Milling Machine

The Milling Machine is a workstation used for repairs in The Long Dark. It was introduced in the Errant Pilgrim update.

Overview[]

The Milling Machine is a workstation which is used to repair certain tools and weapons. Operating the Milling Machine requires one Scrap Metal and an active Aurora. While an Aurora is active, the Milling Machine will whir and its lights will be on. Once the Aurora ends, the sound of the machine powering off is heard. Milling Machines are always accompanied by the Ammunition Work Bench.

Repairing[]

The chance of success and amount repaired is determined by either Repair Skill when repairing tools.

Base skill has a 50% chance of success, for a 40% item condition repair. Only firearms can be repaired from 0% Ruined Condition with the Milling Machine, though it will take much longer than usual to do so.
Firearms take 30 minutes to repair, while hand tools take 20 minutes.
Successfully repairing an item gives 1 point of experience to the Repair Skill.
- Successfully repairing a firearm will also give 1 point to the Gunsmithing Skill (repairing hand tools do not grant Gunsmithing experience).

The Milling Machine may be used to repair the following items:

Times are calculated at base level 60 Repair Skill.
Hand Tools are repaired at 60% Condition (60% Chance of Success).
Firearms are repaired at base 40% Condition (50% Chance of Success).
Ruined Rifles can be repaired from 0% Condition with 5 Scrap Metal and 1 Fir Firewood in 4 hours.
Ruined Revolvers can be repaired from 0% Condition with 4 Scrap Metal and 1 Fir Firewood in 4 hours.
Ruined Hand Tools cannot be repaired.

Item	Repair Time	Restoration Time
Hand Tools
Hacksaw	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Hatchet	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Hunting Knife	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Improvised Hatchet	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Improvised Knife	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Cougar Claw Knife	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Survival Knife	20.0 minutes	60.0 minutes
Firearms
Revolver	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Forester's Revolver	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Hunter's Revolver	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Warden's Revolver	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Hunting Rifle	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Barb's Rifle	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Bunker Rifle	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Curator's Rifle	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes
Vaughn's Rifle	30.0 minutes	90.0 minutes

Location[]

The Milling Machine can be found at:

The Workshop in the Last Resort Cannery in Bleak Inlet
Blackrock Prison in Blackrock

The Milling Machines in both locations are initially behind electronically-locked doors which can only be opened during an active Aurora with their Access Code (found on a note in a specific hard-to-reach location in-region). The code for the Workshop in the Cannery Pier is found inside Echo One Radio Tower, and Blackrock Penitentiary armory in the second-floor shaft of the Last Prospect mine (in a locker where the Detonators are found in Episode 4). Once the code is entered and the doors unlocked, they remain unlocked and accessible at all times.

The Access Code to unlock The Last Resort Cannery and Blackrock Prison's doors need only to have been read to unlock it, and does not need to be picked up and added to the player's Collection (though they have no weight).

Caution should be taken inside of the Last Resort Cannery Workshop during an Aurora, since electrified wires are present around the room which cause Burns on contact and can quickly kill, on the other hand, the Blackrock Prison Workshop is relatively safe, however gaining access to it requires, arguably, a more arduous journey.

Tips[]

Repairing a Hacksaw with the Milling Machine grants more condition per Scrap Metal than repair with Simple Tools or Quality Tools; but only if the repair is successful. At low Repair skill the Milling Machine is less efficient on average, but as Repair skill increases it becomes far more efficient.
Repairing Improvised Hatchet and Improvised Knife is more efficient with Scrap Metal than forging new ones.
No Bed is present inside or conveniently near either of the workshops. It is recommended to bring a Bedroll to spend extended periods of time in the crafting ammunition.
An early prototype of this item could be found during the cut mission You Fix My Rifle?, known as the Hand-Powered Milling Tool.

Trivia[]

Milling Machines were introduced in the Errant Pilgrim update along with its region: Bleak Inlet. The Perilous Constraint update introduced it to the Blackrock region.