u/learningstuffalldayl

Hello!

I've recently been interested in getting into CNC after a year with my 3D printer. I have many hobby ideas that I want to try that are not possible with 3-D Printing alone. I have experience with 3-D/CAD and your usual technology jargon.
HOWEVER, I tried to do my research on Desktop CNCs but there are so many brands, models, features, and limitations that I am completely lost on what to get as my first CNC machine.

For now, I am interested in carving into acrylic bases for my collectibles, to be able to affix them to the bases with good sturdiness. Some of these bases are about 5 x 5 x 2 inches which I believe the most modern desktop CNCs should be able to handle. I'd like the carving detail to be super smooth and neat, and to avoid jagged steps or cracked acrylic edges. Pretty much I am looking for good quality results in a small-medium factor. Eventually, I may also want to work with aluminum, brass, and any other metals that the recommended CNC machine supports.

I've looked into Carbide Nomad 3, Makera Z1, Carvera Air, Fox Alien, Shapeko, Genmitsu, and more. They all look like they could probably get the job done, but I really want to narrow my focus to the best out there because I plan on creating prototypes for my business and I'd like to be able to learn about CNC without fighting against it.

I have spatial limitations as I live in an apartment, so I am strongly considering machines with enclosure and vacuum inserts would be nice to have as I am also planning on getting a Fein Turbo 1 job vacuum to aid with dust and material shavings.

My budget is about $2,500 USD, but I am open to investing a little more if it its absolutely necessary for my use case.

I'll greatly appreciate any recommendations and beginner tips.
TIA!

Hello,
I've had this keyboard since it came out and at first it was working fine. But lately, it seems like the stream deck profiles are not responsive when switching apps. I have the streamdeck software minimized and configured as intended. Wondering if an update broke it?

Hello!

I have a decimated model imported from ZBrush that does not have UV maps, it's a jewelry piece in which I only need to get it's curvature and I don't plan on using anything that may require UV mapping. But, I want to give the surface a brushed metal look and I am having issues with finding the right Projection Mapping method to accomplish this. I pretty much want a way to project a roughness texture over the model's entire surface, and use Transform nodes to adjust the direction of the roughness map so that the brushed metal effect will look
even across the entire jewelry piece without any warping and seams.

Besides that, what is the best way to visualize a node on the model? For example, if I want to see the roughness map texture on the model in a flat way so that I can see texture mapping better instead of rendered altogether with the rest of the nodes, is there a toggle?

Any tips will be greatly appreciated.