2004! You were way ahead of most of us on that game.

Custom CNC stuff is tremendously rewarding and fun to work with. I haven't built a 4x8 table (yet), but I've made some smaller stuff. I credit the introduction of these machines into my life with bringing me out of the deepest and longest-lasting period of mental unwellness I've ever experienced, and it'll be a real shame if this kind of hobby becomes hobbled by legislation.

But anyway, to address your question: Unless the fine state of New York decides to close their borders, nothing stops a person from building their own dangerously-unregulated 3D printing machine.

Just as nothing stops a person from taking a drive over the Hudson and buying one already-assembled from the Microcenter in Patterson, NJ. New Jersey isn't beholden to the laws of New York, and they won't care at all where the buyer is from.

It's the same thing folks in Ohio do to buy cheap weed: We drive up to Monroe, Michigan, where there's a veritable cornucopia of places dedicated to selling that devil's lettuce. It's against Ohio law to bring it back into Ohio (as of 2026), but there's a constant churn anyway. In the parking lots, Ohio license plates often outnumber the Michigan plates. Michigan doesn't care about this; they're not responsible for the problems that Ohio creates for itself.

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nyjah 23 days ago | parent [-]

Michigan border towns are insane for that reason. People come from as far as 6 states over for the cheap prices. On the other side of the state from Monroe lies New Buffalo. 33 dispos on a small stretch of road in a small lake town. All to bring in.. wait for it… $1.4mil in tax revenue ie basically a rounding error for even a small municipality…

https://www.wndu.com/2026/01/28/new-buffalo-residents-voice-...

	▲	ssl-3 21 days ago \| parent [-]
		There's other benefits, I think, that extend beyond direct taxation. For instance: I don't even partake, myself, but I went to Monroe recently for a run with some family members. And we got hungry. We stopped at 24-hour Coney Island-like place that has American food, Greek food, and anything that can be made with eggs on a grill, and sat down for a proper dinner. It was actually a very lovely experience: The service was excellent, and the food exceeded expectation. It was neither expensive nor cheap as restaurant prices go these days, but whatever money we spent on it was left there in Monroe instead of taken back to Ohio. And that matters, for Monroe. :)