Level set: I'm a hobby machinist looking to acquire a CNC mill sometime in the future, with Tormach on the possible machine list. I have taken g-code programming classes at the local vo-tech school and will be starting a Mastercam mill class in January. However, it seems unlikely that I would use MasterCam at home.

So my questions are:

1) If I learn to use MasterCam at a basic level (e.g., what they can teach in a 3-month class 2 nights a week), how much acquired knowledge can be transferred to SprutCam should I decide to buy a Tormach mill?

2) Given that I could theoretically write the g-code to make most of the parts I make at home (or at least those I've made on a manual mill), I'm thinking that the gain in capability with a Cam product will be the ability to do engraving and gear cutting. Any comments on this thinking?