James Verster

Learning to set up, program and operate my own benchtop CNC machine: workholding, tooling, feeds and speeds, and G-code. I am designing and machining my own parts, and documenting the whole build publicly — CAD files, G-code, photographs, the build log, and the mistakes fixed along the way.

• Machine setup, workholding and tool selection
• Feeds, speeds and finishing passes
• CAM workflow through to verified G-code
• Public build log — including what went wrong

github.com/thejamesverster

Detailed freehand technical and anatomical studies with labelled structure — drawing what is underneath the surface, not just the outline. It is the same instinct an engineering drawing needs: know what the part is doing before you dimension it.

• Freehand technical and anatomical study
• Labelled structure and section thinking
• Reading and producing technical drawings
• Now transferring the same approach to CAD

I use AI tools as a working assistant rather than an answer machine: researching design decisions, generating and debugging G-code, checking tolerances and material choices, and writing up the build log. The repository shows the prompts and the process, not only the results.

• Research and design-decision checks
• G-code generation and debugging
• Tolerance and materials sanity checks
• Documentation and build-log write-up

• Assisting qualified mechanics with servicing and repair — brakes, gears, drivetrain, wheels and safety checks.
• Working to workshop health & safety practice; using hand tools and workshop equipment daily.
• Handling customer bikes with care and to deadline.

Industry-recognised cycle-technician certification (Cytech / Association of Cycle Traders): workshop health & safety and legal requirements, torque settings, lubricants, pre-delivery inspection to British Standards, and consumer law — completed alongside paid workshop experience.

Full GCSE results are published on 20 August 2026. Subject grades will be listed here on results day.

Confirmed after results day and enrolment. The target is a Level 2/3 engineering apprenticeship — machining, fabrication or maintenance.