Makera Brings Costs Down with the New Z1 CNC Mill
To cater to hobbyists on a budget, Makera has released the new and affordable Makera Z1 desktop CNC mill on Kickstarter.
Makera has already developed a loyal following with their Carvera and Carvera Air desktop CNC mills. But while those are very good machines, they’re also pretty pricey. To cater to hobbyists on a budget, they’ve now released the new and much more affordable Makera Z1 on Kickstarter.
I previously reviewed the Makera Carvera Air and was very happy with it. In fact, it is in my garage right now and I sold my other CNC mill. But the Carvera Air starts at $2,199 right now and that isn’t exactly cheap. The new Makera Z1 is just $899 for Early Birds on Kickstarter, which is much more accessible.
Despite the dramatically lower the cost, the Makera Z1 actually doesn’t make many sacrifices compared the Makera Carvera Air. It has a smaller work area (200×200×100mm compared to 300×200×130mm) and a slightly less powerful spindle motor (150 watt compared to 200 watt), but the rest is pretty much the same.
Like the Carvera Air, the Z1 has a quick tool change system, auto probing and leveling, an available 4th axis, a rigid one-piece cast aluminum frame, an available laser module, and Makera’s fantastic control software (plus their one-click CAM software).
The Z1 even has a feature that the Carvera Air lacks: an integrated camera for monitoring jobs.
I got a chance to see the Makera Z1 for myself in person at Maker Faire Shenzhen and was impressed with what Makera was able to build on such a tight budget.
It is easy to see why the Makera Z1 Kickstarter campaign has already raised well over $6M from more than 5,000 backers. If you want to get in on that action, you have until December 12th to back the campaign. Machines should start shipping in January.
And be sure to keep an eye out for a full review from me, which I will almost certainly post in the near future.