Building a Home-Based Metal Fab Business with CNC Plasma | Ricki and Sons

In this customer spotlight, we head out to visit Travis and Jackie, the husband-and-wife duo behind Ricki and Sons Custom Fabrication. Searching for a family-oriented side business they could run without commuting, they transitioned from building custom furniture for a limited local market to producing shippable metal decor like custom fire pits and personalized lake signs.

Jackie and Travis explain the intense frustration and massive delays of outsourcing their metal cutting, and why bringing a ShopSabre CNC plasma machine into their home shop was the best financial decision they ever made. Travis breaks down the buying process, why American-made tech support was crucial for CNC beginners, and how they were able to set up their machine and make their very first cut on the same day it arrived.

If you are on the fence about starting a home-based CNC business or are tired of losing money paying other people to cut your parts, this episode proves why you need to bring your manufacturing in-house.

Episode Highlights:

• [00:00] – Introduction to Ricki and Sons Custom Fabrication.

• [01:03] – Starting a home-based metal business to stay close to family.

• [02:37] – The nightmare of outsourcing: Dealing with 8-week delays and errors.

• [03:13] – Why finding an American-made CNC with reliable tech support was critical.

• [04:56] – Same-day setup: Installing the CNC plasma and cutting the first part immediately.

• [05:46] – Scaling the business with custom fire pits, lake signs, and shippable home decor.

• [06:40] – Advice for beginners: Why you should buy a CNC sooner instead of paying to outsource.

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