I started from scratch a couple of years ago with a plan to build the bedroom furniture the other half wanted but couldn't find to buy.....
I ran 4mm armoured cable down the garden from a 32amp circuit breaker in the main house consumer unit. In the shed I have a 25 amp breaker and then a small consumer unit that splits it into separate ring main and lighting circuits. I usually only run 1 machine plus dust extractor at a time, and I use gas heating rather than electric, so i've never had a tripout....
I got the kity bestcombi from new as i knew I wanted to work on some fairly big pieces. I'm fortunate in having a dedicated 16x12 workshop so it sits in the middle of the shop most of the time, although I do drag it to one side if I need to run 8x4 boards over the saw. Still learning to get the best from it but so far I've been pleased with it - fine adjustment seems better controlled and sturdy than on the record maxi I looked at. It does take a bit of planning on the order of work, although its only really the saw and the spindle moulder that get in each others way....and if I'm working a number of identical or same dimension items I always make a couple of extras blanks from the thicknesser so i've got spares if something goes wrong with a later process. But of course this was when they were still a going concern, but you often see second hand come up in the magazines.
Another tip that has proved itself was 2 freestanding benches along one wall with the floor standing pillar drill in between them. That way I can support long work pieces on the benches whilst drilling, and I can also drag the benches out and put them together when glueing up large items.
I've got a small axminster bench mount mortiser screwed to a couple of 50x100mm feet which in turn have coach bolts and wing nuts through holes facing one end of one bench. That way i can take it off when I need the whole bench clear and just stand it on the floor. In use I have to drag the end of bench out from the wall but it is stable and doesn't tip forward in use as you have the whole weight of the bench hanging out behind it.
Bandsaw sits on an old workmate, usually against the wall but is light enough to be swung around or dragged out for more clearance when working on large pieces...but I tend to use the table saw much more for long work.
on the nightschool/course front I tried a year at a local college evening class and learnt very little, especially about machines as they weren't insured for students to use the big stuff. Self taught, books and lots of extreme caution...and that's after years of using normal DIY power tools for house renovations. Still intact so far but very aware of how sharp and fast TCT blades are.
Final tip - buy something cheap at machinemart and give them your address. Then every 3-4 months they mail you about special event days with 10% off all normal prices and 15% off their own Clark stuff...don't buy much of the Clark but I've saved quite a bit off the normal list price for the common brands - bosch, dewalt, makita, etc....
