Explaining CNC Milling

CNC milling is a process in which you use a machine controlled by numbers in a computer to guide a cutting tool. The machine makes precision cuts on materials such as wood or steel to shape them or form them into the shape that you want. While sometimes it is better to use a cast for smelting steel, the only way to shape wood is to mill it. During CNC milling on a vertical mill, a vertical spindle (a rod that comes down from the top of the machine that is similar to a drill bit but can cut in all directions instead of just cutting downward) spins but otherwise remains stationary. A plate on the vertical milling machine that holds the raw piece of material moves beneath the spindle while it spins, shaving away the pieces of the material so that it makes the desired shape.