Magazine article about building a CNC milling machine:

Servo Magazine (by the "Nuts & Volts" magazine publishers)

April Issue, 2005

ABSTRACT:
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A Hobby CNC Milling Machine
by Lester "Ringo" Davis

A computer numerical control (CNC) machine is basically a milling machine with motors attached to each axis with a computer controlling them. A small three-axis CNC milling machine can cost up to $35,000.00, and after looking at what it did, I decided to try to build one for slightly less money — about $34,500.00 less, to be exact. This article is not intended to be a recipe for building a copy of my design, but for giving you ideas on how to build your own using some of the techniques I found and avoiding some of the mistakes I made. I’m an electrical engineer, so machining is not part of my background, but if I can make this work, then so can you. I did have access to a small machine shop with a band saw, lathe, and a milling machine.

I wanted my machine to be able to cut plastic up to four-inches thick, thin metal, and also be able to make printed circuit boards (PCBs). I wanted to work on material at least 12-inches wide and 18-inches long, and I was looking for precision in the range of 0.001 inch. With those ideas in mind, I started looking at what materials were available ...