home built cnc

The Truth About Cnc Wood Carving

Is A Cnc Worth It As An Investment?

Cnc wood carving has become the go to trend for many small shops. This is especially true for sign makers or others in design and for engraving purposes. The question becomes, is it worth the investment?

The answer ultimately you must decide but I am here to help you see the truth of the matter.

If your products focus on engraving then it will become an essential tool, and one you could not afford to have break down. In wood art it holds another place of distinction in its use but is still critically important.

If you have no experience with cnc wood carving you may wish to look into educational classes for woodworking with this tool. It can be learned on you own yet requires a high aptitude.

Lets take a look at its weaknesses and its strengths to better understand its value as an investment.

The Cnc’s Primary Weakness

The weakest point of any cnc comes down to two major elements. First the components used in its building such as motors, wiring, and design. Design speaks to aspects such as whether it is belt driven or uses a lead screw. The design in its construction are absolutely critical and are not worth cheapening out on.

The second element is the software driving it like Linux, and also the development software used for design. Here you do not want any limitations. Additionally you need to be educated on how to use these systems for cnc wood carving.

The truth is that many of the packages you see such as shopbot’s, inventables, shapeoko, and so on are all typically worth nothing. To have a solid cnc mill you need to be willing to custom build and invest anywhere between 8k at minimum to as much as 15k. That 8k range is if you are smart in selection, good at coding with Linux, and have a grasp of whats going on.

There will be points of compromise. Few people can afford a 50k usd spindle so we settle for cheaper parts. Yet this is the nature of small mills.

In terms of wood art the cnc has another weakness. It is made for fit and finish. What design you put in, it then puts out. Wood art is not focused on dimensional lumber from the store. More on this topic later.

The Cnc’s Primary Strengths

For some species of wood it is better used than others. Also manufactured lumber, plywood, and wood veneer sheets it is great and will do a wonderful job. These I never use for art, but a cnc will make quick work of this kind of wood.

For me the tool saves a lot of time. It is worth me saying again. It seriously saves an unbelievable amount of time. To give you an idea I will use an example from my wood art.

humming bird wood art

If I were to fully hand carve my pieces the price would be so expensive that very few, if anyone, would ever buy them. The issue comes down to economy more than my skill. Just because I can or could hand carve something does not make it marketable.

Here the cnc steps in to rough out, or hog out, sections that allow for greater speed in carving. In this way I can still apply the hand touch that I desire to a given piece of wood art.

Then there are those I also decide to allow the cnc to fully mill on its own. This too is due to the end price or customers desires.

With cnc wood carving you gain flexibility. Yet with this flexibility comes other issues or bridges which one must make a choice at crossing.

How Much Wood Carving Should A Cnc Do?

When people see my work, especially with my box art, they immediately think a cnc did all the work. This is not true. It would shock people to know hand tools, a table saw, and a few jigs do most of the work.

song bird box art

Why do I decide to take this path? First the wood I am using is not from the local lumber store. It is not dimensionally cut to a specification.

I am taking raw live edge lumber and working it down. This is the only way I can get truly beautiful outcomes in more rare and exotic lumber.

Due to this, using a cnc is not the best option. I can use it for some engraving when needed, or perhaps for some rough cuts in starting an art design. Yet the rest must be by hand. That is a choice I made for allowing me more control over an artistic outcome.

Using cnc wood carving for all of your work is typically not the best way to go as it will decrease the value of the wood art. If your goal is mass production in more generic wood species then that may be your thing. Yet for wood art this is not the path to take.

You can find many pieces on the market such as within Intarsia wood that are mass produced by cnc application. You must ask, what is art and then what is craft?

What Role Does The Cnc Play In Wood Art?

Different woodworkers that specialize in wood art will have different answers for this. I know many who believe using a cnc is cheating. Others recognize that they could not live without it for otherwise they would never make a sale due to time costs.

The world of things being 100% hand carved is almost extinct except when it concerns smaller items. The role the cnc often plays is in saving time to make art with wood more affordable. For me it is another tool which is in the toolbox, not the primary or only tool I have like many makers.

Within my wood panel art the cnc is perfect for surfacing my joined boards in preparing a surface for art. Then hogging out the primary art allows for hand working that decreases the amount of time needed. This can save as much as a week of time in labor costs depending on the detail.

Here the wood carving which the cnc will do is not only valuable, but it is as essential as any other tool in the studio.

Problems A Cnc Creates With Wood Art

For those who have worked with tools such as a cnc, and then also have done hand carving, the difference is clear. Tool marks will be one immediate noticeable aspect that stands out. It tells the story of how something is created.

Yet setting this aspect aside there are other critical problems which come with wood carving. It removes the artists ability to adapt or adjust on the fly. There have been times when what I see or feel in the wood changed my plans to allow a more natural appearance or beautiful creation to be had.

Where this really can be seen is in rough cut live edge lumber. As it is processed down for a creation in art the wood reveals its character. The nature of what this wood can be often does not fit a mass production environment.

The cnc is very confined. It will produce what it is told to form, fit, and finish as it is programmed to do. There are times when this is exactly what is desired and all is perfect. Then there are times when the artist will want his hands, eyes, and the feel of the work to determine an outcome.

This is clearly artists preference. Yet for those who have spent a good deal of time in fine woodworking you will know exactly what I am speaking of.

Should You Invest In A Cnc?

Most hobbyists can survive for quite a long time without a cnc. In fact I would say to make it the last tool you invest in unless your primary income is from woodworking. Until the time comes that it is a need, learn to use hand carving tools as you will benefit greatly.

At some point if you stay in fine woodworking you will eventually cross this bridge and hopefully build a cnc rather than buy one. What it can bring to the table at this point will be a known factor rather than trying to figure out how to make it pay for itself.

With a tool that is this expensive it needs work waiting on it to be done. Yet I will say that in our modern shops cnc wood cutting is an eventual must have in your work. I simply suggest to grow into it.

There is no doubt that it is extremely valuable to the cause in many different forms of woodworking. I believe it is not worth going into debt over to have it though. So when you do decide to begin down this path do it right the first time building what you genuinely need.

Challenges You Will Discover With Cnc Wood Carving

If your goal is sign making or artsy design cutting from dimensional lumber there will be few issues. The biggest problem you will run across is a level surface and generic wood warp. Most dimensional lumber from the local stores are fairly well finished and ready to run.

In custom design work with live edge lumber the game changes. It becomes your responsibility to know how to create a panel what will be what the cnc needs in order to make a creation. It sounds simple until you try it.

Wood grain direction, density across the grain, spalted lumber, and species begin to play a role in getting to the point of being able to use the cnc. Wood is not like other materials such as metal. It still breathes, bends, and will flex.

It is for these reasons why I also suggest one wait until you are ready for a cnc. Fine woodworking is more than tossing a panel on the mill and hitting the start button.

You will discover a love for some wood, and a disdain for others. I love maple, oak, and poplar. Yet when I am asked to work with pine I am screaming no on the inside while I smile on the outside. I personally hate using pine on a cnc for many reasons.

It will require experimentation across different species with the variations each offers to learn what you like. Also it will require experimentation to see what the cnc likes or dislikes. Issues such as knowing speeds and feeds come with time and research as well.

Makers And Creators Ruin Cnc Reputation

The biggest issue I have with what I see on the market today is where makers and creators ruin the reputation of the cnc. With this often will go the reputation of wood artists as well. I have seen truly gifted wood carvers display their work and people believe it was totally done by cnc rather than by hand.

Artists like myself who use both cnc and hand carving split the difference in that world for we must. It is nice to achieve beautiful art yet it also must be affordable art. The makers and creators do not care about art, rather it is about the product.

How does this ruin the reputation of the cnc? Rather than it being seen as another tool such as the table saw, it is seen as a tool of instant production to a final product. With real wood art, instant production to final product is impossible.

If I were to hand some of these makers a rough piece of live edge wood, some would not know how to process it down properly or prepare it. Likewise they would allow the cnc to ruin what would otherwise be a beautiful creation in art.

This point of argument has always been a source of frustration. It is in many ways similar to what digital art has done to artists who are painters. The key difference is with wood both are physical productions and people can fail to recognize quality compared to Walmart decor.

If You Are Ready Jump Into Cnc

I will suggest that for wood carving a cnc is an amazing tool but build your own. Do your research. Stay away from packaged deals from companies that offer everything at one price. I promise you that you are being shortchanged in more ways than you know.

Get educated on all which is needed and do not be afraid to explore Linux as the brain behind the machine. It is worth the time and effort for future flexibility.