Bridgeport Mill Upgrades

[c7z06]

Here are some upgrades I made to my Bridgeport:

Adjustable retractable casters
KBAC VFD for stock 3 phase motor
Servo X axis power feed
DRO Pro Digital Readout for X and Y axes
Milwaukee right angle drill & right angle attachment substitute for power drawbar
1/2" cordless drill with adaptor substitute for power Z axis feed

Mount for VFS also serves as holder for 1/2" cordless drill and a shop towel roll.
Magnetic base rechargable light can be moved wherever needed.
Made quickie holster for right angle Milwaukee drill out of an old shop vac tube.
7" high platform makes up for addl. height from casters, etc.

I hear a lot of arguments why the double right angle set-up for the draw bar shouldn't work -- too much torque, not enough torque, too hard to line socket up with the R-8 draw bar bolt head, need a rubber hammer to break it loose, etc. All I can say is it works great. Easy to engage the bolt, and I haven't needed to use the hammer yet.

 

[whateg01]

I've never used r8 tooling where it wasn't necessary to break the tool out of taper. How much torque are you applying to the draw bar?

 

[c7z06]

The tool is a Milwaukee 2467-30 impact driver. It has a max. torque of 50 ft. lbs. Most power draw bars are set to around 25 to 35 ft. lbs. It probably loses a few ft. lbs. in the extra right angle attachment, but it's still plenty. I try to be careful not to overdo it.

 

[karoc]

Nice, I may borrow some of your ideas

 

[MushCreek]

That sure is a clean B'Port! I like a digital readout on the quill as well. Every mill I have, the first thing I do is make an adapter for a small steering wheel for drilling. Much better than the indexing handles. I also make a couple scatter shields that I can set on the table to contain chips. Just a piece of 1/4" Lexan with a couple pieces of angle iron for a base. I also have one that bolts on the front of the moveable vise jaw.

 

[laser3kw]

I have an air drive on my draw bar. Push a button - zoop! - done.