When I worked for Enstar in Anchorage, we had a lot of road cuts that were on sphagnum bogs. The roads literally float on fabric and foam. Footings were waaaay deep.
I'm jealous that you can have a VMC at your disposal. I feel pretty good about my little iron pile, but you're certainly winning the cool tool contest.
My stuff is my sole income. I'm not fit to work for anyone else anymore, too cranky and set in my ways! If you have a mill or lathe you have the equipment that won 2 world wars and put men on the moon. We should all be proud of our craft whether it's a hobby or full time. It's always a great interest to me to see people carry on with the trade. I hope to be helpful in promoting it. Gunsmithing is precision work and our nation has a deep history in it.
I bet building anything on the ground in Alaska is a real challenge!
