Hi neil, welcome to the forum, I'm Keith from Cornwall. Just down the road from you. I too started out with an entry level machine (A Clarke 16") was about a basic a machine as you can get. But you can still turn out some good stuff on a basic machine it just takes a little longer with blade changing. But one piece of advice - good blades make all the difference, the best I have found so far are the Flying Dutchman Ultra Reverse blades, every third tooth is reversed and gives such a clean cut there is almost no sanding needed. Check them out at
http://www.mikesworkshop.com/blades.htm Hope this helps, and the kettle is always hot if you ever get down Newquay way. (offer is open to anyone coming to Newquay)