Prototyping can be a challenge. We live in an era of fast-moving start-ups and Kickstarter revolutions, which leads to specialized machining and short turn-arounds. Chris Rauch keeps his “dual aspect engineering company” running steadily, thanks to both a lathe and mill from Tormach.

The maker movement is here. As the world of manufacturing is tipping toward smaller runs and more customized parts, legions of Makers have emerged to tinker, invent, engineer, and build things.

I met with my friend Bob Warfield (who writes the fantastic machining blog CNC Cookbook and is the author of the popular G-Wizard software tool suite for machinists) for lunch a couple of weeks back on a recent trip to California.

Mechanical engineer by trade, Max Jensen used his personal PCNC 1100 to make a custom license plate bracket for a Suzuki GSXR600 motorcycle.