Hobby-CNC Workflow - SKETCHUP + CAMBAM + MACH3

[WandrinAndy]

It's essential for me as a hobbyist to contain costs, yet I would also like to use software that enjoys a reasonable level of support by being in fairly common use. So please point me back to sanity with alternative ideas as necessary...

These are my current thoughts on the cheap-ish Hobby-CNC workflow software I intend using as a starting point :

1. Grey-Matter... can only be used when intergalactic, atmospheric, and biological conditions are favourable.

2. CAD - SKETCHUP will be used for design to capture / draw / dimension / visualise / revise, and save the drawing as filetype SKP. Although SKETCHUP is geared more towards architecture than towards solid mechanics, I'm now pretty proficient in using the FREE version of Sketchup, and feel it will suffice for my 2.5D machining needs into the foreseeable future.

3. A plugin for SKP will be used to export drawings as filetype DXF or STL or CB. I have downloaded and briefly tested the plugin from Convert Sketchup SKP files to DXF or STL | guitar-list and have also downloaded but not yet tested CamBamExport-mm.rb from Sketchup to CamBam Plugin - CerebralMeltdown.com.

4. CAM - CAMBAM will be used primarily for creating tool paths as gcode. I will buy CamBam PLUS for around £100, although there is also a free trial of the most recent version with limited lines of gcode, and also a totally free and unlimited but OLD version.

5. MACH3 which will process the gcode. Should cost of the order of £100.

6. A motion-control-device such as ESS Ethernet-Smooth-Stepper.

Does the above seem sane?