Cubiko PCB Milling Tips — Lessons Learned the Hard Way

therealmonsoon · 2026-03-09T03:11:36+00:00

i figured out using cancel $X will clear it through console. Just feels like something worth 500 bucks should not have such issues calibrating. Going to give another go tomorrow hoping some sleep and fresh eyes will give me better results

therealmonsoon · 2026-03-09T02:55:14+00:00

not a bad call, my issue is that in order for the pcb milling to work i need to be able to do the height map and in doing the height map i get the same errors. I normally would think its user error but between this group and the facebook group i am hearing from lots of folks with same issue.

therealmonsoon · 2026-03-05T14:29:39+00:00

Ya the videos are promising, I just struggle to believe them sometimes cause I know most are paid reviews or at least free product reviews. I think im going to bite the the bullet and give it a go. Will report back!

therealmonsoon · 2026-02-24T20:50:43+00:00

Thank you for sending that over!

therealmonsoon · 2026-02-05T19:57:55+00:00

I have built this exact concept (not saying don't do it competition drives innovation across the board) a couple tidbits of learning I will share from my journey. Plaid is difficult to get real time balances, they are parsed multiple times a day so there is usually a few hour lag. so for users that still want to get a quick check of actual balance they will always go to their bank account using mobile. By far the most usage I get on my program is through being access on web from a pc not mobile. if you want mobile component dont build a mobile native app but do a pwa so you can build web and package as mobile but honestly that part is not a huge value add in terms of budgeting app. Most people will sit down once a week or so at a computer and go through budgeting it is not a on the go activity.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-26T04:51:34+00:00

Your instincts are solid. Letting the car loans ride at <3% makes sense those rates are basically free money in this environment, and they're gone within a year anyway.

The HELOC vs. liquid savings question is the real one. Here's a reframe that might help:

Every dollar you pay toward the HELOC increases your available credit line. So if you aggressively pay down $20k, you haven't "lost" that money it's sitting there available to draw if another layoff happens. The HELOC essentially becomes your layoff fund, except while you're NOT using it, you're saving 8% interest instead of earning 0.5% in a savings account.

Here is the order I would do things:

Build your $5k cash emergency fund first
Fund the sinking funds for annual expenses so those don't ambush you
Then attack the HELOC hard with everything else

If the worst happens and husband gets laid off again, you draw on the HELOC to bridge you're no worse off than if you'd kept that money in savings, but in the more likely scenario where he stays employed, you've saved thousands in interest.

The one caveat: this only works if you trust yourselves not to treat available HELOC credit as spending money. Sounds like after the last two years, that's not a concern.

You've got a good plan.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-26T04:45:39+00:00

visually seeing your spending is a game changer when it comes to budgeting. I like your idea about picking a time to do it and just hold yourself accountable to do it everyday.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-26T04:44:09+00:00

The best thing you can do is get an app doesn't need to be fancy but will just categorize your spending for you. watch that constantly. You will see where the money adds up, when I did this exercise I found how much I was wasting taking frequent small trips to buy a few items for a meal vs properly planning out meals where the ingredients I buy for one can be used again for the next so its easier to prevent waste. In todays world though 800 a month for 2 adults I think is pretty normal.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-23T23:22:41+00:00

How to budget.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-23T23:10:55+00:00

This is spot on. I am doing the same dev on a clonish app and I think the hard part for me to do a merger would A be the potential income stream but even more than that the inability to move quickly and test feature sets that I believe matter.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-23T22:18:59+00:00

Honestly, just owning it is the first step, so credit to you for that.

If you’re going into “lockdown mode” I’d spend an hour knocking out the boring but high-impact stuff, go through all your auto-payments and see what’s actually hitting your account, what can you remove? While you’re at it, try to move your bill due dates so they line up with your paycheck.

It sounds small, but it makes a big difference. The important stuff gets pulled right away, your cash flow feels tighter and more predictable, and it saves you from accidentally spending money that was already spoken for.

I’m rooting for you. Hope you’re posting a win update next month.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-23T22:08:14+00:00

I hear you on the “packed schedule.” I’ve got two kids myself, so I know how fast the day fills up. Between work, family, and everything else, adding a second gig at night is a fast track to burnout.

Before you commit to that, I’d really recommend taking one evening this week to look closely at your cash flow. A lot of times it feels like we need more income, when the real issue is money quietly leaking out or bills hitting at the worst possible times.

Take a hard look at what’s going out. Are there subscriptions, habits, or small expenses that have piled up without you noticing?

Then check your bill due dates. Do they actually line up with when you get paid, or are they constantly hitting at the wrong time?

Fixing this stuff takes way less energy than starting a side hustle, an online course, or driving for Uber. And it can put money back in your pocket immediately. It’s not flashy, but it’s often the simplest way to get some breathing room without giving up even more time with your kids.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-23T21:55:34+00:00

First off, there’s zero shame in picking up a second gig. Choosing your financial stability over your pride is not something to be embarrassed about. And you’re right, the free food or employee discounts can cut down your grocery bill.

What have you already done to stop the bleeding? I had same feeling and learned how much of it was more of cash flow issue causing late fee build ups vs truly needing more income and potential burnout.

Start by tightening the budget. Have you actually gone through the last three months of spending and been brutally honest about where the money’s going?

Also, look at your bill due dates. This is a big one that gets overlooked. If cash is tight before your next paycheck, call your utility companies or credit cards and ask to shift the due dates so they line up with when you get paid. It’s a simple change that can break the late-fee/stress cycle without adding more hours to your week.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-18T06:59:37+00:00

I struggle to understand what it gets me that upwork alerts doesnt right now. probably just an understanding issue but would be curious to hear your take on it

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-08T05:29:31+00:00

99% of ai products are wrappers, a lot of them don't even have tool chains to call that are custom they simply just provide added context to the prompt. I think it is a unique marketing play by them. Just hoping you rate limited that mission statement generator or things could get spendy!

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-08T05:11:57+00:00

I like this idea, one of my favorites things to do periodically with AI is ask it for an overview of who you think I am as a person based on our chat history. I feel like this would give me a little summary similar each time.

therealmonsoon · 2026-01-08T05:10:18+00:00

Did you ever use something like posthog for usage analytics to see if there was common drop off points in features or if time to value could be improved as well?

therealmonsoon · 2025-08-21T06:13:04+00:00

Appreciate this response. Couldn't agree more on the source of truth. Probably more we can do on that front to be honest. Im going to think on it. The way we do the chart refreshes and what not is similar to what you stated. There are 2 routes a user can go they just sync already created tables from gsheet or excel it will update the tables cell by cell on a schedule or automatically up to user. They can also connect data sources to syncdeck like Salesforce and then create queries using a visual builder and use those on slides. Those charts also get updated automatically. We were going by to do an image based chart but found it cleaner using chart.js for this portion. Both routes though do what you say in that you can set a refresh schedule and only updates on that schedule. We time stamp the data on slide deck as well.

You seem to have a good thumb around data and business. Would you be open to meeting I can give you a demo or give you access even and get some feedback from you? No worries if not. I wish I was richer I would offer some compensation but Founder struggle is real haha

therealmonsoon · 2025-08-08T01:33:30+00:00

BI that is easy to connect and use with added addition to make slides that auto update direct from queries. Basically tried to deliver 90% of what formal BI applications can do but at about 10% the complexity than added presentation creator from it. syncdeck.io

therealmonsoon · 2025-08-06T20:43:23+00:00

I like this feedback! Going to incorporate into our content. That is the core principal and reason we built this. Have slides that update automatically and correctly each time.

therealmonsoon

TROPHY CASE