Hackaday Prize Entry: A Simple CNC

3D printers are all the rage, but there’s still space for more traditional CNC machines. For their Hackaday Prize entry, [Andy], [Tim], and [Chris] are building the Sienci Mill – a simple desktop CNC mill that’s able to cut drill and carve everything from wood to circuit boards.

As far as desktop CNC machines go, it doesn’t get much more simple than this. They’re using steel plates for the rails, NEMA 17s for the motors, and a simple stepper motor driver Arduino shield for the controller. The more complex parts are 3D printed, and the BOM doesn’t add up to much.

Right now, the guys are testing their mill on wood, plastic, and aluminum. With 3D printed parts, they’re also able to test a bunch of different spindles from the ubiquitous router to the smaller Dremel. It’s a great project and should be fantastically cheap when the guys finalize the plans, making this a great entry for the Hackaday Prize.

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18 thoughts on “Hackaday Prize Entry: A Simple CNC

  1. looks very design’y but at least the shown flat-iron construction will simply not work. 3D-printed parts where mechanical stress will occur is another problem. Besides that, the thing is basically a shapeoko. The pictures on their project page show however quite some different designs and driving techniques but nothing fundamentally new. Will keep an eye on the project.

    1. Depends on what you mean by handle metal. Leaving aside casting (which uses softer materials to make molds), there are laser cutters, and three approaches which can be tackled by a hobbyist to build their own. I am currently building a cnc plasma cutter. I have plans to convert an old bridgeport type mill to cnc. And I have been studying options for a welding wire 3d printer (At the moment I am leaning towards tig in a kiln).

  2. Oh hi everyone! I didn’t realize that we had an article written about us! Just wanted to let everyone know that the design you see on the post isn’t the actual machine right now. Please check out our page or website to see the actual design!

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