Those are fine machines for the home shop! They should provide plenty of rigidity and accuracy for many years. And the prices aren’t bad either. My machines are now smaller, I have a basic change gear lathe, 8x12 (203x305) lathe and a 7x21 (178x530) mill. I made a conscious decision to not work on anything I couldn’t pickup and hold in one hand. ;)
I’ve been known to make a model steam engine or two at times. I’ve even designed a couple of simple steam engines from scratch. But I haven’t made one in a while. (I really should make one this winter) I’ve gotten more interested in doing more 3D printing, (I used to do a lot of design and prototyping as a toolmaker). I also occasionally make the odd part for antique farm machinery for old farmers that collect old tractors. I have repaired a lot of old bearing housings for them and even made some oddball bolts and nuts that you can’t buy anymore. And on rare occasions, people bring me a shaft that needs a keyway repaired.
Those are fine machines for the home shop! They should provide plenty of rigidity and accuracy for many years. And the prices aren’t bad either. My machines are now smaller, I have a basic change gear lathe, 8x12 (203x305) lathe and a 7x21 (178x530) mill. I made a conscious decision to not work on anything I couldn’t pickup and hold in one hand. ;)
I’ve been known to make a model steam engine or two at times. I’ve even designed a couple of simple steam engines from scratch. But I haven’t made one in a while. (I really should make one this winter) I’ve gotten more interested in doing more 3D printing, (I used to do a lot of design and prototyping as a toolmaker). I also occasionally make the odd part for antique farm machinery for old farmers that collect old tractors. I have repaired a lot of old bearing housings for them and even made some oddball bolts and nuts that you can’t buy anymore. And on rare occasions, people bring me a shaft that needs a keyway repaired.