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The New Era of Desktop CNC? Meet the ToolDance X1

By Thijs Sillen · published October 17, 2026 · 7 min read

ToolDance put the X1 on Kickstarter on October 15. It is an enclosed desktop mill with a 9-tool automatic tool changer, a 1.5 kW spindle and bolt-on 4 and 5-axis modules, for a $2,999 super early bird pledge. That combination did not exist at this price a year ago. It also has not shipped yet.

Image: ToolDance

The short version

• Price: $2,999 super early bird on Kickstarter. ToolDance states an MSRP of $5,999. Shipping is charged after the campaign.
• Status: live until November 29, 2026. On October 17 Kickstarter showed the project at 21,512% of its $50,000 goal, so it is funded many times over.
• Delivery: Q1 2027 target. The FAQ says shipping should start in March 2027 and calls that an estimate, not a promise.
• Headline specs: 9-tool ATC with RFID, 1.5 kW S1-rated spindle up to 24,000 RPM, 400 × 265 × 180 mm work area, ball screws, closed-loop NEMA 23 motors.
• Options: 4-axis $699, 5-axis $1,099 (development preview), flood cooling $799, dust collection $599, all as campaign add-ons.

What the X1 is

It is a fully enclosed desktop mill with a cast aluminium frame. ToolDance quotes 100 to 110 kg depending on which of its own documents you read, on a 750 × 625 × 772 mm footprint. That is a heavy machine for a desk, and on a mill weight is a good thing. The work area is 400 × 265 × 180 mm, and ToolDance says the tool changer takes some of that when it is fitted.

The spindle is a 1.5 kW permanent magnet motor rated S1, with a top speed of 24,000 RPM. The tool changer holds nine tools plus a workpiece probe, reads an RFID tag on each holder, and takes shanks up to 10 mm and cutters up to 18 mm across. All three axes run on preloaded ball screws, driven by closed-loop NEMA 23 steppers with field-oriented control and 14-bit absolute encoders. An RTOS controller does the motion planning at 2 kHz.

The base machine also has a probe, a line-laser sensor for mapping the stock, a 1080p camera to watch jobs, a touchscreen and an MPG handwheel. Cooling is air blast as standard, with flood coolant as an option. ToolDance claims ±0.01 mm repeatability.

On the software side there is ToolDance Studio with its guided AutoCAM, plus plain G-code import and plugins for Fusion 360, Siemens NX and Mastercam. Studio launches on Windows, with macOS planned later.

Why this one is getting attention

Three things, all at once, at a desktop price.

An automatic tool changer. Until now the reference for tool changing on a desk was the Makera Carvera with its 6-tool ATC. Makera's own cheaper machines, the Carvera Air and the Z1, use a manual quick tool change: faster than a wrench, but you are still standing there for every tool swap. Nine tools means a roughing pass, a finishing pass, a chamfer and a drill run without you.

Spindle power. The Carvera has 200 W, the Z1 150 W. Those are fine for wood, plastics and careful aluminium, but every metal job is light passes and patience. On paper 1.5 kW is a different class, the territory of machines like the InfiMaker K1 and the Gweike C1.

4 and 5-axis options. Most desktop machines stop at a 4th-axis rotary. ToolDance offers a 4-axis module and a 5-axis module that bolt on and run from the base controller, so you can start with 3 axes and add later.

How it compares

Prices in USD as each maker lists them, checked October 17, 2026. Makera prices change on October 27 when its Black Friday sale starts (see deals).

The Z1 Pro is the same machine as the Z1 with ball screws and closed-loop motors. Want to put shipping machines side by side? Use the comparison tool.

Read the table this way. The X1 promises more tools than the Carvera, about seven times the spindle power, a bigger work area and 5-axis as an option, for roughly half the Carvera's current price. The InfiMaker K1 is the true 5-axis machine of this group, with 5-axis built in, but it costs nearly twice the X1's pledge and has a much smaller envelope. The Makera machines are the ones you can actually buy and have on your bench next week.

The caveats. Read these before you pledge

• None of the specs are verified. Every number on this page is ToolDance's own. No independent reviewer has a production X1, and pre-production demo machines at trade shows are not the same thing as the unit in your box.
• S1 is an electrical rating, not cutting power. "1.5 kW S1" says the motor can take that load continuously. It does not tell you how much power reaches the cutter, and ToolDance has not published a mechanical output figure. Its own FAQ says the spindle gives about 900 to 1,000 W on 120 V mains, so North American buyers on a normal outlet get less than the headline.
• Repeatability is not accuracy. ±0.01 mm repeatability means the machine returns to the same spot. It says nothing about how close a finished part comes to your drawing, which depends on rigidity, tool deflection, thermal drift and calibration.
• The 5-axis module is a development preview. ToolDance says so itself. Its working volume is small (well under the 3-axis envelope), and fully automated 3+2 programming in AutoCAM is still in development. Do not back the X1 for 5-axis work unless you are happy to wait for it to mature.
• Crowdfunding is not a shop. You back a project. Kickstarter does not guarantee delivery, and hardware campaigns slip all the time. Q1 2027 is a target. If the company runs into trouble, your money is at risk.
• Prices moved during the campaign. The dust collection module was quoted at $499 in late September and $599 from October 12. Add-on prices are campaign prices, and shipping comes on top after the campaign through the pledge manager.
• One-year warranty, new company. ToolDance is new to the market. A one-year warranty is short for a $3,000 to $5,000 machine, and there is no owner community yet for parts, fixes and settings.
• The tool changer costs work area. 400 × 265 mm is the figure without the ATC fitted. Check what remains for your parts once it is in.

My verdict: who it is for, and who should wait

Back it if you already know CNC, you want metal-capable automatic tool changing on a desk, and $2,999 plus shipping and add-ons is money you can leave tied up until spring 2027 without stress. If the X1 delivers what the spec sheet says, that pledge price is very hard to beat.

Wait if you need a machine this year, this would be your first CNC, you want 5-axis as the main reason to buy, or losing the pledge would hurt. Let the first production machines reach owners, read what they find, and buy then. The MSRP will be higher, but you will know what you are getting. If you need tool changing now, the Carvera is the proven option, and Makera's Black Friday prices start on October 27.

We list the X1 in the router directory as "Crowdfunding / not yet shipping", without a score. It gets one when owners have machines, the same as everything else we rate (how we score).

Some links on this page may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you (disclosure). That never changes what we write.

Sources

• ToolDance X1 Kickstarter campaign and FAQ
• ToolDance website
• Hackster.io: the ToolDance X1 is now on Kickstarter
• The Crafty Catsman: ToolDance X1 specs and prices (sponsored by ToolDance)
• Geeky Gadgets: ToolDance X1 launches on Kickstarter
• engineering.com: ToolDance unveils the X1 at IFA 2026
• Makera Z1 and Z1 Pro specifications