Overall, the Evolution 4 from BobsCNC is an extremely well designed and built product. Think about getting a dust shoe and dust collection system to keep things tidy. This means it generates substantially more dust as a result.
The E4 is capable of cutting a lot more than other entry level machines. The router/spindle is a real power tool, so it makes quite a bit of noise. It’s louder than most entry level machines.
It is not unheard of for Bob himself to respond and help to troubleshoot any issues by phone or email outside of normal working hours. By all accounts they are extremely fast to respond. Speaking of questions, if you have any issues BobsCNC has top notch support. If there are any questions, there are plenty of good resources on YouTube and in Facebook groups. Luckily, the included instructions are detailed and thorough. It will likely take a day or two but you will develop a good understanding of the machine itself doing it. You will need to assemble everything yourself. While other machines often arrive mostly assembled, this is not the case with machines from BobsCNC. Short run comfort may lessen what you can accomplish in the long run.A key difference of the E4 when compared to other starter CNCs is that the setup is more involved. Get whatever you feel comfortable with in the long run. My wife says I cannot live on have been self taught on all these softwares and now I would like to re-learn the right way. This fall I am going back to College to learn SolidWorks and MasterCam from the ground up.
Order a OMax 5555 Water Jet for home which should be here in the next couple of weeks.Īt work the goto is Solidworks Sheet metal and next month we are looking at a new Sheet Metal specific software called Sheet Works which can itegrate directly to our Lasers, Turrets and Press Brakes. And I did not like the edge quality (spoiled after 30 years of Lasering parts) so I am donating the Plasma to a local Tech school if they ever call me back. Programming.well I tried the software that came with my Plasma Cutter and was rather disappointed. My goto for design currently is Cadkey for 90% of what I do at home. 90% of the time on my home projects I don't but at work everything gets a Print. As the Model is updated so to does the print update.should you require a print. I can also build a data base of 3D parts as time goes on and use them as is or copy and modify and incorporate these models into new designs.Īn extension of the Design side I like softwares that do not scale the part to fit on the boarder but size the boarder to the part. This data base can be tweaked as time goes on and Tips and Optics change.ģD Modeling, 2D Modeling are important and I typically default to 3D so I can build the compete assembly prior to cutting parts that may not fit correctly.
The Material Files or Cutting Condition Files have the Feed-rate, Wattage, Duty Cycle, Cutter Comp, Pierce conditions, ect store within them based on Material Type and Thickness.
Coming from a whole different world, Lasers and Turrets I have a wish list of things I like to see in the software I choose.įor Plasma, Water Jet or Laser I would like a software that does "On the Line Cutting" and applies an offset based on the "Beam" diameter keeping the M&G Code real so I can edit faster and easier at the machine.