I have found some listings ect with nice j heads with smaller tables. Is it doable to swap out to a 9 x 42 or other larger table at a later date? I found a nice 10 x 50 table priced very reasonably and that leads me to think I might be able to swap tables in the future if I can get a good deal on the base machine now.
-
Welcome back Guest! Did you know you can mentor other members here at H-M? If not, please check out our Relaunch of Hobby Machinist Mentoring Program!
bridgeport table swap
- Thread starter LEEQ
- Start date
It would be nice to be able to set a stock blank up on the table once and inlet it for the barreled action end to end only changing tooling. In short, long projects. As to the hobbiest, I hope to be able to do a few jobs here and there to help my machines pay for themselves a little anyway.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2011
- Messages
- 3,461
OOOhhh! You're a gun guy. Thanks for the clarification. My machines don't work, they just play like I do. :rofl:
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2012
- Messages
- 1,356
I would be sure to measure the the dovetail ways on the bottom. I would think a wider table would have a wider saddle too, but I am not positive. Maybe call Bridgeport or High Quality Tools and ask them. The machine was designed or a 9 x 42 table and the extra weight moving out might tip the machine over.You might want to consider mounting another table slide on top of your 9 x 42 table and when you need to move a more crank it out. Might be a lot cheaper in the long run.
the best deals I'm finding are 32 and 36" tables. I would be happier with a 42" table, but we don't always get what we want. I will try to quiz one of your suggestions and see what they know. I was concerned about introducing more play by adding more slide. Also concerned about the cost of the slide compared to the table.