What cnc

I am thinking of buying an entry level 1200x1200 cnc to cut and manufacture shop fittings in mdf , I have looked on eBay and there seems to be a good choice but they all come from china . Are the Chinese ones any good or shall I steer clear ?
i have around £4000 to spend
any advice would be greatly appreciated and any help to steer me in the right direction

Steer clear of the Chinese ones. They all make compromises and so do a striking number of the machines you can buy in England. Thus the only way to get a good machine for a remotely reasonable price is to make your own or pay someone else to make it or a combination of both. If you give a link to any your interested in we can say why it's no good. If you're only ever going to cut MDF then a few of the compromises are acceptable, but nobody gets a CNC router and only uses it for what they originally planned.

Common faults which all lead to lower rigidity are (to name but a few):
Only using one ballscrew on the gantry which leaves the outside insufficiently supported to cut anything substantial.
Unsupported round rails.
Bearing blocks on Z-axis plate instead of rails.
Unreliable/poor spindle.
Mismatched electrics.

£4000 is enough to get an excellent 1200x1200 machine.

WherE should I be looking to get one built johnathon ? Or what type would you recommend me to have a look at ?
i will be mostly cutting mdf but as you say I may use it for engravIng name plates for my furniture . I am glad you replied as I was going to look at a Chinese one tomorrow but I'm not going to bother now . All advice will be greatly appreiciated
boovey

You should also note, that a 'built' machine can struggle to maintain any rigidity due to the material and method of construction used.

Using it at home is one thing, using it as a part of your work is another....

You should both come and see mine! Chinese built with some british suggestions :P

Quote:

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Originally Posted by GMCNC

You should also note, that a 'built' machine can struggle to maintain any rigidity due to the material and method of construction used.

Using it at home is one thing, using it as a part of your work is another....

You should both come and see mine! Chinese built with some british suggestions :P

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Sorry to jump in,

Very interested to see your mods to your machine to increase rigidity, could you please post up some pictures and/or a list of modifications please

Thanks

Craig

Photos please

Yes Photo's would be good.! . . . . Photo's showing under the bonnet, the things that matter please not the pritty sales pics.!