First Impressions of The Bantam Desktop CNC Mill

I was really excited to see this mill pop up, and very happy I got to borrow one for a couple weeks to try it out. In my mind, the Bantam desktop cnc mill represents a positive move, where cnc milling is getting more approachable by normal people.

Bantam have put in some effort to try to make this thing relatively easy to use, and powerful enough for it’s size class. I see parallels here between mills and laser cutters. In the laser cutter world, you can buy a $500 K40, that has roughly the same power and capabilities as a $3500 glowforge. However, you get a much nicer package and user experience with the glowforge. It appears to me, that this is the approach Bantam is taking. I think there is still some way to go in making milling as accessible as laser cutting, but it is an effort I’m happy to see people attempting.