Controller Advice sought

[skinnj1]

I'm new to cnc (never ran one) but have the bug, have played with manual machines for about a year so I have a few of the basics but not many...

I really want a full size mill, several deals have fallen through but I have located a Lagun knee mill that supposedly has a bad drive board.

Any guess as to how much for an obsolete board or who could repair the board?

My first inclination is to PC-retrofit it but am not an electrician

My budget will not afford a Centroid/Ajax retro but if I liquidated enough stuff I might be able to swing this controller http://www.candcnc.com/PlasmaPakPriceChart.htm

Is it enough to get resonable feeds on a full size machine, what kind of questions do I need to ask/ research to find out the Plug-and-playibility?

Any other reccomendations for a pre-assembled controller under 2.5K??

Thanks,

[olf20]

Hi Skinnj1
I'm just completing a Atlas 9 x 42 knee mill converison. I built everything from the ground up. I used steppers with gecko 201 drives. On my X & Y axis I'm driving with a 1:1 timing belt. On the Z axis I went with 2:1, also with a timing belt.
The machine is up and running and I'm very pleased with its performance.
Our major focus with the mill at this time is wood carving / engraving. We purchased VCarve 4.0. It is a great product.
All toll including the software (Mach3 / Vcarve) we have less than $2000.00
invested in the CNC portion. I would guess we are 90% done spending $$.
Maybe a few backup tools / bits, and better vaccum.
So we would not have to run the 3HP 3P mill motor during wood carving I made a attachment to mount a 1.25hp router motor on the Z axis. Just loosen the collet and two 1/4 inch bolts and the router comes off and we are
ready to cut metal.
Hope this was what you are looking for.
Let me know if I can help with anything. I have certainly asked my share of question!!!!!
olf20