I bought a mill on ebay that said "local pick up only" from 2000 miles away

[Clark]

137201137202137203

I have been using a Rockwell 21-100 mill made in 1963 that got all smashed up in shipment 11 years ago when I bought it on Ebay without insurance.

This new mill I contacted the seller and asked who he shipped with. He put me in contact with a packager that will crate it. The packager found a shipper with insurance. The packager asked how big is it? I sent Bridgeport specs, but those were working area specs not shipping specs. So the box was too big for the local delivery guys. It took an extra week of storage before I straightened that out on the phone.

This is a 1969 mill, but it is almost new condition. I could have lived with the Rockwell, but I only have ~ 18 years left, and I don't want my kids to get anything:)
I will probably make a couple of scope bases per year as I have done for the last few rifles.

[DCM]

Looks like it was packaged well for this one.
CNC or just some powerfeed?

[oldred]

Getting a new(er) mill is always good!

[pworley1]

How much it will be "used" has no bearing on "needing" a new tool. Nice find.

[w5pv]

Have fun and use it all up near the end.

[dragonrider]

Power feed and readouts? Should give you a lot of service for a long time. Enjoy.

[wv109323]

Leave your kids enough money to give yourself a proper burial. Or they might leave you above ground for the buzzards. Enjoy the mill.

[kfarm]

That's cool. I got a grizzly mini mill, lathe, truck load of accessories and band saw from a friend. Wanted $350 for all. Now it's got me wanting something better but I better learn a bit more before she let's me spend some real money. In the month I've had them I wonder how you can be serious about loading with them. At least you probably don't have to work around the Chinese backlash.

[Clark]

2 days later I have moved it 12 feet, 30 feet to go. It is heavy.

[smokeywolf]

Looks very similar to my 1985 Bridgeport. I didn't even know they were building vari-drive heads in the '60s.

[Clark]

137497

The neighbor came over to use my old mill to work on his R2D2 robot, and together we made quick progress and got the mill in the building.

[smokeywolf]

Watch your head.
Is that beam going to be used to get the mill off the pallet?

Anxious to see a pick after you've placed it and unwrapped it. From what is visible, it looks brand new.

smokeywolf

[mattw]

That is awesome... I learned what I know on a large Bridgeport, but lost access to it. I wish I had one now or even a good mini...

[Clark]

Here is the ebay listing for my Bridgeport:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bridgeport-Mill-High-precision-model-/321685448820?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2047675.l2557&nma=true&si=LJdSIS0hJqnn%252BtwGrgatPCnObXE%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc



This mill has made parts that are on Mars right now. We have done work for Space-X and N.A.S.A. with this machine.
Never touched hard metals, aluminum and brass only,
Chrome ways (High precision model)
Perfect condition, includes collets, DRO, power feed, Kurt vise
You get what you pay for with these machines
Tightest one you will ever put your hands on
Price is Firm





My old mill, a Rockwell 21-100, came off ebay 11 years ago.
It is 780 pounds and arrived smashed up, requiring lots of MIG welding on the head and replacing of all handles.
This 2200 pound Bridgeport series 1 J2 arrived with only a bent handle.

I don't know how I am going to get it off the pallet yet.
I ordered a Johnson bar that should be here in two days.

I found two big casters and put them under the pallet to push the pallet around the side of the house. My board broke. I replaced it with two better boards. It was a hard 30 foot journey.
137500137501137499
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0052PP3NC

[smokeywolf]

Looks like it was quite the struggle to move it.
Nice. You'll get spoiled by having Z readout on the knee travel. What brand is the DRO unit?

I'm going to have to hire machinery movers to move my lathe and mill when we move out of Kali.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Once you get the machine onto a cement pad you can bump it around by using a 36" crow bar and sticking the end into the little cutouts in the base and lifting and pushing the mill at the same time. Each bump will usually be around 1" movement. I have moved many this way and it seems like it takes along time but it doesn't take as long as renting a forklift.

As far as getting it off the pallet I'd suggest just hacking away at the pallet until the mill was just sitting on the plywood on top of the pallet. if you can't get the reinforcing from under then build a ramp and then you can bump it around and move it off the plywood that way.

The Johnson Bar might help you get it off the pallet too, and one guy running that along with the crow bar bumping it would work. You'll get longer bumps with the J bar under one end and the crow bar under the other.

Randy

[Clark]

Buchanan,
I ordered a #2 flared rigger's nose bar today.
http://www.easternrigging.com/prybar.htm

If there are 1" notches, I may have to grind off the flares.


The DRO is an xyz "futaba pulscale usa cj" which is ancient.

[smokeywolf]

Once on concrete, I have a 5 foot long railroad spike puller and a set of mice that I use.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Buchanan,
I ordered a #2 flared rigger's nose bar today.
http://www.easternrigging.com/prybar.htm

If there are 1" notches, I may have to grind off the flares.


The DRO is an xyz "futaba pulscale usa cj" which is ancient.

That bar should work just fine,, you stick the toe under the machine and lift until the machine slides off the toe. then repeat.

As far as the DRO goes,,, as long as it works it doesn't matter when it was made. I have one mill that has Trava-Dials on it. I put them on it in 1984. They still work just fine.

The designs of new ones aren't that much different and really all I have seen as improvements are reductions in pricing as time goes on.

The fact that you have a DRO is the good thing. If you need service on it there are usually outfits around that can work on it for you,,, but I have to tell you, I have never had to have mine worked on.

They are pretty reliable things.

Randy

[Clark]

Never heard of Trava-Dials until this month. My brother in MT got one off Ebay for his lathe.
I had a 5 year old DRO fail this year on my lathe, and I replaced it. It failed due to a bad installation by the importer and my giving it rough treatment. I turned the handle on the cross slide until the DRO acted as a stop. I replaced the SINO scale and reader, and mounted them with the DRO travel better centered with the cross slide travel. The cross slide dial can no longer be turned so far as to damage the DRO.

I got an eye bolt today.

[EDG]

Clark
We move those machines by hand in the shop to make worek cells. They can easily be pushed around on bare concrete by 4 or 5 guys.
Just get 4 or 5 volunteers and they can truly manhandle it.

PS - That mill is not even broken in yet.

[smokeywolf]

I have one of the later generation Trav-A-Dials on my lathe. Been using Trav-A-Dials throughout my career as machinist. One day I'll spring for a DRO for the lathe. Have a Mitutoyo DRO on my Bridgeport.

[Green Frog]

A long gone, much missed machinist friend of mine was a huge believer in Trav-A-Dials™ and even gifted me one not long before his death. One of these days it will be put on my old Sheldon-made Lempco lathe. They were the DROs of their day and can still help do some very accurate work! :D

Froggie

[dragonrider]

I have trav-a-dials on my lathe and mill. Prefer them over a DRO. A friend of mine used to be an East coast distributor and techinichion for Southwest Industries, He is retired now but he still dose service work on them, I have him come by and tune mine up every couple of years.

[W.R.Buchanan]

That looks like a nice clean machine. It has Chrome Ways which if you keep them lubed will last forever.

Hot tip on lube for the ways is Amsoil 20-50 Racing Oil. It is Red in color and really sticky stuff that stays on the job better than anything else I have found. I have ran it in/on all of my machines for as long as I've been in business.

The stuff is also the hot tip in compressors. It coats the inside of the tank and stops the rust build up in them. When you drain the water you get what looks like soapy water coming out. I have ran it in all my compressors for 30+ years and none of them have a speck of rust in the tanks.

Available from any Amsoil dealer. Make sure to get "Amsoil 20-50 Racing Oil" not just regular 20-50 Amsoil. big difference.

Randy

[smokeywolf]

If I ever run out of Mobil Vactra, I may have to try the Amsoil you recommend.

As the ram(s) on reloading presses are subject to similar, albeit lighter wear conditions as the ways on mills and lathes, have you tried the Amsoil 20-50 Racing Oil on your reloading press ram(s)?

smokeywolf

[M-Tecs]

The stuff is also the hot tip in compressors. It coats the inside of the tank and stops the rust build up in them. When you drain the water you get what looks like soapy water coming out. I have ran it in all my compressors for 30+ years and none of them have a speck of rust in the tanks.

Available from any Amsoil dealer. Make sure to get "Amsoil 20-50 Racing Oil" not just regular 20-50 Amsoil. big difference.

Randy

Thanks for the hot tip. I will try it.

[Clark]

I got my new [1969] mill in place and running, but I have not made chips.
I used 1/2" cold rolled rods to roll it into place, and a nose bar to pry it up and get the bars out when it was finally in place.
I am reading about lubrication right now.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Yes the Amsoil 20-50 racing oil works for everything on a BP. The spindle bearings are lubed with this stuff as well. The spindle bearings have a felt washer on top and that acts as a filter to remove any grit from the oil that runs down and thru the bearings. Oil then runs out the bottom of the spindle.

If the Quill is stiff,,, it is dirty. Period. I use WD40 for that,,, as the whole secret is to flush all the grit and dirt out while moving the Quill up and down vigorously. When it is clean the balance spring will retract the Quill as long as it is correctly adjusted. WD40 seems to work best on the Quill simply because the surface area is so great that really thin oil is necessary. also the Amsoil will attract and hold grit and dust more so than WD40 will. Also WD 40 comes in spray cans so you can literally hose out dirt and grit with it by shooting it in the big slot in the front of the head where the Quill Stop is .

Amsoil for everything else in the shop. Including my Press Rams,,, all of them. I only have one oil can for everything, it has Amsoil 20-50 racing oil in it. 1 quart goes a long way when used this way.

The reason I recommend this stuff for these purposes is that I have never had a failure of any kind with any of my machines, but the usage in the air compressor is what really sold me. I don't care what other oil you use in a compressor pump you will get rust in the tank. Not so with the Amsoil.

Just for you guys I went and drained the tank on my big compressor. It is a 5 hp 15 cfm Ingersoll Rand upright. I have ran this oil in it since day one. Note how the water is white. The red stuff in the water is the Amsoil that gets bypassed into the tank as vapor and collects eventually in the bottom of the tank after it has coated everything inside. This compressor is about 25 years old and pumps like new. Especially with the Real 5 hp Leeson Motor that I put on it a few years ago when the original motor cacked.

The stuff really works.

Randy

[smokeywolf]

Thanks for that Randy.

[Clark]

138847138846

A lot of knowledge from Randy. I drew a schematic for the electrician in that town for wiring my brother's shop for a compressor that needs #8 wire. A couple years later, we have still not installed it. I only go there to hunt. I will see that he finds out about Amsoil.

Today I tore down the vise. On my 1963 Rockwell 21-100 mill i put a Kurt D675 vise. This 1969 Bridgeport 2J came with a Kurt D60, which seems to be an older version of a D675.

In 11 years I never tore down the D675.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Typically we leave the angle portion of the vise under the bench until needed, which isn't often. It makes for a more rigid setup with the vise bolted directly to the table without the base. The base also eats up precious knee travel. The distance between the tooling and the vise is cut back by an inch or so which can make a difference when working on tall stuff.

You'll also have to make yourself a set of table covers out of 1/4" Masonite. You use apiece of strip wood 5/8" thick by 1" high screwed to the bottom of the Masonite to hold it in position. Cut out the edges next to the vise to the contour of the vise base. This gives you a place to put stuff on the table and it also keeps the vast majority of chips and other debris out of the Table's Tee Slots.

Things like this simply make the machine more pleasurable to use.

There is also a pic of my Trav-a-Dial setup up on my old mill. Clark: Makes sure to convey "20-50 Racing Oil" They also make a compressor oil and it doesn't work the same way.

Randy

[smokeywolf]

Can't stand lazy people with SERVO drive on the knee. I want one too!

Randy, is that an R8 or a QC-30 spindle nose?

[seagiant]

Hi,
To the OP congrats on the BP!!!

I looked for one for years and was almost going to give up and get a Chi-Com Bench mill and finally got a tip from a guy on Practical Machinist and bought a 1965 9X36 for $2000 and was the best money I ever spent!

Randy,you convinced me so well on the Amsoil for my compressors that when it came time to chage oil in the "Beast" I went with Amsoil in that!

Oh yea, still waiting on the Bridgeport Owners Manual, your going to write!!!