CNC milling machine
*** for the time being (until the necessay changes have been made to the room in which the CNC is located) the milling machine is not available - please take into account that this may take a while ***
A CNC milling machine does the opposite of a 3D printer. A 3D printer starts with nothing and then builds up the model. A CNC milling machine starts with a full sheet of material and takes away material until the desired model is left. Of course, this implies a lot of waste, as often the model is only a fraction of the original sheet...
It works with a milling head that can mill away tiny layers from top to bottom of not too hard a material. When you mill away a tiny layer, the machine engraves, but if you mill away more material, you can create a 3D object.
The machine also works with a program for which you need an .stl file or an .svg file. So drawings are made either in 2D (as for the laser cutter) or in 3D (as for the 3D printer). Another disadvantage of this machine is that you can only take away material from the top side. You cannot take away material from the sides.
For this machine you'll always need to make an appointment. Take into account that this machine is not available on a daily basis and cannot be used for all projects. This will always be decided by the FabLab manager.
Please, take into account following guide lines:
As soon as your inkscape file is ready, you can pass by in FabLab on Fridays between 9 and 10 am in order to have your file checked by the FabLab manager (you want to be sure he's there that day, you can always give us a call on beforehand).
When the file is okay, an appointment for milling will be made asap (we try to plan the milling on Fridays after 10 am).
