CNC Router https://cncroi.com Sat, 10 Jan 2026 23:44:48 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 https://cncroi.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/cropped-logo-2017-web-32x32.jpg CNC Router https://cncroi.com 32 32 65343886 Mastering CNC and Digital Fabrication II https://cncroi.com/mastering-cnc-digital-fabrication-ii/ Sat, 10 Jan 2026 23:44:48 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=59650 It has been a crazy few months, from getting CWB certified and doing some real custom metal fabrication to starting MasterCAM University so I can get into CNC mills and lathes… programming through production. Around all of this, I’m also launching my second book in the Mastering CNC and Digital Fabrication series I plan to […]

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Custom Corian College Plaque https://cncroi.com/custom-corian-college-plaque/ Mon, 01 Sep 2025 02:16:52 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=57660 CNCROi.com recently worked on a custom Corian college plaque, and as usual, the project was both fun and a little heavier than expected. The plaque started out as a flat slab of Corian half inch thick (12.7 mm thick), which in this case was cobalt Corian. At first glance, it might look like a simple […]

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Carving Masterpiece Tables https://cncroi.com/carving-masterpiece-tables/ Fri, 18 Jul 2025 17:26:28 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=56311 The process of creating carving masterpiece tables using both CNC routing and laser engraving is intricate, detailed, and packed with considerations that go far beyond simply cutting into wood. CNCROi.com understands this better than anyone, from adjusting bit strategies to optimizing contrast in engraved surfaces to deliver impressive, high-precision results. Whether it is large laminated […]

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Glue-ups NOT Screw-ups https://cncroi.com/glue-ups-not-screw-ups/ Fri, 11 Jul 2025 16:19:40 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=56166 Gluing wood might look simple, but executing proper glue-ups not screw-ups takes far more precision, patience, and planning than people realize. CNCROi.com has worked with a wide range of woods and glue-up techniques, and we’ve seen what happens when shortcuts lead to regrets. Glue-ups not screw-ups is more than a catchy phrase, it’s a critical […]

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Why CNCROi.com Isn’t Just a Laser Shop https://cncroi.com/cncroi-com-isnt-just-laser-shop/ Sun, 22 Jun 2025 22:52:49 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=55778 Running CNCROi.com is kind of like running a circus — except instead of juggling flaming swords, I’m juggling CNC laser, CNC router, CNC waterjet, CNC plasma, and 3D printing technologies while trying not to slice, melt, or blast anything unintentionally. Most shops pick a lane: they’re a “laser shop” or a “plasma cutter” or they […]

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Mastering CNC and Digital Fabrication: My Newest Book! https://cncroi.com/mastering-cnc-digital-fabrication-newest-book/ Wed, 18 Jun 2025 17:39:49 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=55727 Over the years, I’ve authored a number of books, mostly focused on CNC design and fabrication. But none of them have come close to the scope and depth of Mastering CNC and Digital Fabrication: The Ultimate Practical Guide to CNC Routing, Laser Cutting, Plasma, Waterjet, 3D Printing, and Welding. This one is different — not […]

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Sample MDF Texture Plates https://cncroi.com/sample-mdf-texture-plates/ Mon, 16 Jun 2025 01:19:55 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=55645 At CNCROi.com, we recently created a unique series of custom tile samples to address a very practical challenge: getting on the same page with clients when it comes to choosing MDF texture plates. Often, clients come to us with vague ideas like “make it sort of like this,” or “a little like that,” which introduces […]

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Arcade Bartop Cabinet: Routering MDF https://cncroi.com/arcade-bartop-cabinet-routering-mdf/ Sun, 01 Jun 2025 02:30:25 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=55413 At CNCROi.com, the team embarked on an exciting project: building a custom arcade bartop cabinet. This wasn’t just any DIY — it was precision-crafted using CNC routing and high-grade materials like 19 mm (3/4 in) and 12 mm (1/2 in) MDF (medium-density fiberboard). The arcade bartop cabinet was designed to house joysticks, buttons, screens, and all the electronic fun […]

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CNC Thermoforming Mold From 2x4s https://cncroi.com/cnc-thermoforming-mold-2x4s/ Sun, 06 Apr 2025 17:31:13 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=54459 Let’s review the process of making, from start to finish, a CNC thermoforming mold from 2x4s to create a custom, strong and sustainable product that’s entirely made at CNCROi.com. Jon from CNCROi.com demonstrates how to create a custom thermoforming mold using CNC routed laminated 2x4s. These molds are constructed from premium-grade lumber, typically purchased from […]

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Small Custom Fire Rescue Marshal Plaques: Acacia (Part 3 of 3) https://cncroi.com/small-custom-fire-rescue-marshal-plaques-acacia-part-3-3/ Tue, 25 Mar 2025 22:23:06 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=54146 This is the third part of my small custom fire rescue marshal plaque series at CNCROi.com where we went from Poplar to Pine and decided upon Acacia to make this run of custom plaques. Here’s the series thus far in video chronological order – oldest to newest. Now that Acacia was decided upon for these […]

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Small Custom Fire Rescue Marshal Plaque: Poplar (Part 2 of 3) https://cncroi.com/small-custom-fire-rescue-marshal-plaque-poplar-part-2-3/ Tue, 18 Mar 2025 15:21:47 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=53946 This is the second part of the small custom fire rescue marshal plaque project I ended-up doing, at first it was Poplar but we were looking for alternatives and for the smaller plaques, ended-up going with Acacia over Pine, for reasons you’ll see in the video below. There is no perfect material out there for […]

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2-Sided Business Card UV Printing Jig: 3/4″ MDF https://cncroi.com/2-sided-business-card-uv-printing-jig-3-4-mdf/ Thu, 06 Mar 2025 14:15:05 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=53653 This 2-sided business card UV printing jig is made using 3/4″ MDF, carefully carved out using our Thermwood CNC router. When it comes to making a highly precise jig for one of our customers, when ever it’s a new item, we first make a prototype for evaluation by the customer. Literally any piece of MDF […]

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Custom Wood Blocks: Douglas Fir Routering & Finishing https://cncroi.com/custom-wood-blocks-douglas-fir-routering-finishing/ Sat, 22 Feb 2025 16:24:46 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=53312 Using Douglas Fir, let’s build some custom wood blocks for my son Simon at  CNCROi.com! Simon’s at the age now where he likes to build things “UP” and as a result, the magnetic blocks he currently uses just aren’t able to support the heights he’s going up to, so wooden blocks are required. So for […]

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Small Custom Fire Rescue Marshal Plaque: Poplar (Part 1 of 3) https://cncroi.com/small-custom-fire-rescue-marshal-plaque-poplar-part-1-3/ Wed, 19 Feb 2025 03:48:29 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=53214 After completing the larger custom fire rescue marschal plaque, the customer wanted a smaller one. The most obvious course of action was for CNCROi.com to just scale the entire drawing down to roughly half the length, width and height to create the smaller version of the custom fire rescue marschal plaque. The above video shows […]

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Custom Solid Surface Plaques: 1″ Thick Glacier White Corian Carving https://cncroi.com/custom-solid-surface-plaques-1-thick-glacier-white-corian-carving/ Mon, 10 Feb 2025 16:46:52 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=52901 Let’s make a series of custom solid surface plaques using 1″ thick Glacier White Corian being carved into shape using our Thermwood CNC router! This is one of those projects where I greatly appreciate having access to so many tools on my Thermwood CNC router, some projects need just one tool, others need A BUNCH! […]

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Custom Fire Rescue Marshal Plaque: Poplar https://cncroi.com/custom-fire-rescue-marshal-plaque-poplar/ Mon, 27 Jan 2025 03:15:15 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=52279 This custom fire rescue marshal plaque was made using Poplar hardwood, with a mix of manual, power and CNC tooling to turn it into reality based on the customer’s specs. The start of this custom fire rescue marshal plaque begins at CNCROi.com as a live edge plank of Poplar, kiln dried and ready to be […]

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Cable Tag Jig: Routed 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/cable-tag-jig-routed-5-8-mdf/ Mon, 20 Jan 2025 16:08:20 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=52483 Making a custom cable tag jig using our CNC router on 5/8″ MDF produces precise results that are repeatable. CNCROi.com does custom fabrication big and small, in this case, the MDF custom cable tag jig is only 4″ square… and the table size of our Thermwood CNC router is 5 ft x 10 ft. Making […]

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Custom Highlighter UV Printing Jig: 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-highlighter-uv-printing-jig-5-8-mdf/ Mon, 13 Jan 2025 14:15:23 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=52209 Today we’ll make a custom highlighter UV printing jig at CNCROi.com for a customer using 5/8″ MDF. For this specific project, I requested that the customer actually send us samples of the highlighter in question as it’s an odd shape, and one that we haven’t done before at CNCROi.com. I’ve completed enough jigs through the […]

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Custom Spotlight Awards: CNC Waterjet, Laser, Router & 3D Printed https://cncroi.com/custom-spotlight-awards-cnc-waterjet-laser-router-3d-printed/ Wed, 08 Jan 2025 04:19:01 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=52089 Making custom spotlight awards this year was a similar process to those I made last year, but we used different materials and processes to help make sure that there were as few simularities as possible between the “old” and “new” ones. Here’s the processes CNCROi.com used to make the custom spotlight awards for last year. […]

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Custom Octagon Window Frames: 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-octagon-window-frames-5-8-mdf/ Wed, 01 Jan 2025 04:06:44 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51965 Although these are custom octagon window frames being fabricated at CNCROi.com for a customer, they could be any size and/or shape you want. For this set of custom octagon window frames, we used 5/8″ MDF (medium density fiberboard) because it’s easy for the customer to nail to their current set-up and paints wonderfully after a […]

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Custom Wall Light Display: 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-wall-light-display-5-8-mdf/ Sat, 28 Dec 2024 04:16:49 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51893 CNCROi.com recently completed a custom wall light display for an interior designer using 5/8″ MDF, as with many projects we do, we cut it out, they assemble it on site. This custom wall light display started life as a series of digital files, I layed them out on 4 ft x 8 ft sheets from […]

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Custom Thick UV Printing Jig https://cncroi.com/custom-thick-uv-printing-jig/ Mon, 16 Dec 2024 03:33:19 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51719 This is a custom thick UV printing jig, made from laminated MDF in order to achieve the customer’s desired thickness to hold their parts. Our thinnest UV printing jig are about 1/16″ and this so far, has been our thickest though we can make these up to 9″ and possibly thicker if required using various […]

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Large Custom Oval: CNC Routering 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/large-custom-oval-cnc-routering-5-8-mdf/ Tue, 19 Nov 2024 01:50:41 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51370 CNC routers can do small intricate work but they excell in the big stuff, such as this large custom oval using 5/8″ MDF that I had to fabricate in two parts for shipping reasons. Having multiple CNC platforms really helps a lot when it comes to providing the best results for our customers, though technically […]

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Custom Corian Sign Blank: 1/2″ Solid Surface Material https://cncroi.com/custom-corian-sign-blank-1-2-solid-surface-material/ Wed, 06 Nov 2024 15:58:05 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51229 Today CNCROi.com will make a custom Corian sign blank for a customer that wishes to finish it up on their own but didn’t have the equipment to get it to the point you see in the end of this blog post. Corian is a solid surface material, generally used for countertops but I’ve found it […]

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Custom Steel Plate MDF Jig https://cncroi.com/custom-steel-plate-mdf-jig/ Wed, 23 Oct 2024 12:39:39 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=51039 This project created a custom steel plate MDF jig using our CNC router at CNCROi.com. The applications for jigs are endless, each product, whether printed, etched or carved into, in volume, requires a custom jig in order to achieve repeatability and accuracy in a production setting, and yes, CNCROi.com makes those using a variety of […]

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Custom Lego Storage Box: Routering 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-lego-storage-box-routering-5-8-mdf/ Tue, 01 Oct 2024 01:39:39 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=50642 Simon needed a bigger custom Lego storage box for his growing collection of bricks so I decided to make one for him perfect to his requirements. The material I made this custom Lego storage box out of was 5/8″ MDF, it machines very well, glues great and sands fantastically. CNCROi.com always has a digital version […]

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Custom PCB Board Plaques: Laminated Pallet Wood & Lamacoids https://cncroi.com/custom-pcb-board-plaques-laminated-pallet-wood-lamacoids/ Tue, 24 Sep 2024 02:09:31 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=50356 CNCROi.com makes custom awards and plaques however you want, in this case, these are custom PCB board plaques that celebrate carbon emission savings. As luck would have it, I lost large portions of the photos and videos of this custom PCB board plaques project but luckily, the process involved with making these is something I […]

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Custom Corner Shelving & Cork Board: CNC Routering 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-corner-shelving-cork-board-cnc-routering-5-8-mdf/ Wed, 11 Sep 2024 01:26:51 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=50516 My CNC router is awesome for making custom corner shelving and cork boards, having a ton of tooling options along with incredible precision makes assembly of what comes off my router table a piece of cake. For this custom furniture project, CNCROi.com used 5/8″ MDF as it machines and finishes very well. The size of […]

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Custom Magnetic Puzzle Jig: CNC Routering 5/8″ MDF https://cncroi.com/custom-magnetic-puzzle-jig-cnc-routering-5-8-mdf/ Tue, 03 Sep 2024 14:40:00 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=50444 Making a custom magnetic puzzle jig allows our customer to make repeatable work using their UV printer onto metal objects with precise positioning. Most of the jigs CNCROi.com fabricates for customers are made out of MDF, it’s the great default material to begin with then go from as volumes and quantities go up with tougher […]

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Massive MDF Stencil: Routering 1/4″ MDF https://cncroi.com/massive-mdf-stencil-routering-1-4-mdf/ Fri, 16 Aug 2024 04:43:33 +0000 https://cncroi.com/?p=50061 Let’s make the biggest stencil I’ve made so far at CNCROi.com, a massive MDF stencil using quarter inch MDF. The bed on my 5 ft x 10 ft Thermwood CNC router is huge but you have to keep in mind, this massive MDF stencil is much bigger, each roughly 4 ft square section I router […]

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