That looks like the machines that Donald was building. I saw one at the Derby City when Donald was working a little with South East cues. I remember it to be a pretty solid built machine. I always wondered why he didn't move the gantry instead of the table so it wouldn't have to be so long, but it would work well either way.
Originally the machines came with the Xylotex controller as has already been mentioned. The Xylotex was a pretty good controller for it's time, and until the G540 came out they were very popular. As somebody mentioned, it's easy to smoke a chip in them. I probably have a few boards still around here that I've smoked over the years. I don't use them anymore, and I don't think I even have a working drive left either. If it had the right motor, it should have had no problem spinning a shaft for turning. With the wrong motor, it would really struggle to get any RPM.
If you need a controller, I'd recommend the Gecko G540 and the motors from gecko. They have 2 different motors, one is 3.5 amp and is meant specifically for the G540, and the other is around 5 amps. I've used the 5 amp motor on the G540 even though it only puts out the 3.5 amps. Of course the motor doesn't put out the rated torque at the lower amps, but I think it's pretty much the same performance as the 3.5 amp motor and I can still use it with other higher current drives. It keeps me with just one motor for everything. Go to Ebay and search for the G540. The DeepGroove guy sells a decent box complete with the power supply and all. Get the motors directly from Gecko. I would also recommend a smoothstepper, but it does add to the complication factor quite a bit. The smoothstepper eliminates the parallel port, which is where many PC's are very weak, and also provides a much higher frequency output. Basically, it's much smoother and will perform much better.
As for the learning, well it sounds like you're on the ground floor. Mach3 is where you need to start. It's the software that will control your machine. It will read all the code and programs you load into it and convert that into motion of your machine. Start by downloading the install guide and reading it front to back. After you've done that, read it again! Download Mach3 and install it. Don't worry if you don't have it hooked to the machine, just play around with it. Then read the manual again. Study the G codes in the manual. You'll need to know what they all mean.
As for Cad/Cam, I'd go with BobCad. It's certainly not the best software out there, but it's affordable and there's many on here who use it so getting a little help should be pretty easy. Get the training DVD's from them and watch them. Sure, 90% of what they show will be more about 3D, or regular machine shop stuff, but you will learn what you need to know, and they are a great reference too.
Last but not least, setup a user account for cnczone.com's forums. You can't read too much. Heck, I don't think you can read enough, really.
Good luck!
If you push through without throwing your machine or driving off a cliff, then you will most certainly enjoy the things you can make with CNC!
Royce
