That looks really similar to the Grizzly gunsmith 12 x 36 to me which people love although everyone says open the gap at your own peril.
What kind of projects are you looking to make?
My advice to to start collect scrap to turn down and spend a few weeks making chips with some cheap tools before you try to get real parts going.
Hadn't heard that about the gap. I like the idea of a good swing but have often wondered if really sits dead on or if you get a step up/down, or worse on the y axis.
I've got some ideas for tools and light machinery I'd like to explore. Some fairly chunky stuff that would find application in plastering, shotcrete, concrete, and maybe industrial settings. Also some mickey mouse stuff for carpentry. I'll have to tackle a lot of power transmission issues for sure, in the way of bearing fits, keying, bushing, etc.
I was mucking around with a little peristaltic pump awhile ago and fucked the [piece of shit alloy] rotor. Getting a new one basically took favors from mates and a lot of ginning around. Shops are so busy that they really can't be fucked with someone's little project nonsense, so that wasn't even an option. It made me decide that if I'm going to start screwing around with machinery, I really need to be able to perform basic cutting, welding, lathing, and milling for myself. Some of this stuff has been rattling around in my head for better than a decade, so I figure it's really time to shit or get off the pot.
I'll definitely take some time to learn the machine. There's going to be a lot of cutting and mic-ing going on before attempting something like a press fit on a shaft like Keith. Also going to be learning myself. A lot, I suspect. And different materials. Figure I'll start with off the shelf carbides so I know I'm the problem when something stuffs up, then move to grinding my own later on. Lathe milling is sure to be an adventure and I'm curious to see how far I can go with it.