This machine has a 2 piece cast iron frame with X Y table and strong clamp. It is very heavy with some assembly required. The motor, chuck, handle, left/right stop rods including the wheel crank must be installed. But there are no step by step instructions for this. You get a poor quality parts picture and instructions for installing the chisel/bits and that's it. However, if you know how to use an Allen wrench, screwdriver, and hammer, you should be able to figure it out. Most of the parts will only go one place. There is only one place for the motor to go and the switch goes to the front. There are four holes in the bottom of the chuck chamber through which a long allen wrench can easily reach the four cap screws that hold the motor in place. The picture and the advertisement show a 90 degree horizontal handle but mine arrived with a straight handle that rubs against the motor housing. But it still works. The wear plates have tapered recesses on the back where the grub screws land. But the grub screws are actually hex head cap screws with flat ends that don't fit the recesses and ride up on the tapered part of the recesses, jamming the wear plate and locking the tables. By grinding a tapered rounded point on the grub screws, they now are fully seated in the recesses holding the wear plates in place without binding but allowing full adjustment. The stop rods simply push in place and are held by set screws. The chuck is a tapered press fit. Using this machine is a joy. You start by roughly centering your left/right table. Then clamp your board down with your mortise roughly in the middle. Set your left/right stops and start drilling. Customer service was also great!. My quarter inch bit was missing its spur. I contacted them and they promptly replaced it with a brand new set. The 3 chisel/bits furnished are not the highest quality. But with a little honing and dry lube, they work quite well. Do I recommend this machine? Absolutely! You will be hard pressed to find