Benchtop Bridgeport - what would you do?

[cederholm]

Hi all,

I am a novice machine hobbyist with a with benchtop Bridgeport mill that I would love to use. My father bought it at an auction and never hooked it up. When he passed I inherited it. The problem is that it doesn't have a cross feed bed. Can they be purchased? Is it worth messing around with this?

My hope is to use it for small projects.

Would love any advice/thoughts. Pictures below.
~ Carl

 

[darkzero]

That's pretty cool. Looks like a drill press to me & not a mill. Never knew those existed.

 

[Bill C.]

That's pretty cool. Looks like a drill press to me & not a mill. Never knew those existed.

I never seen one either. Looks like a lite duty machine. Maybe a tool room mill.

 

[Billh50]

Looks like someone took a Bridgeport head and mounted it to a drill press stand. You can get a cross slide table for that just about anywhere that sells tooling. Won't be as sturdy as a real miller but would do for light work.

 

[Bill C.]

Hi all,

I am a novice machine hobbyist with a with benchtop Bridgeport mill that I would love to use. My father bought it at an auction and never hooked it up. When he passed I inherited it. The problem is that it doesn't have a cross feed bed. Can they be purchased? Is it worth messing around with this?

My hope is to use it for small projects.

Would love any advice/thoughts. Pictures below.
~ Carl

Looks like you need a cross feed table to make it a milling machine. If it was mine try a Google search for a manual or more photos. I have never seen one, may have been a special built production WWII era machine.

Be sure to mount it on a heavy duty bench so any vibration will not weaken the table. I did read one advantage is it should be a direct electrical plug in. Apparently newer models are out there.

 

[T Bredehoft]

I'm with Billh50, its a marriage. Its pure Bridgeport until you get to the pivot at the back. the unit on the column with the pivot in it is shop made to fit the two together. It still has the draw bar to tighten collets or tool holders, it just need a table.

It have it in a minute, were it offered.

 

[cederholm]

Thanks for the input everyone. The machine was purchases in the late '80 for a Raytheon auction and I assumed it used for something special.

Thanks for the info about the cross feed table, any brand recommendations?

Currently I use my Maximat Compact (see pic below) for light duty milling/learning to mill. Do you think this Bridgeport would be capable of heavier duty milling? Heavier than then the Maximat that is.

...borrowed this pic off the internet but it's the same as mine.

 

[GA Gyro]

I do not remember where I saw it, however I think I saw an add for a table that had both X and Y axis, screw driven, something like a foot square or so, and was around $400 give/take. Not very big, and I would not think it was 'that' accurate... however to do things like slots, facing, etc... probably would work fine.

Do a Google on it.. I suspect there are lots of offerings.

 

[cederholm]

That pivot always did look odd to me, now this makes sense!

I'm with Billh50, its a marriage. Its pure Bridgeport until you get to the pivot at the back. the unit on the column with the pivot in it is shop made to fit the two together.

 

[mzayd3]

I am thinking that might be too much like adding a table to a drill press. Milling requires rigidity and mass. I think you might be disappointed, just as I was when I added a table to my drill press.