Alright gurus, making a long story short, I have a lemon of a CNC, (bought it from Lightning CNC/Cleandrew Smith - big mistake). I've had nothing but issues with it, and I keep tweaking, getting it closer and closer to working well. The latest issue is it starts losing steps in the middle of a job, even easy jobs where it's barely working.

My stepper motors definitely get hot - if I really want to I could probably keep my hands on them, but I'd have to want it. They are NEMA 23 23HS45-4204S (these).
My drivers are DM542A.

I am totally new to this type of electronics, so be prepared to feel like you're talking to a 2 year old...

Can you guys spot something wrong with this setup? Or tell me where to start trouble shooting why this thing is losing steps?


Below are some pictures.

http://i.imgur.com/0lfEbDU.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/xEU1KJB.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/vrhv9HT.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/nolkx2j.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/EeIEcm9.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/ZU8tmPz.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/GXihhJk.jpg

Thanks in advance and I hope you guys can help!

Will