For three years I thought Wood CNC Machining and 3D printing were completely different. Like they didn’t scratch the same itch. I was firmly in the anti-plastic camp. Wood seemed cooler.

Turns out they’re basically the same thing and 3D printing is just as good. I was up at like 11pm printing my first benchy and it took 30 minutes.
Right now I’m watching football with the 3D printer running next to me. If I tried to do that with wood CNC machining I’d be freezing in the barn. With 3D printing I’m multitasking—watching the game, running prints, writing this post.

I’m way too excited about printing small toys. Last night I printed a pterodactyl. It’s something I always wanted as a kid and still think is cool. Some aspects of 3D printing aren’t quite there yet for me skill-wise. Wood CNC lets you finish things cleaner—you can sand wood easily but 3D prints are trickier. That’s something I haven’t cared to learn more about yet. After I get my AMS set up I’ll experiment more with finishes. Right now I’m just using basic PLA. Once I’m more comfortable I want to try PETG (maybe a translucent lamp) and eventually carbon fiber because why not.

Side note: The desk I built for my office is incredible. Next time I’d wrap the edges with red oak and use a smaller corner radius—maybe 1/2” to 3/8” roundover instead. My wrists hurt a bit from the current edges.

Speed comparisons don’t really work here. 3D printing is additive, CNC is subtractive. If you factor in color as part of the finishing process, 3D printing wins by a mile.