[Cory]

Get someone who knows what to look for and find a used Bridgeport Series I/clone (Webb, Acer, Sharp, Lagun, Wells Index, many others) that's in good condition.

You can likely find an older one for about $2000-2500. This is something that's worth waiting and saving more if it means jumping from a Chinese benchtop mill to a US/Taiwanese/Spanish (Lagun) made knee mill. There's no comparison.

I would probably start with a lathe first if you have no machine tools.