Koz wrote:

Too_Many_Tools wrote:
One issue you may want to consider is resale value. I tend to buy for
the long view so I don't hesitate to buy quality. From what I have seen
at auctions, Asian tools like Grizzly bring almost nothing when resold.
The drill press you buy now is seldom the one you will have in five
years...most people upgrade their tools as finances permit. There is a
ready market for used American tools and you will easily recoup your
investment versus dragging last year's Hu Flung Dung special out to the
curb.

Koz wrote:
Resale value is a really good point. Chinastuff has little to
none...basically a little above scrap value unless you find a sucker or
friend who really wants your unit.

That may be true for drill presses, but judging by the prices on ebay,
import tools don't seem to depreciate any more than US-made ones do. In
fact, Chinese minilathes and mill-drills seem to bring most of new price
for a used machine with minimal tooling.
I own some of both, most bought used in the last 5 years. I can
recover my initial investment on any of them, probably make money on
every one. This is in Texas. Might be different up in the Rust Belt
where you guys are awash in used machine tools.

On the drill press, unless you are really green, buy more than I think
I need to begin with. Better to have some real iron there for that
future job that needs it than a frustrating bottom of the line model.

here I'd agree. I have a nice, almost-new Ridgid DP like the home stores
sell. I'd swap it in a minute for an old, heavy US-made DP. The one I
have is fine for wood, but marginal at best for metal.

For big lathe stuff, you can always contract out that once every couple
of years job but I can think of no one who would enjoy contracting out
simple drilling because their drill press is the flimsy $ 150 floor model.

With regards to "old" iron....one problem is how incredibly cruddy a
mill or lathe can get over years of use. It's a miserable job to try
and scrape chips coolant from 1950 out of every crack and crevice. Some
just leave it and call it "battle scars" but I hate to start with a
machine that's new to me but still has someone elses mess in it.
So the question is...any cleaning secrets out there? I've heard many
speak of elbow grease and solvents but gads that takes forever and isn't
very satisfying. Steam cleaning sounds good but the idea of all that
water on a machine and the potential for rust gets a little scary. E-bay
has a ton of used machines that appear to be repainted. Are they
skimping on the prep and painting over crap (assuming a reputable
dealer) or is there a secret/better way to clean up a really cruddy
machine?

Call me weird (my wife would agree) but I enjoy that stuff. I like to
find an old neglected lathe and spend the next several weeks finding the
tight, shiny machine beneath all that rust and grease.
My primary tools:

Homemade parts cleaner from a 55-gallon drum and kerosene, submersion pump.
EvapoRust rust remover. That stuff is amazing. For me it works better
than electrolytic and is much easier.
Carb cleaner dip for alloy parts.
ATF - cleans and lubricates
fine-grit 3M Scotchbrite - used sparingly.
Wire wheel on a 8" bench grinder.

The biggest lathe I've done is a 10x36 Atlas or a 10x24 Enco. The latter
is arguably "bigger" as it outweighed the Atlas 2 to 1.
I have several boxes of cleaned, dried Atlas 618 parts waiting at home
for paint and reassembly. That's what I'll be doing after work this week.

For a bigger lathe, I'd consider steam cleaning, followed immediately by
liberal application of WD40 in every nook and cranny, followed by an
oil or ATF spray. The WD40 will chase the water out, get plenty of it
in gallon or the hi-volume aero container. Then I'd partially
disassemble the lathe as soon as I got it home, same day for sure, to
make sure all the water was gone, and spray additional oil as needed.
Let it sit a few days and the oil/ATF will soften the grease and
varnish. Of course, you will have to remove the oil from parts that need
to be de-rusted, but you will often find that what appeared to be rust
is really hardened oil that has turned brown.

Rex