Scary part is that the wife said it was Ok!!!
Spent 3 hours today at a used machinery dealer, test running various Bridgeports...
Gotta run more 220v lines, and look at getting a vfd. The table feed is a bridgeport 3ph one.. Perhaps a static phase converter for that.
Also need to sell my current milling machine, and Southbend 9" lathe to pay us back.
Going to buy a Bridgeport
Re: Going to buy a Bridgeport
She's a keeper (but, you already knew that).WJH wrote:Scary part is that the wife said it was Ok!!!
Steve
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John Evans
- Posts: 2366
- Joined: Tue Jan 20, 2009 9:33 pm
- Location: Phoenix ,AZ
Re: Going to buy a Bridgeport
I run both of my BPs on a static converter been doing that for years no issue. But both are Vari-speed type which I highly recomend. My one BP has a BP x feed and it is 120 single phase. Step pulley I can see a VFD but then again I would never buy a step pulley machine.
www.chaski.com
Re: Going to buy a Bridgeport
Well things are looking good as being purchaser. There is a lot to see and compare. If I gave you any advise, it may be wrong. Most anything larger will require a new feed. It has been said before, yet, envelope is important. I wouldn't want you to be in a position where the best deal and cleanest machine is way over the ideal size and weight. Then of course, the flexibility of a fine turret head slips past. Sometimes you have to focus on foreseeable need with less issues than too much with no known issues. Unknown issues can be more troublesome for they are more complicated. Precision advance is by a certain way and when there is archaic software between that, there is another problem.
I'm not saying to ignore the 21st century if that is where you are able to go. There are a lot of machines out there which can hog off chips with the right tooling and setups. There were a lot of them which went to scrap because their perfect tables and ways went into the rain instead of small business or private owners.
I think that Accurite and other quality readouts can give you measurements agreeing with your handwheel micrometer measurements so that going manual isn't a stretch while having eyesight equal to your passion. When either of these fail you, there is a larger machine needing attention. Fare well.
I'm not saying to ignore the 21st century if that is where you are able to go. There are a lot of machines out there which can hog off chips with the right tooling and setups. There were a lot of them which went to scrap because their perfect tables and ways went into the rain instead of small business or private owners.
I think that Accurite and other quality readouts can give you measurements agreeing with your handwheel micrometer measurements so that going manual isn't a stretch while having eyesight equal to your passion. When either of these fail you, there is a larger machine needing attention. Fare well.