the process? The internet and social media allows you to sell pre-machined things and advertise your service as well.

If you want to compete, quality, precision, and accuracy are a must. A QA plan is helpful so you can ensure that your customers are getting exactly what they ordered and that it's within tolerance. The Chinese have an advantage when it comes to common, low-quality, cheap goods. No use going that route.

I got ripped off on kickstarter. This guy said he could make these cool key chain things out of titanium.

It turns out that titanium is extremely difficult to work with and beyond his skill level so he just gave up and never gave refunds.

kickstarter.com/projects/carterjames/lattice-titanium-key-shackle

Do you think you could steal his design and make me one?

Don't use titanium though.... Use an easy metal....

give a discount to people from Veeky Forums making shit to sell.
let's get rich together.

Duly noted, I have't calculated any costs but, we are well within the line of precision crafting metal parts. Like I said, the customer is responsible for materials and what not. This is a side business, not a multi-million corporate company.

hmmm, I will keep the kickstarter link in mind and contact you if I believe we are capable and ready to try it out. Also where do you live. Also understand that there is a high margin for failure considering Im just starting this with a relatively, entry level CNC machine.

Dude not a bad idea, unfortunately I will most likely never get in contact with you, let alone start a business together.

Hey actually quick question. I have multiple ideas from for our businesses that I have though about posting on Kick starter. Give me a quick run down if its worth it or not. Did most of the Funding come from family or random individuals.

I'm in SW Ohio. I can't imagine shipping would be that much.
>Also understand that there is a high margin for failure considering Im just starting this with a relatively, entry level CNC machine.

Gotcha

why not?

im sure a few people here have collaborated on projects before all this crypto shit, there are still people here that collaborate on stock trades and crypto trades.

look into what absolute advantage is and opportunity cost. teaming up is sometimes the best thing to do in business. If you can make the item, someone might know the ins and outs of the distribution market and can help you sell items

>Did most of the Funding come from family or random individuals

For that project it was all random people.

And they were ANGRY when the dude disappeared. I'm pretty easy going and knew it was a crapshoot but some of those people were pretty upset. Just read the comments.

So if you do go the kickstarter route you really need to be sure you can deliver on whatever your product is. Don't bite off more than you can chew.

Hey mate not trying to burst your bubble and wish you the best but most engineering places will do all sorts of custom jobs not only mass production stuff.

Can you make anything like pic related? If so I might have a lot of business for you if you can price it cheaper than the Chinamen.

This is an interesting idea. In what form does a customer provide his specs?

But they are expensive, when only doing a single or relatively few samples. Their market is bulk production.

He gives us a template or asks us to design it with with some software for an extra cost. They could also supply the material or give us money to buy it instead. The target market is local people who need specialized pieces for whatever reason.

Machine custom aluminum kneepads

I was thinking on doing something similar (in my developing country), I've bounced the idea of doing some very cheap CNC furniture and other arty stuff like wall accents and the like, basically home decoration but mainly the cheap furniture.

Also renting it for hobbyists, a Makerspace basically (with 3d printing, plotters, plasma cutters, etc) but I've yet to research how interested people would be. It's a big city where I live in with nothing like this but people aren't "cultural".