You are exactly right about tooling costs. Any machine bought by a production house can expect to spend an amount approximately equal to the machine cost on tool holders and tooling. I'm make my bread as a machinist and I can testify firsthand that tool cutter suppliers will readily "give" you an $800 cutter head for every hundred $20 carbide inserts. HSS will accommodate most hobbyists, so I don't want to scare away any of your enthusiasts. They should be aware though, that if they venture into the realm of high performance alloys that consumables need to be accounted for.
Generally speaking, a "toolroom" lathe is one that is built for very high precision, and they aren't necessarily that big. The HLV-H isn't very large, and it's definitely a toolroom lathe. Also, I would say that lathes are just about the worst offender in the tooling cost category. Case and point: Carbide inserts and quick change tool holders. Chucks too if the machine doesn't come with them.
