First tooling purchase for the Bridgeport - Advice Wanted

[mmcmdl]

LOL ! The great great grandson of the tool and die shop owner is a member on here . I know more about the shop than he does . I told him I have many items that were original to the shop still and offered them to him free of charge . He has the plack of his GGGD hanging in his office . It once hung in the entrance of the company . He runs a prototype shop down at Johns Hopkins U . He found this site after googling the company name and I guess this site came up with my posts mentioning the name .

 

[verbotenwhisky]

Greetings Everyone,

I hope this is the correct location to post this. I did some searching but didn't find anything specific to the type of initial tooling purchases I'm about to make. For now, I'm going to source most of my stuff from Shars, as they have a Black Friday sale on almost everything involving their house brands. My 1961 Bridgeport was supposed to come with some tooling but the guy I bought it from never made good on that. So my machine has been sitting dormant for a year while I reconfigured my shop and bought all my metrology equipment. The mill came with an import vise but I didn't realize it was missing a jaw. I was unable to match up the hole pattern to any replacement jaws I could find online, so I bought a 6" Vevor and went through it and deburred it and cleaned it up. I already have most of the basics for my lathe.

Right now, I have some basic starter tooling in my shopping cart (all Shars brand):

• high precision 5C round collet set - 15 piece (for my previously purchased collet blocks)
• 1/8-7/8 7-piece high precision R8 collet set
• 3/16-3/4 tin coated 2 and 4 flute end mill set (this is just to get me familiar with end milling...I plan to buy higher quality mills as they need replacing)
• 1/2=1" M2AL 4-piece roughing end mill set
• Live center for my lathe
• tool blanks for my lathe
• 2" adjustable boring head with carbide indexable boring bar 6-piece set w/extra carbide inserts
• HSS dovetail cutter set
• Wiggler edge center finder set
• edge/center finder set
• 3" face mill with R8 arbor with extra carbide inserts
• adjustable parallels
• ultra thin parallels (I already have a standard set)

With nearly a $300 discount, I'm still sitting at a cart total of about $1200 with tax and shipping.

Anything else I should consider? Any changes to the above items? I don't have a DRO on the machine yet but I'm planning for that soon.

I also have a couple sizes of machinist jacks, a collet rack, a basic fly cutter set and a few other bits in my Amazon cart.

Thanks in advance,

Greg

I would also look at Accusize for tooling, they have good stuff as well and you might find something you like at at a better price point. You might also consider an ER40 R8 collet holder and collets. you can get sets of collets from 1/8" to 1" and they are great for tool holding.

 

[RaisedByWolves]

So if I used my of my "pointers/cones" I wouldn't even be allowed in?

https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/indicol-upgrade.106903/post-1050156

Hell, Ive used blued dowell pins to find an edge.

Only had 1.5" of space between the quill and part and nothing else I had would fit. Got within a half and that was either due to runout (Probably) or an inaccurate application of dychem.

Anymore I would use a fat sharpie to get closer.

 

[GregHarris]

I’m not sure if a power feed is tooling, but you will really enjoy an x axis power feed. Did not see one listed. May have missed it.

I have it already on X and the knee, along with Trav-a-Dial indicators on the X and Y. I plan to sell the Trav-a-Dials and add a 3-axis DRO in the near(ish) future.

 

[GregHarris]

Spot on.

Shall we give the poor bloke bloke a bit of a breather, before we start sending him off to Haas.

Let's also not suggests he needs a Haimer coax indicator too!

I've been on the Haas website a bunch of times looking at their stuff, too.

 

[GregHarris]

And not being willing to watch a video from the grandfather of precision is a head scratcher for me personally.

Don Bailey knows more on the subject than any ten of us.

I've watched a number of his videos in the past, but hadn't yet seen the edge finder video, so I'm not sure if this comment is directed at me. At any rate, that video about edge finders is in my queue. Sadly, my day job interferes with this hobby during the day.

 

[GregHarris]

Since it's come up a few times, here's my load-out of major shop equipment:

Machining:

• 1961 Bridgeport J-head, 9x32 table, running on 220v via cheap phase converter, flood coolant system (not hooked up, needs work) with Power Feed on X and Z (knee), Trav-a-Dials on X and Y (replacing soonish with DRO). I just replaced the clock spring and quill feed lever.
• Grizzly G0602 10x22 lathe
• Oliver of Adrian ACE Tool Cutter and Grinder (came as a package deal with my mill, not sure if I'll keep it, doesn't have tool centers)
• Surface plate (presumed import Grade B)
• Gauge pin set, Gauge Block Set, Angle Plate Set (all import)
• 1-2-3/2-4-6 blocks (import)
• Mostly Mitutoyo metrology equipment - calipers, mics, thread gauges, indicators, one 3/8" edge finder, etc.
• Edge Technology indicator holder
• Accusize Co-Ax indicator
• Edge Technology Tail Stock alignment bar
• NOGA magnetic base dial holder
• Kennedy Tool Cart & Chest for the precision stuff
• Vevor 6" machining vise that I went through and cleaned up/deburred with swivel base

General Shop Equipment:

• 20-ton Shop Press w/air over hydraulic w/press brake attachment and various dies
• Arbor Press
• Floor standing Drill press
• Bench top 10" Drill press
• TIG Welder
• MIG Welder
• Plasma Cutter
• 3 different sheet metal brakes
• Throatless Shear
• Belt/Disc Sander Combo
• Wood working/home improvement equipment
• Parts washer with upgrades
• LOTS of hand tools for various things in various sizes, including lots of stuff an auto mechanic would have
• Various metric and imperial taps and dies
• Sandblasting cabinet with upgrades
• 3 Bench Grinders
• Bench Vise
• Polisher
• Rivet squeezers/dies/Rivet Guns (solid and pop)
• Drafting board and instruments and skilled at manual drafting.
• About a dozen 3/4" wrenches and LOADS more shop related stuff, but not as specific to machining.

 

[SouthernChap]

I've watched a number of his videos in the past, but hadn't yet seen the edge finder video, so I'm not sure if this comment is directed at me. At any rate, that video about edge finders is in my queue. Sadly, my day job interferes with this hobby during the day.

I can confidently assure you that it wasn't.

Good video; definitely worth a watch.

 

[SouthernChap]

I've been on the Haas website a bunch of times looking at their stuff, too.

As have we all! Nice kit but the point being that unless there's no such thing as 'opportunity cost' in your life, you can probably get away with spending less right now.

 

[RaisedByWolves]

I can confidently assure you that it wasn't.

Good video; definitely worth a watch.

Thanks for the assist.


@GregHarris

Not directed at you, but for you any others to clarify the edge finder debate.