[Goemon]

My 'workshop' is an 11ft x 11ft room in the far corner of my basement. It was enough of a challenge to get my new Grizzly G0602 lathe off the pallet, down a grass hill to the back of the house, into the basement back room, and up on the lathe stand. This lathe weighs only about 375 lbs. That weight was about the realistic limit of what I could move and position. My (slow moving) cnc build project needs to consider being able to get the machine out of the room after it is built.

Moving heavy machines or parts is certainly daunting for the diy enthusiast. My experience has been that it becomes a lot less daunting once you have the right kit. Even with a lot of help, you're never going to lift a 2000lb or 3000lb mill by hand but, once you have bought a 4 ton shop crane from Harbor Freight, it's a different story. A shop crane allows you to move a mill from your driveway to your garage without killing yourself. It's a good investment for guys like us.

I am lucky in my current house as my basement has ground floor access via the garage so there are no steps to deal with. We plan to move soon and I am worried about how to deal with steps in my new place...

I guess the obvious point is that, if you are starting a business, it makes sense to invest in relatively cheap lifting aids like shop cranes, electric hoists and maybe a steel gantry. Fear of moving heavy parts is a bad reason to put up with sub-standard machines when the solution is so cheap. For someone planning to make an occasional hobby wood part in a cramped basement, $200 for a shop crane is not a good use of money or space...

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My 'workshop' is an 11ft x 11ft room in the far corner of my basement. It was enough of a challenge to get my new Grizzly G0602 lathe off the pallet, down a grass hill to the back of the house, into the basement back room, and up on the lathe stand. This lathe weighs only about 375 lbs. That weight was about the realistic limit of what I could move and position. My (slow moving) cnc build project needs to consider being able to get the machine out of the room after it is built.

Moving heavy machines or parts is certainly daunting for the diy enthusiast. My experience has been that it becomes a lot less daunting once you have the right kit. Even with a lot of help, you're never going to lift a 2000lb or 3000lb mill by hand but, once you have bought a 4 ton shop crane from Harbor Freight, it's a different story. A shop crane allows you to move a mill from your driveway to your garage without killing yourself. It's a good investment for guys like us.

I am lucky in my current house as my basement has ground floor access via the garage so there are no steps to deal with. We plan to move soon and I am worried about how to deal with steps in my new place...

I guess the obvious point is that, if you are starting a business, it makes sense to invest in relatively cheap lifting aids like shop cranes, electric hoists and maybe a steel gantry. Fear of moving heavy parts is a bad reason to put up with sub-standard machines when the solution is so cheap. For someone planning to make an occasional hobby wood part in a cramped basement, $200 for a shop crane is not a good use of money or space...