"Ignoramus24652" wrote in message
...
My opinion only. Buying that Bridgeport Interact mill was NOT due to
my foresight, deep knowledge of CNC, or careful analysis of what
exactly I need. It was more of an element of dumb luck, combined with
an insight that a machine of this size is manageable, yet capable.

Most importantly, I was VERY attracted by the fact that the machine
did not seemingly need any physical retrofit (such as swapping lead
screws for ball screws and other such things). I am now of a very firm
opinion that doing physical retrofits is always suboptimal.

Yeah, and most folks don't get to buy a machine for $500 either. Heck
anything other than full training by the factory service rep who just
installed your brand new $100K machine with tool changer might be considered
suboptimal by some folks. If I had gone that way or anyway other than at
the lowest end I would still be out in the cold as far as making my own
parts.

Knowing what I know now, I personally would stay away from any hobby
machines.
I

Fair enough, but how long did it take from the time that you bought your
mill until you were CNC cutting parts?