So after being inspired by others here I decided to have a go at building a cnc machine--the end goal is something I can use to pop out the odd bartop or other wood projects. Of course buildyourcnc.com was a huge resource for this. I could post over there but frankly I'm more familiar with this board and it is arcade related, albeit in a diagonal kind of way.
Anyways on to the pictures: I kept the table at 48"x24" since that's what the plans were and I didn't feel like modifying it too much until I see how it performs. Here's the end piece--originally i doubled up the table thickness but am not concerned with the reported 1/32 deflection at the midpoint using only the 3/4 sheet--it also made my chamfer's easier:

I started sort of backwards, and moved to the gantry next: here's the linear sliders--I found these the hardest part since accuracy here is very important for a smooth operation.

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I got the bearings in a bulk lot of old rollerblades--paid about $10 for about 30 or so bearings.
Here's gantry iteration 1:

After looking at it I decided that I would waste too much table space with the router sticking way out there and decided to move it back--we'll see what challenges this makes in getting everything thing else to work out--I can always move it back if it doesn't pan out.

Assembled gantry:

And last but not least a small video (if it embeds right...)