Inside a Chinese Desktop CNC Mill Factory

[@StrangeParts]

Get Nebula using my link for only $2.50 per month: go.nebula.tv/strangeparts Watch how addressable RGB leds are made: nebula.tv/videos/strangeparts-inside-the-worlds-most-famous-led-factory-in-china Watch this video without ads on Nebula: nebula.tv/videos/strangeparts-inside-a-desktop-cnc-mill-factory-in-china To learn more about the Carvera CNC mill or buy one of your own, go to makera.com/strangeparts If you'd like a Strange Parts hoodie or t-shirt, you can get them by signing up to the Patreon: patreon.com/strangeparts

[@mobiousenigma]

thanks for the videos good to see you uploading again ;]

[@mwk1]

23:36 - GO TO THAT CRATE MAKING MACHINE FACTORY NEXT! 😎👍

[@typerightseesight]

I went to school for this and sadly dropped out and it's brutal to see how advanced laptops are these days with gpus and stuff. Just incredible how awesome that career would have been known I had a t9 flipphone that couldn't splash video backgrounds. lol. well it could, if you could "hack it" hahahahaha

[@mwk1]

O-oh, looks like StrangeParts doesn't want to have anything to do with CCP or Uygur concentration camps in china :-(

[@habiks]

A CNC company drilling holes by hand.. that pretty much sums up why the thing is so overpriced..

[@Cyrashe]

So happy that you're feeling better enough to be posting videos again. You're one of my favorite creators and I love to learn about what you show us each video.

[@0x3333]

Same here 🎉

[@KevinRobertsT]

this 1000% so glad to be seeing scotty posting again

[@freerideshuttle]

Same here, although I love seeing this milling machines factory. It's good to see some more adequate machines for makers and passionate people, as actually are 3d printers nowdays

[@msa3dak]

Same here

[@oskar417]

same

[@amzu1252]

huge props to the owner for showing you around and talking in english!

[@lore2486]

Agreed, Josh and the team are very open and involved in the community. Excellent people to work with!

[@FeelingGolden]

Anywhere people can read some reviews? A quick google search says concerns of having to wait a long time before shipping. Is this still a problem?

[@frenchLeon]

Huge props to the CCP to let this filmed.

[@CharlieCharlie88]

@@frenchLeon Another brainwashed

[@EMleRoux]

Thank you Josh and Makera for inviting us all into your factory. What an amazing experience. Thank you Scotty for making the effort to show us all that "Made in China" actually means a lot.

[@pauliboo22]

I love the enthusiasm you’re showing the owner, and his English is excellent. I’m pretty sure though most of your audience (like me) are engineering based, and have huge interest in how things are made! So I’d love to see more tours like this please.

[@TooLazyToFail]

The owner is so enthusiastic and knowledgeable, too! He's living the dream for a lot of folks.

[@Sahko123]

Its all real enthusiasm these machines are so cool!

[@Sam-yu6ss]

So many custom tools and jigs, this is very cool! I love how Josh knows every part of the process and the person manning it, huge props and respect.

[@ChrisMasto]

Maybe it's partly because I have a Carvera and was super impressed by the build quality, but I feel like this is one of your best factory tour videos. And that's saying something, for the king of factory tour videos. And props to Makera for being so open. I know it's marketing, but it didn't feel like any kind of sanitized smoke and mirrors show.

[@gorak9000]

What kind of stuff do you make on it? It's such a small machine overall

[@ChrisMasto]

@@gorak9000 I'm not the best to answer that one, as I have tool acquisition syndrome and most of this stuff sits around unused. But probably the thing I want to make most is PCBs. I managed to get it working with my old X-Carve (kzbin.info/www/bejne/f2m5e42Oa82Unac) but with the tool changer, enclosure, and all-around tighter build on the Carvera, I think I'll get better results. But I made one board and then the ADHD kicked in, so I need to find the motivation to dial in the workflow someday.

[@vigilantcosmicpenguin8721]

Yeah, this video makes you able to see exactly what goes into the build quality.

[@gorak9000]

@@ChrisMasto Heh, it's totally ok, I have a full sized VMC in my garage (30" x 20" x20" travels 15HP spindle, 5HP axis servos on all 3 axes - weighs 6 tons - takes up a ton of floor space) - I don't know exactly what I'm going to make on it either, but I definitely have the work envelope to make big stuff! (once I get the thing fixed and re-assembled). The thing with PCBs is they're so cheap to just order them online these days - only really makes sense to do it yourself if you need PCBs like in an hour, but that said, I want to try to do PCBs on my machine too when it's running again. Funny, I bought my huge machine for way less than a Carvera, but of course I've put a ton of time (and some money) into fixing it too. Not counting time, I'm only slightly more expensive than the carvera, but with a full sized machine, with spindle probing and toolsetter too (if you're patient, good deals do come up on that stuff on the bay)!

[@gorak9000]

@@ChrisMasto Oh, and also, kudos for being a person that actually has some videos on their channel! I have some on mine as well of my machine, if you go back a bit!

[@fluffyfloof9267]

18:18 That dial indicator was quite funny - "Mituitung"! 😄 I've got a no-name 10 bucks caliper at home, and stuck a label on its box that says "oyotutiM". 😅

[@rafalozan0]

😂😂😂😂

[@zollotech]

Great to see you back at it and feeling better. Thanks for sharing.

[@alchemistalchemist6051]

That Mituitung indicator 😁 Awesome look into this company, their transparency is great and it's a good example of mid-large scale manufacturing

[@ofcossolomon]

Yeah spotted that Muititung too lol

[@Dumb-Comment]

I have a Chinese friend who has worked in the factories like this, they are skilled professional from universities and they are proud of their workmanship.

[@TheJttv]

I am a packaging engineer in the US. We outsource our cratees inside the US. It aint cheap but its so much more efficient and there is also some wood regulations

[@JasperPerri]

Its so good to see you on the factory floors again showing how things actually are inside the factories. Like you said in the episode, not everything is perfect and machine automated. People have to understand some stuff is pretty hands on customlike.

[@Billybobble1]

I do love these tours, it's quite astonishing to see how rapidly China's manufacturing has advanced over the last couple of decades, but what I like most is seeing the people behind the manufacturing, they're just like you and I trying to earn money for food and shelter. Looking forward to the next tours, and of course it's great to see you so spritely and enthusiastic again Scotty, thank you for the content 😊

[@jakobhalskov]

Love seeing the smile on Mr. Guo's faces while he is working on the lid of the machine! 10:55

[@JH-uu7jl]

I wasn't expecting this to be as cool as it was. So much fun. And as usual, I'm humbled as a one language speaker. Your guide's English was so impressive!

[@carstenhahn263]

by far the best ad for cavera I have seen. It is one thing to send review units to content creators, but it is a completly different level to give a factory tour. when I can afford the space, I will get a carvera

[@oVexlz]

Super happy to see a new video! The lack of safety glasses in use in some parts of this caused me a little pain.

[@EgonSorensen]

Good to see some interesting factory visits again :ø)

[@bobweiram6321]

18:19 You can see the discomfort in his face when the Mitutoyo knock-off dial indicator is being filmed. 😂😂

[@bobstrade6355]

Fantastic content Scotty. I work in multiple engineering methods, & this video is really up my street. Extrusion manufacturing next please. 👍🏽

[@lesliekawiti]

Im so happy youre getting back to doing factory tours. It really shows how amazing the chinese owners and workers are which a lot of people in the west dont appreciate as much. All we get fed is the propoganda

[@davefinnegan868]

Good to see you are on the mend and making new content.

[@jjoonathan7178]

I love my Carvera! I have been hoping that a factory tour would happen at some point so this is like a dream come true!

[@cambridgemart2075]

It is great to see a manufacturing team that are clearly skilled at the job, just seeing the build process and the care taken tells me that the end product is likely to be accurate and reliable.

[@notsonominal]

16:56 ... did you just touch my calibrated machine?! Haha, thanks for the tour!

[@luskbo]

Good to see you back!!

[@ErtsenPlayGames]

I'm amazed that they don't mind telling you prices , talking how whats made , showing everything everything looks like made with passion and like a hobby not just to earn as much as possible like some other companies

[@bionicca]

Ya, products with near zero allowances, really don't leave any wiggle room for time, component quality, & cost cutting ...I wouldn't fantasize much about such quality and care throughout the entirety of production being very widespread 😅

[@Twrtle1]

Woke up to a Strange Parts uploaded 35 seconds ago... Gonna be a good day

[@X22GJP]

Either be more precise or stop making things up to sound impressive.

[@markusnicoleit8511]

Great to see you back in China again. These factory tours are so interesting!

[@KaiweraGaming]

Scotty, I'm so happy that you're well enough to do the videos you love again. I've been following since your collab with LTT making a PC out of parts from Shenzhen and love watching what you do.

[@sebiai6161]

Such a nice guy! He really seemed like he knew the in an outs of this machine and the manufacturing process.

[@giant3909]

When there is a new video posted on your channel, it always brings joy! Thanks for these awesome videos

[@gilgameshismist]

The last few factory tours where amazing! Love seeing proud people showing you around and explain their process!

[@Robin-my2gz]

I love factory tours so much, Please keep doing them!

[@swp466]

18:19 -- I like the knockoff dial indicator that uses the same M as Mitutoyo.

[@BeefIngot]

I love when people put human faces on Chinese factories, because while China isn't known for work safety or making their own tech, I think it's largely an unfair blanket statement and there's many cool companies like Worker (high performance nerf), Miniware (niche it equipment for hobbyists), Bambulab (super fast great user experience 3d printers) and more and these companies aren't the companies mining coal or smelting metals. They're creating some cool stuff and often using coop automation to do so (Bambulab for instance makes 3d printers like one would make desktop pc cases).

[@snaggster]

Fantastic factory. Great to see so many components made in-house.

[@MasterThief117]

I've had my eye on these since they were first announced and this video makes me want one even more. My only problem is I physically don't have any space in my home for it. I need a bigger home with space for a workshop and once that happens, I am absolutely buying a Carvera.

[@mahb-i1y]

The nebula video is great, been a subscriber for 2 years now and have enjoyed it.

[@Austin-fc5gs]

Love this kind of video, glad to see more from you. Hope you're feeling well

[@CollectiveSoftware]

I love all the precision quality control steps

[@AW-Services]

Wow, Scotty. You've really done these guy's and their factory massive justice. Josh was an incredible host, and his English was on point. There are far too many negative stories about Chinese made products, and people who only buy junk from Ebay don't see or appreciate the other side of the production and sales world. I dont own any of their equipment. However, I've really enjoyed this video. Unlike a TV production of "How it's Made," you know exactly what you are talking about, which adds incredible context and trust Take care. See you in the next video from Austin in the 🇬🇧

[@FilamentFriday]

I received a Makera Air to use on my Channel. The machine is really solid. I can’t believe they are drilling and machining without eye protection. Was surprised you weren’t wearing safety glasses either. Protect those eyes.

[@ShawnChristopher10101]

Few people realize that for a few parts, you can grab the piece, throw it in a drill press and tap a hole with a jig vs. waiting for a CNC machine to change axis, recenter, etc...just quicker to do it by hand.

[@rewindforwards8543]

Cnc is almost instant now though?

[@leonordin3052]

Wow is this video made for me, because this is what I wanted to see the most.

[@Modna89]

See if you casn find an aluminum extrusion plant that will give you a tour!

[@StrangeParts]

Yes! It's already on my list.

[@jassen22]

Finally New Video from Strange parts

[@skFriberg]

It's wild how a Chinese man in a Chinese factory can speak the English language fluently and make himself understood this well. Kudos to him!

[@ashystyle]

Great precision and detail work in the whole production assembly line!

[@googleyoutubechannel8554]

This is a lot more boutique and smalltime operation than I expected, interesting.

[@u0000-u2x]

great tour and wonderful work by the carvera guys

[@simonstroud2555]

Wow that's a lot of granite tables, perhaps local "knock-off" brand rather than proper Mitutoyo ones, to go with the similarly branded dial gauge. We have just one Mitutoyo one at my workplace, used for measuring things. I was surprised how long it took the guy to calibrate it before we could use it ... About most of a day, with his special flatness-measuring gadgetry. When you get one of these tables you need to make sure it's in its final resting place as it can't be moved once calibrated.

[@NoFailer]

I wrote a term paper about how China started to become an economical powerhouse and learning from the west was a key part of it. People used to laugh at "Made in China" but thanks to their policies and deals with western companies they have acquired the same expertise and can now manufacture with the same or even better quality. Granted that doesn't apply to every single factory or manufacturer in China, but they have come a long way.

[@Shocker99]

Personal experience, part of the reason why they're cheap is because a lot cut corners. I've had the pleasure of dealing with $10-20k machines designed and manufactured in China by various companies. I'll give them credit in the companies i've dealt with didn't waste much. Eg. Mains electricity cables that run through the machine are made up of several segments of cable which were hand twisted together and electrical tape put over the connection. In the west this would never happen - single cables running from point to point and if they did have to extend a cable, then the wires would have been properly bonded together.

[@Omniverse0]

It's easy to go far on a boat someone else designed.

[@kiddy1992]

on the other hand, if you pay them they'll just as happily do it the western way. if you want cheap you get cheap. @@Shocker99

[@ydoucare55]

Carvera guys are awesome. Best Kickstarter i've ever backed. Glad they are seeing success.

[@daigriff89]

2:30 mins into the video, and I'm surprised by the complete lack of PPE on the shop floor. The one guy is using an automated metal chop saw (likely with tungsten tipped blade) and blowing the swarf off with an air line. Let's be fair, we feel like we often over-do PPE in the westen world, but generally this all comes from events and experience. I have seen drills, mills and blades shatter. It's not a pleasant experience. What is the real cost to buy these guys a few pairs of safety glasses?

[@ooooneeee]

I love those factors tours, please keep doing them. You explain stuff so well and it's cool to watch the workers make stuff.

[@Nightsd01]

This guy giving the tour of the factory was a real expert, you can tell he knows his stuff! This is really impressive

[@crypton1782]

@18:20 gotta love the good 'ol Mituitung dial indicator haha

[@thejudgemeister]

I'm happy to see that you're posting content again. I hope you're doing much better. You sure seem to be. I love seeing how things are made.

[@BrilliantDesignOnline]

An incredibly quality looking factory; I with them HUGE success.

[@jimcarriesa1911]

I program CNC as a profession. Great video. It did make me want to see more, i suspect with a little effort you could ease up on the bottleneck.

[@tanjiro3285]

Love you man, u r doing the greatest job for budding engineers❤

[@andrecharboneaudre8765]

I am new to your channel. I am glad the algorithm found me. I like this kind of content and it helps me grow as an artist.

[@hazonku]

I think the most surprising thing was that adorable tiny LiPo battery in the probe and the fact their big CNC for making side panels only cost them about $1,500. I guess that makes sense though if the thing is a kit made practically down the street.

[@azero79]

They are my favorite people, can't wait to get into the CNC with Makera Air

[@ofcossolomon]

I have one of these Carvera too and it's a very nicely built machine. Enjoyed this factory tour very much. I removed the spindle and was surprised by the dowel pins too.

[@df8181]

Great to see you back at it! Super impressed with the owner’s knowledge and language skills!

[@BethePandaGames]

Its amazing how this guy knows every little thing about every process of the build. Amazing

[@BHSAHFAD]

It's so refreshing being able to understand what is going on from someone who works there

[@Encooder]

Cool video! As usual! 18:19 hahaha! *Mituitung* dial Indicator 😅🤣 , *the distant cousin of the Japanese brand!*

[@Lizlodude]

13:50 That's amazing It's very interesting to see that level of work done in-house, since so much manufacturing in China seems to be delegated out to specialty factories. OOOO I'm looking forward to the WS2812 manufacturing! Those type of packages are really cool

[@cagmuer]

This is the perfect video, your style matches perfectly. This is an easy and enjoyable watch for me.

[@siddhantsingh74]

Please do a factory tour of a foldable crate factory. We would love to see more ingenious and innovative packing material.

[@mactech8167]

A lot of this technology I was doing back in 1990’s, routers, cnc in Australia nothing new to me here, I was quite lucky to learn and use this technology in its heyday through the “digital transition” when it was at the cutting edge at the time, now it’s what’s old is new again to most people.

[@brianwaayenberg3099]

2:30, bros rocking the safty squints

[@JeynickRuns]

Amazing video! Always amazed by the creativity and custom-built machines of factories like these.

[@sumbo8452]

I love how it looks like he's explaining how Makera's own machines work to John

[@ChongMcBong]

thanks scotty :) and thanks to the owner for showing us around

[@HeavenlyPalace-Y2K]

If they are using CNC machines to make parts to assemble CNC machines, what creates the first CNC machine?

[@byubatch]

And not a pair safety glasses to be seen anywhere on the shop floor 😢

[@Backhoebb]

Wow. We never think about Chinese factories like this. Clean, safe, and a nice work environment!

[@MasonH24]

Always love your videos, and so happy to see you're feeling well again!

[@Silv3rDragon]

I work in a machine shop. The pressure is real when the boss brings a big wig tour or camera through.

[@xt3100]

As a machinist a lot of this is not unexpected. But man this is cool to see how other factories work

[@gorak9000]

I think Haas has some videos (probably not as complete as this) showing the manufacturing and assembly of big machines - basically like this, but everything is bigger and heavier

[@AronsTube]

Awesome machines. Fabreeko has them shipping from in the US.

[@chrisdixonstudios]

Respect for the working men. Thanks for kind tour.

[@enpegee]

more factory tourrrr!!!

[@williambennett9764]

I enjoyed this - it was neat to watch a CNC machine-machining CNC machine machining CNC machines.

[@olavrask9729]

My god i want that machine even more now! :D Thank you for a nice video :)

[@nathansmith5229]

love the factory tours.

[@Tgspartnership]

great product, nice factory!

[@mvadu]

Amazing tour.. Good to know that they are using Smoothieware, I hope Arthur and co (the key developers behind the project) are getting some kind of compensation from this company for their great software.

[@ZeroInDaHouse]

Hahahahah this felt so hard like that Strange Parts was probing for inside advice as maybe he wants to start his own cnc mill factory overseas. But awesome video man its awesome to have you back!❤

[@kekz0r]

I'm sure all stations are very happy that you put your finger prints on every single part and step. 😂 Anyway. Great video! Welcome back!

[@ZeroInDaHouse]

I hope @StrangeParts team realize how hard we appreciate them. What they are doing is faaaar beyond interesting tech stuff. You have aallll these eastern businesses opening their door for a jolly western young Santa Claus with a camera crew. And they share EVERYTHING, they are an open book, an entire process where engineers would take months on to figure out...they just share it openly to this jolly western fool with cameras. This shows a very powerful message, that sharing knowledge and skills is not something to be afraid of. This is the ancient culture of trading across the entire asian peninsula, you share cultures, knowledges and skills and you go back to improve your own with each own special character which spurs more innovation that bring more riches to both, not kill each other with. This is what ancient trade always has been uittil the obsession with borders and nationalism came into play.

[@blakececchini1851]

The safety squints 2:30

[@KeanM]

Awesome factory tour, and a nice setup and lots of attention to detail. But that "Mituitung" test dial indicator! LOL

[@dkdance-an]

this was really entertaining and informative :) Great job as usual

[@DeTrOiTXX12]

That was very cool, Josh was very smart and spoke great English.