Major Tool & Machine has been on track to retrofit more than a dozen of its giant milling and turning machines. MTM managers said the transition process has been an enlightening experience for the ...

I have some aluminum building-set parts on hand and just got a second rotary tool, so I thought I’d try my hand at making a light-duty CNC mill—maybe carve up some cheap pine or make circuit boards.

Modern milling machines look much the same as they did 30 years ago. However, they now must cut superalloys, titanium, and high-tensile steels to closer tolerances and at faster rates than before. To ...