$1500 Bridgeport For My First Mill?

I spoke to the Wisconsin seller. He is currently living in the house but trying to sell it as well. The Bridgeport is in the basement but there is a nifty story. The house was built around the Bridgeport. The garage has a gantry crane and a 4x8 access shaft into the basement. The guy used to lower V8 engines down there to rebuild and that's how they got the Bridgeport down there. It was built to become an elevator shaft but that never happened. The son of the deceased doesn't know much about the Bridgeport or it's use. It's been down there for decades. The timing isn't the best with the holidays and weather. If all of my stars line up and it's still available I might be able to proceed with planning the trip but I have to coordinate many things.

Thanks to all for the advice,
Andy
 
don't be afraid to go to a machine dealer, my favorite so far has been Mckean Machinery in Illinois, talk to D, they have a website with all there stock. some is beat up, but some is good, I ended up getting my machine from them for less than half of their asking price because I wasn't afraid to low ball them. I shipped my mill all the way to Alaska, shipping was more than the price of the machine, but still a very good value, as comparable bridgeports sell for around 8k here

side note, ive had my mill for almost a year, since then I have converted it to cnc, and now I wish I had a vmc, or even the bridgeports big brother. currently working on getting the 3rd axis planned out for cnc as well. good advice above about growing into the machine, and not out. Bridgeport type machines are great, but also very limited, and they flex ALOT

do some research on when they started hardening and chroming the ways on bridgeports, I thinjk in the 60s. then find the serials of each prospective machine and see if its hard and chromed. when I bought my machine, I had a friend that has been a journey man tool and die maker for 35 plus years, owns his own shop, he would scold me if I even thought of looking at a machine that didn't have hard ways, hed shake his head in disappointment lol, thanks to him, mine are hardened and turcite covered.

BTW the serial number is located on the knee, in between the dovetails inline with the screw. you have to run the saddle towards the column so the chip covers slide back to see it
the serial number on the head means nothing, absolutely nothing in determining the year of the machine
 
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Andy go check out Lost Creek Machine. They are close to you. Very nice guys and they have multiple mills and other machines. I've done business with them in the past. As a option I'm about a hour away from Milwaukee.
 
Andrewlcox said:
All,

I want to get into hobby machining in my basement. My wife thinks I'm crazy for picking this as a hobby but I had to give up kart racing because of our 2 kids. I sold my racing kart and now want to invest in mill.

I found a Bridgeport w/ J head about 100 miles away. http://stlouis.craigslist.org/tls/5294796923.html
They say it runs good and they want $1500. I have more money to spend but I'd like to spend it on tooling and accessories instead of buying a more expensive machine.

I also found this one for double the money and almost 3 times the distance. http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/tls/5260811696.html

What are your thoughts on starting on the low end and buying a less expensive Bridgeport? I really want a Bridgeport because of all the support (online and videos), tooling and capabilities.

It will fit in my basement but it will need to come down the stairs in pieces. I figure that is a good time to clean and repair anything that needs fixed. I'd love to restore it someday if it's a solid machine (good ways) but learning the workings of the machine and skills come first.

Wow, the "Milwaukee" listed mill is about 10 miles from me. If I didn't already have a similar BP knockoff set up with a VFD, variable speed head & the power feed that came with mine I would be interested myself.

Thanks,
Andy in Decatur, IL
Click to expand...
 
I hadn't even considered a machine dealer as I was expecting them to cater to business and not hobby minded folks so I assumed their prices and equipment might not be suited for me. Thanks for the names of the dealers. Also, good advice on what to look for and look out for when hunting for a Bridgeport.

Thanks,
Andy
 
A sloppy Brigeport is still an accurate drill press.

I worked in a shop that had an old B'port that had seen better days. It had the sight glasses to read a vernier type scale, sloppy screw threads, the whole shebang. I learned a lot on this machine, the proper way to feed the endmill without it grabbing (snapped a few small dia cutters learning this lesson) and how to work backlash. Put a test indicator in the collet, zero on the table and push and the needle would easily bottom out.

The advice about bigger is good, I have a, can't remember exactly, small Cincinnati mill that I have had to be creative with when doing some longer pieces.
 
I've run various mills in my tech school and my home shop. When I decided to get a bigger mill in my home shop; I looked at and ran a 1/2 dozen Bridgeports over many months of looking and cherry picking what sounded like very good machines before I made the drive. Buy a good mill. The advice on getting one you can grow into is very sound. If your "new" machine is already at the end of its life it will make for a frustrating experience. When you decide to sell (getting out of the hobby or upgrading) you will have a hell of a time finding a buyer for your "deal." If you hear "fixer upper" or good enough for a "hobby machine", especially from the mouth of a dealer I would run like hell in the other direction. They are fishing for someone to give them better than scrap price on a parts machine at best. Might be a good deal if you know what you are getting and are prepared to spend the money and time to make it a good machine. But there are literally a dozen Bridgeports at any one time on Craigslist (Great Lakes area) that are good machines in the $3K range. The mill in the St. Louis advertisement has two obviously different colors. So it is a put together, probably by the dealer, that had two separate worn out machines. One with a bad head and the other a worn out saddle& knee. It has the shorter table (42) versus 48. I would miss those 6 inches on my Bridgeport (has a 48) for some of my set ups.
If you are serious I can help you inspect the mill in the Milwaukee ad. I go to Milwaukee occasionally for work & shopping at a machine dealer.
 
My advise is to buy a better quality milling machine than you think you will ever need. Loose, sloppy ways will never get any better, but your abilities will.Most home hobbyists will buy one Bridgeport for life, for better or worse. The sweetness of an inexpensive price will be forgotten over the years, as you swear at a sloppy machine. Just my train of thought.
JOHN
 
Also be prepared to pay more for scraping tools than the mill if you have a notion to fix the ways yourself. Or pay the rebuilder:). Those bit's of knowledge help put things in perspective when shopping.
 
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