I have been playing this game for over 50 years and the thing that has changed is expectations.
Yes things are more expensive but look at what we build today compared to 50 years ago.
Everything is bigger and more elaborate and the equipment we want is fancier.
Add in all the laser cut bits and the lost wax castings and yes you can spend a packet if you want to.
When I started you bought a second hand lathe that was often very well used so there followed a period of refurbishment.
Forget a mill. It was bolt the thing to the face plate or cross slide or if you were flush you had a vertical slide.
We didn't have a cupboard full of power tools and much of what we did was cut out by hand.
No kits of laser cut parts for us. It was a drill and a hacksaw and a lot of filling.
If you could afford it you got castings otherwise you fabricated stuff or carved it out of solid. Several local scrap metal dealers knew me by name.
Oxy was not affordable so we used those pump up kero blowlamps which were likely also found at the scrap place or the opp shop.
The annual junk auction at the club was the event of the year cause everyone was trying to do things on the cheap.
Who would build a power hacksaw these days or a drill press or an air compressor. We did and many other things besides.
For myself most my gear is second hand bar the mill which was a cheap Chinese job 30 years ago and has been modified beyond recognition into a half decent machine.
I have also done a bunch of paying work in my shop so it has well and truly paid for itself many times over.
This doesn't have to be an expensive hobby. In fact even if you do lash out on equipment you can usually sell it all at the end and get most of the outlay back.
More perhaps if you buy carefully. Even the models you build can usually be sold for more than they cost you.
Try doing that with a car restoration or go play racing cars for a couple of years and see what that costs.
We have nothing to complain about.