Hi Jazz,

Thanks for your feedback! You are most definitely correct on the IPM! With CNC having a steep learning curve iv found myself dabbling in the yank knowledge bases also.

I would love to use profile rails but they are out of my budget for this build. I though about a hybrid with using them on the z (as you suggested) or Y but cant think of any justification for doing so. They would possible be let down by the other rails accuracy anyway. I will keep an eye out and if i see some going cheap this could be an option.

Thanks for the suggestion on 10mm pitch screws. I though i had my bases covered for material so i will do some more research on cutting speeds/feeds for softer material. What would be the down side to going from 5mm to 10mm? I can't think of any but possibly cost?

Stepper/drives: I did say this wasnt my strong point! I will do some research into the digital drives which you have suggested. Can these be run from a similar Break out board? My plan just now it to run this through a parallel port (with the knowledge this is not best practice but may be the only option for my budget).

Much thanks! i will continue working on the model and update soon!