[DonRotolo]

You'll find uses for the lathe. Just need to look for them.

It would be great if you can find someone who really knows lathes to help set up and adjust it, teaching a mentor to keep it running right. If you want it to turn out good work, it must be set up properly, and that takes some effort. It is not ever plug-n-play. (Find a local machinist who can stop by for 2-3 hours to talk about it)

At 1676, we teach 2 or 3 kids each year how to run a lathe. It can be quite dangerous if you're not paying attention, so only serious users are accommodated.

CNC stuff is really cool, but overrated in a non-production environment. The kids certainly lose a lot of potential hands-on knowledge that way.