[Siri]

We only use a MIG welder and a large lathe on-site. (We also have a large manual mill, but logistics have kept us from using it.)

1) Cost
- Lathe: I'm pretty sure our lathe is older than I am and was probably a donation at some point, so unfortunately I can't help you there. We don't use it much, so upkeep isn't a big problem, but overall it's pretty robust. We haven't had to do anything for it in at least 5 years.
- Welder: Our Clarke Hot Shot Spool Gun MIG welder ran us around $300-$400 (US). Replacement spools are generally under $10, and depending on the contact tips get, you can get 10 for $15. Spools last us a while--maybe one per a build and a post- or pre-season. We go through tips pretty quickly though, especially if we're teaching new people (or don't know to replace the liner), maybe 1.5 packs per build season or so. The liner has to be replaced every once in a while (we just did our first after 1.5 years), but it's also less than $10. You can get argon refills for like $30, which you'll have to do ever several months depending on how much you use it. Our 2 auto-darken helmets ran around $50 each. Welding-grade gloves, if you don't have them, will probably run around $10 per pair. We went to Good Will and got a couple cotton button-downs for very cheap as well. You'll also want an angle grinder, which I think ran us not a whole lot under $100. I can add up some, but for us it's been a wonderful investment.

2) Difficulty for Students to Learn
- Lathe: Depends on who's teaching. We went several years without a mentor who really knew how to use it, so figuring that out safely understandably took a while. It's not particularly difficult to learn once your teacher really knows it, though.
- Welder: I was my team's first student welder (or any welder, at that). We had a few people floating around who knew something about it, but for the most part I had to figure it out for myself. I spent a good chunk of the pre-season practicing, but by build I cranked out the chassis pretty fast. It's certainly not an impossible skill to learn, but getting good (as with many skills) takes patience.

3) Safety
- Lathe: Sure, students can use it if they know and follow the safety precautions. We don't currently have a student that's proficient enough to do so without direct supervision, but we probably wouldn't let them anyway.
- Welder: Students can use it. On our team, no one uses it unsupervised.
In general, we don't want any team member using power tools without someone else present (though not necessarily in an over-the-shoulder role, just nearby).

4) There's certainly something to be said for teaching students advanced machining skills--I thoroughly enjoyed welding as a student. You can, however, certainly do without them. Many (albeit perhaps not most) teams fabricate winning robots without any at all. We spent our first four years without any significant welding, milling, or lathing, and even now limit the latter two to not more than a couple components per year. In fact, we won a regional Innovation in Control award last year without either.

Personally, I consider the essentials to be more a good drill press, vertical band saw or the like, and a belt sander, maybe a horizontal band, jig, and dremel. More importantly though, the most essential thing is being able to design for your capabilities. What those entail are at you and your wallet's discretion, but in the end bricolage is an important skill to have (just ask the Apollo 13 guys). That's what we aim to teach our students in terms of design and CAD, which at least to me is much more important than advanced machining. Yes, the sky's the limit, but I'm not buying you an Ares V--figure out how to get there.