Recommendation for cheap CNC router?

Coming from 3D printing, you'll find CNC is a different animal — more rigid requirements, messier, louder, but way more satisfying when you hold a finished aluminum part. For "fairly small but can do metals," here's the straight answer.

THE 3D-PRINTER-TO-CNC TRANSITION

What's the same

• G-code fundamentals (mostly)
• Cartesian coordinate system
• The joy of making things

What's different

• 3D printers measure rigidity in grams; CNC routers measure it in kilograms
• Spindle power matters. A 300W spindle cutting aluminum is like printing PLA at 300°C — theoretically possible, practically a bad time
• Noise and dust are real. You'll need dust collection and hearing protection
• CAM is harder than slicing. Fusion 360 CAM has a real learning curve

ENTRY-LEVEL OPTIONS THAT CAN DO METALS

THE ROCTECH DIFFERENCE FOR METAL WORK

Cheap machines cut aluminum by fighting through it. Industrial machines cut aluminum by being rigid enough that the tool does the work, not the frame. ROCTECH's RC0609 uses a welded steel structure (1450kg), Yaskawa servo motors on X and Y with helical rack & pinion drive, and a ballscrew on Z. The spindle options range from 3.0KW to 6.5KW air-cooled. This means you're not limited to "can it cut aluminum?" — you're asking "how fast can it cut aluminum?" The answer is 6000mm/min working speed with ±0.02mm accuracy. Their 15-person R&D team (most with 15+ years in CNC) has secured 50 patents, adding ~10 new ones annually.

THE SOFTWARE STACK FOR BEGINNERS

• Design: Fusion 360 (free), Onshape (free), SolidWorks (if your school/work provides it)
• CAM: Fusion 360 CAM (built-in, free), VCarve Pro ($699, easier for wood)
• Control: UGS (Universal G-code Sender) for GRBL, or DSP standalone (ROCTECH's default — no PC needed)
• Simulation: NC Viewer (free, web-based) — always simulate before cutting metal