What metalwork lathe should I get to replace Sieg C3

[Jonathan]

As in the title really...

My Sieg C3 lathe I got 4 years ago it too small for what I want to do. I want something that will be sturdier etc.

I probably won't be replacing it any time soon, unless something good comes up on eBay near me.


Things to consider:

• I've not got 3 phase (but maybe the 2.2kw VFD for my china spindle can help there)?
• The workshop is up the garden, so anything too heavy is going to be very challenging to get in place. The 200kg milling machine was ok...
• Student budget - i.e not a lot. I'll sell my current lathe which should get a good amount towards it. No doubt this will be something I'll keep for a long long time, so it's worth the investment - lets set an arbitary limit of £800 for now, preferably around £600.
• Space is a bit limited. Anything more than about 1.5m long isn't realistic.
• I don't mind if the lathe needs a bit of work if that's going to save me £££
• I'll probably want to CNC it one day.
• Auto-feed on the cross slide would be nice, but not critical.
• Metric preferred but I don't really mind.

(I'll add to that list if I think of anything)

My current thinking is get something second hand, and quite old / well built? I've used the M250/M300 lathes at school a lot - something like that would be perfect. Probably out of my price range though...

Can anyone help me/make a few suggestions?

Thanks in advance...