[Chief Hedgehog]

I will have to agree with everything that Greg Needel posted. Bargain-brand tools are hard to gauge.

I would like to ask these questions:
Is there a reason that you are purchasing the equipment now?
Is the school putting in the lab and are they providing the funds?
Is there a sponsor that is aiding in these purchases?
Can you get by at least one season before purchasing?
Does your team already have the hand tools necessary for a FRC season?

The reason that I ask all of these questions is that your team is about to go on a ride with a VERY STEEP learning curve. Purchasing equipment 'just to have it' is not a good reason to purchase. Spend the time to figure out what you need - not what you want.

If your school is putting up all the money and it needs to be done this fiscal year - be sure to spend the money wisely. A good set of hand tools is the first order of business. And if it is to be stored in a school setting, be certain you have ways to lock up these items - they seem to go 'missing' in the off-season if you do not. Again, before purchasing major pieces of machinery (even on the school's budget) I would be certain that these are the right pieces for your team.

Utilize your sponsors and mentors - We are now entering our 4th season and we have gone this long without these (mill and lathe) tools. In fact, this is the first season that we will have both of these machines in our shop. Our mill is a very old Bridgeport (1920's era) that one of our sponsors donated in 2014 and then one of the mentors spent most of the season last year getting it up to par. Although we were able to get the mill in our lab with no cost - we have spent over $1500 on tooling so that we can properly use it. Now it is a finely tuned machine that the students can learn on and out some very impressive parts.

We also gained a new sponsor this year that put up half of the funds for a new lathe. We are expecting the lathe to arrive within the week. If we had to rely on our own funding, it would have put us in a bind come build season (or we would have had to go with a cheaper model). Again, we put up a good chunk of money to outfit this machine with the proper tooling (just north of $400).

If you are needing to purchase now, buyer beware on Grizzly - I am sure you have done your research and found that some of their products are very spotty in the reviews.

Good Luck to your team this year!