Quote Originally Posted by skypickle View Post
thank you for your words. next step -figuring out which CNC machines to look at. Given the sizes I mentioned -a maximum dimension of 24"- where do I start? is the next parameter precision or speed? I am at the beginning so I would prioritize precision over speed. I won't be machining steel or titanium (that lion was amazing and a 5 axis machine is beyond me) so material choice is also a variable.
The titanium lion was a bit over the top, but I wanted to illustrate what is possible and show you the fine detail that can be done on a milling machine. Even a 3 axis machine will do that kind of work if you are very clever with your setup.

What you buy depends on your budget and how much space you have available to dedicate to a machine.

Here is one possibility the would meet your work envelope requirement
https://www.ebay.com/itm/16423696754...cAAOSwC1pe3ocw

and a bunch of options
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...outer&_sacat=0

Or for more robust machines
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro...uter&_osacat=0