Lift or Milling Machine?

I am a machinist by trade, and I spend hours each day on a mill. I am well aware of the capabilities of a Bridgeport knee mill vs a benchtop, and would have to say get the lift, and save up for a better beefier mill in the future. The typical bench top mill won't hog out a 1-1/4 slot in a stick of butter,so make sure you are not overestimating its capabilities. As said elsewhere, there are machine shops in almost every town, but if you need to get your car high enough to work under without claustrophobia, a lift in someone else's garage won't help. It sounds like you could get by with a 1/4" die grinder for some of the mod work you want to do, and heavier duty fab can be farmed out easily.

Get the lift.

(For your future plans, my employer sold off several Bridgeport mills at auction, with functioning mills selling with collets and tooling for under a grand! Watch for industrial auctions in your area...)

lift, without a doubt.

The milling machine will expand your horizons. The lift will just make you more comfortable within your existing box.

I vote for the milling machine and pictures of the stuff you make with it.

Lift.

Did you contact my buddy over in NJ?

Ian F wrote: Lift. Did you contact my buddy over in NJ?

No, I looked up the model number and it's pretty wide and then I saw that I could get one delivered to my door, brand new for not much more. not as hard core as that one... but good enough. It was the impetus for this thread though. I should probably call him just to make sure it won't fit... to easy my mind :)

In reply to Giant Purple Snorklewacker:

May as well... plus if he still has it maybe the price came down. If you need a hand loading/unloading let me know. His shop is basically a straight-shot across NJ for me. Plus, I have another friend who lives out that way who's usually up for this sort of thing.

My guess is most pro shops aren't lacking for space, so a wider lift is preferred (less door-ding risk). His current shop is a sort of industrial building with a single entry door work work spaces fanning out from the door, if that makes any sense.

The post is gone so I assume he sold it already.

As a lift owner, and a mill wanter I figure I'd chime in. Get the lift. A lift makes things safer on your back and knees, and will save you time every time you do more than pop the hood.

NOHOME wrote: The milling machine will expand your horizons. The lift will just make you more comfortable within your existing box.

This. A lift just makes things more comfortable but a mill lets you make new parts. I would pick a mill everytime but this advice is coming from someone who is 25 and plays ultimate frisbee and soccer.

I worked my way through engineering school as a machinist. I started out with manuals, moved through a few CNC production shops, and ended up in a small prototype shop with a primitive CNC mill, 2 bridgeports, and a manual lathe. Now that I sit at a desk most days it hurts my soul to not have access to machines. I can still jack up my car and work on it any time I please, but not being able to go out and make that doodad that I need for my cars/bikes/guns is seriously painful.

Having a lathe without a mill sitting across from it would seem very frustrating to me.

Woody wrote: If you have a lift, guys who own mills will seek you out. It will be easy to trade lift time for some mill work. If you own the mill, you still have to find the guy with the lift.

That is a very good point.