Hi I'm Alex and welcome to Super Make Something Basics. Today
we take a look at an intro to CNC machining with help from the FoxAlien 3018-SE.
3D printing has become arguably the most popular way for makers to create objects at home.
Whether a machine deposits a bead of material from a spool of filament
or cures an entire layer of resin simultaneously, 3D printers all use
a form of "additive manufacturing," where an object is slowly built up over time.
Like its name suggests, "subtractive manufacturing" is exactly the opposite process.
Here, material is slowly removed from a piece of raw material, or "stock," by milling,
drilling, cutting, or sawing. While many subtractive manufacturing machines exist,
CNC, or computer numerical control machines, are among the most popular way for makers to
create parts with this process at home. Even though hobby CNC machines have been
available for multiple years, they have often been expensive compared to 3D printers that
can make objects at a similar size. Recently, smaller desktop CNCs have become available,
which allow makers to begin experimenting with CNC machining without breaking the bank.
One of the companies creating such machines is FoxAlien, who make the 3018-SE CNC machine,
a fully enclosed 3-axis mill that retails for under $400. Having not purchased a machine
since the Shapeoko 2 over five years ago, I was excited to see how the state of home CNC machines
have progressed, and was sent the machine by FoxAlien in exchange for my honest review.
Like most CNC machines and 3D printers, the 3018-SE is a DIY kit that needs to
be assembled by the user. The CNC arrived in a well-packaged box and included all of the parts
and tools needed to build the machine, as well as an SD card with example G-code, cables to power
the machine and connect it to your computer via USB, a full-color printed instruction booklet,
a conductive probe to zero the Z-axis of the machine, and a set of engraving bits to carve
letters into wood, acrylic, or aluminum. This unit also comes with a dedicated E-Stop button,
which is great for immediately stopping the machine in case of an emergency.
While building a CNC machine may seem daunting to people who are new to the maker hobby, the process
was very straight forward and thoroughly explained in the printed instructions. Since this was the
first CNC machine that I was putting together in a few years, I took my time with the build,
and was able to get everything assembled in about four hours. One note is that since I
received the machine, FoxAlien now exclusively sells the 3018-SE V2, which already comes half
assembled making the build process even easier. I personally also picked up an offline controller
so that I did not have to dedicate a computer to streaming G-code to the machine while it's
cutting, as well as a metal vise to easily mount small pieces of stock into the unit.
FoxAlien is clearly intending the 3018-SE to be a CNC machine for beginners,
so they recommend generating G-code to control the unit using the online software Easel. Easel is a
browser-based software originally developed by Inventables for their X-Carve machine,
and works by either dragging in basic shapes or uploading vector graphics files, configuring some
cutting options, and then generating a G-code file that can then be downloaded onto your computer.
The software makes it easy to create G-code, but a user should be warned that Easel's default
settings are for Inventable's own X-Carve machine, which has a 300W spindle. The default settings
are therefore too aggressive for the 3018-SE which is shipped with a 60W spindle by default.
Unfortunately recommended cut settings for materials are not included in the 3018-SE manual,
making it necessary for an individual to Google and experiment until they find values that
work with the machine. Since Easel uses vector graphics files, generating G-code to cut "2.5D
objects" with surface contours is also a bit cumbersome and limited. More serious CNC
users will likely look into generating G-code with Autodesk's Fusion 360 software instead,
but I was unable to get this working in time for the review due to the large number
of G-code generation and export options in this software. To make it possible for people to get up
and running quickly, it would be great if FoxAlien would include instructions about how to generate
G-code with this software that is compatible with the 3018-SE in future versions of the manual.
Once the G-code is generated and the stock is mounted in the machine, the 3018-SE can
be controlled either with a USB connection from a PC using the Candle GRBL control software or using
FoxAlien's own offline controller and an SD card. I opted for the latter and was impressed with how
responsive the controller was and how easy it was to zero the machine and start cutting. Since the
machine's X, Y, and Z-axis are controlled with Nema 17 stepper motors and the spindle is only
60W, cut settings need to be very conservative, so cutting will definitely take a while.
Unlike 3D printing, milling material is also quite a bit louder and can generate a bit of a mess,
which is why I think that the feature that makes the FoxAlien 3018-SE stand out from
other 3018 machines is its acrylic enclosure. Not only does this cut down the noise to tolerable
levels, it also keep chips and dust from flying everywhere which makes it possible to use the
machine indoors. While still not quiet compared to a 3D printer, the enclosure makes it significantly
less loud than other open-frame 3018 machines. Throughout the cutting process, I needed to
clear out the dust every once in a while with a hand-vaccuum so it was handy that the machine was
close by, though in the future I'll probably 3D print a dust-shoe and mount it in the machine to
vacuum away chips throughout the cutting process. After about four hours, the machine finished
cutting a piece for a future project out of a 3/8in thick piece of pine and the results were
very impressive. The overall dimensions of the piece were accurate, and the surface finish of the
cut edges was smooth and required minimal sanding. Overall, I am very happy with the FoxAlien 3018-SE
and it will definitely be used in future projects that require parts that cannot be 3D printed.
The FoxAlien 3018-SE is a great machine for beginners looking to get into CNC carving.
The machine's engraving capabilities and its wide range of accessories also allow a user to
customize its capabilities based on their needs, and enable it to be used for other projects like
making simple dual-sided circuit boards. While serious CNC enthusiasts may eventually outgrow
the machine by wanting to cut other materials like aluminum, the 3018-SE is an inexpensive way to get
into the world of CNC and a great machine for smaller projects. In case you're interested in
picking one up for yourself, links to where the machine can be purchased online can be found in
the video description below. If enjoyed this video and learned something new, please consider giving
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to this episode of Super Make Something Basics! Thanks for watching, now Go Super Make Something!