[Greenbuggy]

Hi guys, kind of a lurker here but lots of good info I've found

I recently picked up a 50's vintage Round Ram bridgeport series 1 "M" head for $400 with some tooling and a vise, obviously at that price it has some issues but I am working on cleaning up and repairing the machine, also planning on a repaint and replacing all missing parts. For now most of the work I plan on using this for will be precisely drilling holes but I've got some longer term plans

Longer term I'd love to get a rotary table, better vise, swap for a J-head and eventually dump the power feed on the Y in leiu of steppers and CNC control, at least starting with the X and Y.

For now I've just got some newbie questions related to the fact that I've only ever done small amounts of work on somebody else's manual bridgeport and now I've got my own, little money and lots of dreams in my head.

Firstly, the manual only refers to the "worm gear" that rotates the ram, this is missing a handwheel. Where can I get one for a machine this old? Watching ebay hasn't turned up much, except for handwheels/cranks for the table and knee

Secondly, this was stored in an unheated garage and naturally has some surface rust. Is there a preferred method for taking off light surface rust on the ram and on the unfinished surfaces where there are number markings? Steel wool or sandpaper? Once the rust is gone, what can/should I do to keep rust from coming back?

Lastly, the table has seen some abuse, there are a couple places where an endmill has touched down, and the ends of a couple of T-slots are broken out. Its not complete swiss cheese but its not good either, and I don't know that I'd trust it to tram out easily with the damage on most parts of the table.

I guess my last question has two parts, can any other bridgeport tables fit where that table was, and/or, would it be more economical to have a shop that reconditions machines weld and true up the table?

Thanks for all help you can give. Kris

[Al_The_Man]

Try Reid Supply for hand wheels.
Al.

[jmelson]

Hi guys, kind of a lurker here but lots of good info I've found

I recently picked up a 50's vintage Round Ram bridgeport series 1 "M"

Firstly, the manual only refers to the "worm gear" that rotates the ram, this is missing a handwheel.

If you only need the handle, it s just a square shaft. measure the shaft flats and you should be able to get a suitable handle for it from MSC or similar machine tool catalog. It is not real critical, I use mine about once every 5 years when the machine gets knocked out of tram.

Secondly, this was stored in an unheated garage and naturally has some surface rust. Is there a preferred method for taking off light surface rust on the ram and on the unfinished surfaces where there are number markings? Steel wool or sandpaper? Once the rust is gone, what can/should I do to keep rust from coming back?

Oil liberally, wait for it to soak in well. Never sandpaper, but gentle use of steel wool might be OK.
Make sure it is PURE steel wool, not the horrible scrubbing pads with caustic detergent in them.

Lastly, the table has seen some abuse, there are a couple places where an endmill has touched down, and the ends of a couple of T-slots are broken out. Its not complete swiss cheese but its not good either, and I don't know that I'd trust it to tram out easily with the damage on most parts of the table.

I wouldn't get too upset about this. You clamp fixtures and vises across the top of the table, so small divots and gouges make little difference. Probably you can NOT tram using the table as it won't be straight anymore, anyway. Due to the large overhang of the ends of the table, they sag after 60 years of sitting there. There is a procedure for facing off the top of a block of material with an end mill, and then tramming off that surface. This facing off duplicates the XY "plane" of motion, which won't be a true plane on a well-worn machine. Worn areas on the underside of the table and the top of the knee's Y way will cause a kind of "saddle" shape, maybe as bad as a couple thousandths of an inch deviation. You want to tram the head to be as perpendicular to that surface as you can. Tramming to the table's surface is not what you want. Tramming to the actual plane of table movement is what you DO want.

I guess my last question has two parts, can any other bridgeport tables fit where that table was, and/or, would it be more economical to have a shop that reconditions machines weld and true up the table?

Welding cast iron machine tool castings is a very tricky business. That table has aged for 50+ years, and it now very relaxed. Welding will add lots of new stresses to it, and it will then need to be stress relieved. Unless it is a disaster, don't try this. If it is a disaster, get a replacement table. I BELIEVE that just about any table off a Series-I base will actually fit the ways. But, you need to have one of the same length to re-fit the same leadscrew to it. (I have a 1938 Bridgeport round-ram that originally had an M-head, also. I converted to a 1-J head some years ago, and although it is a terrible kluge, it works well. I have a combination of various Bridgeport bits and pieces here, too, such as the knee and saddle off a BOSS Series-I mill. The dovetails are exactly the same. My plan is to eventually put the BOSS knee and saddle on, but keep my old table. The later knees permitted 12" of Y travel, the original knee only had 9". The BOSS saddle supports the table better as it is a few inches wider, thus less overhang. The BOSS tables only allowed 18" of X travel, I can do about 28" with my table. But, that table has never been worked on since 1938, and it needs a hand scraping job badly.

Jon

Thanks for all help you can give. Kris[/QUOTE]