Got a line on full size Bridgeport

[phred]

Ok Ive got a line an old full size all manual Bridgeport. (They needed room for 3 5-axis machines) I can have it for the hassle of loading it and getting it out of the way. Problem is has been sitting behind the machine shop outdoors for about 3 years. It was sprayed with liquid grease when it was put outside. I don’t want to get it to my place only to discover I’ve got a 5000 lb paper weight. What do I need to really inspect before I agree to load it up?


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[Moosefire]

Well, I dont have an answer to that but ill take it if you don't want it! Assuming you're close to mighigan...

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[rsanter]

Go check it out. If greased up it may be well worth the clean up

 

[MountaineerMiner]

I’ve stored equipment outside for around a year, oiled and covered, without issue. Check that nothing is rusted to the point of being frozen. Surface rust will wipe off with some wd-40.

 

[Dumber than lumber]

I say just go get it. You will definitely learn some stuff. Bargains like this have us saying “you ****”.

 

[dr_clyde]

Anything free is worth saving up for.

If it’s scrap, you can always scrap it.

 

[coljar]

Well, I guess you'd have to know me to know I'd go and get it in a heartbeat and decide if it's worth fixing later.

 

[matt_i]

I'm going to be the odd guy out.

If the head is sitting out in the weather uncovered who knows what kind of spindle bearings you have, I'm going to say they are guaranteed trash. If the shop valued it at any more than scrap metal theres a dozen ways to get rid of it and get higher than scrap value rather than putting it outdoors....

If you aren't already into rigging its going to involve some expense. I'll throw my best guess on $500.

So you spend $500 to get it to your shop to determine its scrap value and you have $100 worth of metal scrap at 0.05/lb. Now you are going to spend (Z) to get it to the scrap yard.

If Z = $500, the economics here can waste a lot of your money and you still don't have an operable mill.

Best is to do some due diligence and come up with a plan to move it and understand the real cost. Is my $500 about $475 too high or ? Then you will know better if you want to bite.

Another issue is we don't know your mystery location since its not in your profile....maybe you are in a machine tool desert where your clapped out Bport is worth $6000.

 

[Mgdoug3]

I would take it. Even if you have to rebuild the machine, it'll cost you less than a running mill and plus you'll learn about the machine. The only reason why I wouldn't take it is if I didn't have room to store it inside or if I already had too many projects.

 

[dutchgray]

It will definitely be a project machine but if its free why not, you can always scrap or part it out if its scrap.
Its condition really depends on the local weather conditions and how well they coated it in grease when it was put out and how worn it was before that.
In my climate a machine left out for 3 years would be scrap, but somewhere drier would be much less harsh.

 

[DocsMachine]

If the head is sitting out in the weather uncovered who knows what kind of spindle bearings you have, I'm going to say they are guaranteed trash.

-Strong disagree. The spindle bearings could, of course, been trash before being put outside, but generally speaking, on most Bridgeport-style mills, the spindle is actually very well protected from weather.

Keeping in mind if it's fairly open to rain, it's also open to dirt and swarf in and around the machine shop.

The overall question is, however, basically akin to "how long is a piece of string?"

The machine could be well-preserved and only need minimal care, or it could be a rusty piece of junk. We can't tell from here, with no pictures, and no real data on the "sprayed grease".

I will say, though, that I've saved both a lathe and an old belt-drive era drill press, each of which spent a decade or so outside, unprotected, in the Alaskan weather.

So just a little rust and gunk isn't by any stretch a death sentence.

Doc.

 

[MushCreek]

If you have a way to move it, I'd grab it. If nothing else, you could part it out. I'd bet that it could be saved, though.

It won't be a 5000 lb. paperweight- they only weigh 2000-2500, depending upon the model. I usually move them with an engine hoist and a trailer. It's easier to partially disassemble it, and you'll want to take it apart anyway for cleaning and refurbishing.

 

[alcorelli]

At worst it would only be a 1900 lb paper weight. That's how much mine weighs.
I would seriously have that in my shop already, checking it out from there. You could always sell parts off of it and scrap the rest. But they're pretty robust machines and they can be brought back to life with a bit of work and a bit of money.

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[phred]

Thanks guys. I’m in NC and the machine is in a little town just over the SC line about 50 miles away. I’ve got access to some rigging equipment and have a good friend that was an industrial maintenance engineer for a local mining company. I’m gonna drag him a long and peel back the onion and see what we have. I’ve always wanted a manual mill. That’s the first machine I ever ran (40 years ago). So if this one is anywhere near useable I’m gonna bring it home and start accumulating tools for it. I will keep ya posted once the weather breaks enough to do a good inspection.


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[phred]

Well we looked at the mill and it’s junk. They didn’t coat it with oil before it was put outside under a tarp. Everything is rusted beyond repair. Not worth the time to try and fix. The table is pitted and the screws are crunchy. It’s worth about 65 bucks in scrap. That won’t cover fuel from here to get it. Oh well, I’m still looking.


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[cherrybomb]

That was a shame.When the shop decided to upgrade,it would of been the time to immediately move it to a new home.A home shop,it would of been of good value,lasted a long time,learning experience.

 

[subroc]

Do you have the chops to overhaul it?

Do you have the gear to move it?

Is a Bridgeport on your list of tools to want and need?

If you brought it home and it was just junk, would you use it as a parts machine for a future Bridgeport project? Or, would you call the whole thing a wasted effort and junk the thing or part it out?

BTW, it is doubtful 3 years sitting really hurt that machine.

Do you have the space for a project like that?

There is no machine I would rather have sitting here than a Bridgeport. I just don't have the space for one or the time to do a real good overhaul on one.

That said, it might just need a wipe down, some rust removal, an oil change and a motor update and you have a running machine..

Either way, I wouldn't just bring it home and see if it turns on. I would go through it before I ever added power. The dirt, rust and grime alone could cause damage to an operating machine.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[phred]

Subroc, I too want a Bridgeport more than any other machine. Like you I don’t really have the time or frankly the expertise to undertake a complete overhaul right now. I had a machinist buddy look at it and he was not optimistic at all. So I passed. The owner is gonna scrap it. He was cool and said he really hated that he didn’t wrap it better but to quote him. “It wasn’t making me any money and I need the space for 3 cnc’s so I really didn’t think about preserving it, I just needed the room.”
Another one will turn up. Can’t save all of them.


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[shawhite]

I’m sure there is someone on this forum that would gladly take it off the owners hand for scrap value.

 

[Grant Gunderson]

It's hard saying with out photos and seeing what moves as it should. The biggest issue would be spindle bearings as those are a very expensive part.

 

[justanengineer]

Where is this mill? My father rebuilt and sold machine tools for 40 years, and I would be seriously surprised if three years outside hurt anything other than electronics on a Bport. Because of the close tolerances and water based coolants, it’s not unusual for a machine table to become stuck, feel gritty, or get a bit of rust bubbling even sitting indoors. Every machinist has done their share of scrubbing and unsticking them, pass the bfh please. I actually just did a buddy’s clone that had sat a few years in his unheated shop, the table and ways were ~110 grit when I started and minty new two hours later. Bports/clones are the square body pickemup of vertical mills - simple to work on and hard to kill. Most anything you buy used (or new) should be torn down and cleaned regardless, so don’t hesitate. If rigging the machine seems daunting and it’s reasonably close, rollback wreckers are usually cheap and easy ways of hauling iron. As to spindle bearings, I would flush the head’s oil ports thoroughly with diesel (it’s a total loss system, no sump), oil it, and run the head on low 30 mins or so to polish them. If they weren’t trashed before it sat out they can prob be saved.


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[phred]

Well looks like my timing was lucky this time. A older gentleman about 40 miles away had 2 small Bridgeport’s for sale. One runs the other needs some work. Bought both. Figured I’d use the non running machine for parts and sell the rest.


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[phred]

Well got both of them home. The machine on the left was built in 1967, the other was built in 1981. The 67 machine is complete with the exception of a broken oiler and missing handle on the ram. The 81 machine is basically for parts. It has the variable speed head that I want.
Does anyone know is you can swap just the heads or the rams from machine to machine??


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[Grant Gunderson]

Head swap should be no problem. The quill unit down are identical on both machines.

Its just 2 bolts to pull the motor, then, its 3 nuts that attache the drive unit to the top of the quil. Make sure you take the motors off first as they are very heavy and awkward to move as a full unit.

Other option is you can just swap the entire head assembly with motor / drive / quill as one unit between the machines, but its best to do pice by piece, especially if working alone as its quite heavy.

 

[txvwnut]

You should be able to swap the entire head assembly by removing it at the side to side tilt bolts, those are the four you see when standing in front of it.

I have a Vari-speed machine and will say to go through the vari-speed assembly and replace the speed belt and the timing belt and any bearings. I just did this with my 1985 built machine and found the original belt had lost 3/4" width compared to a new belt. My reason for doing this was the speed plate started to rattle and I couldn't maintain quill speed.

 

[phred]

Thanks guys. Excited to get moving on these. There’s a couple projects in front of them but couldn’t pass up the deal to get them.


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[theoldwizard1]

The issue with old Bridgeports is that the ways get worn in one area. Not an issue unless you are doing super critical work.