Milling Machine advice

[tubeman]

Anyone familiar with this machine?

http://jlivingstone1512.home.comcast.net/BridgeportMillingMachine-JH.jpg

[tubeman]

If so , what do you think it is worth?

[wood-n steel]

if your are selling it's worth about 1,000
if your buying I wouldent give more than 1'500
but it all depends on its shape and what comes with it

[tubeman]

I am looking to buy it. The owner asked for an offer. I don't want to overpay or to offend. I wasn't planning on buying a milling machine but I always am on the lookout for bargains when it comes to metal working tools!

Thanks for your response.

[one_rod]

Everybody who has ever worked in engineering is familiar with that machine, or something very like it.
If you want it / can afford it / can fit it in your shop then you can't do much better.

The actual value depends a lot on its condition. Significant wear on slideways or the quill, or backlash on feedscrews and nuts can be expensive to put right.
These are industrial machines and it may have seen a lot of hard use in its life.
Then again it may have been a college or toolroom machine and had a fairly easy time, and have next to no wear.
Take a DTI and a pry bar to it and don't talk money until you have seen the amount of slack in the moving parts.

[HWooldridge]

Bridgeports are pretty easy to repair if they have not been abused. This one has a power feed (check to see if it works) and those are sometime hard to find parts for. If the vise is original, I'd say the mill dates from the '60's but you can look up the S/N if you like. Make sure you get the collets and the rotary base for the vise. I have one from '63 that was not used much and still has the scrape marks on the ways. I gave a pittance for two of them at an auction and sold one so mine was free.

[Xtreme Fabrication]

any body got an old bridgeport j head for sale. Tubeman, if you don't buy it, let me know. I am not that far away.

[tubeman]

Someone snagged it before I had a chance. It was gone in one day!

[dvmcmrhp52]

One thing to keep in mind, Bridgeport is out of business.

[Ries]

Bridgeport is not out of business. They were bought by one of the few american lathe companies still in biz, Hardinge, and they shut down the old factory in Bridgeport Ct.
But Hardinge moved the manufacturing to their factory, and they are making shiny new bridgeports right now. They cost $12,400 for a brand new one. And you can still get parts for most of the old ones- I think there may be some problems with the oldest, round ram machines from the 50's, but even they are basically fixable.
Bridgeport prices vary wildly depending on which part of the country you live in- in the rust belt, or northeast, you can often find a used one for as little as 1500 to 3000. Out here on the west coast, expect to pay double that for good ones- there just arent as many machines out here, and there is more money chasing them.
Then, there are lots of imported copies, ranging from crummy chinese, to decent taiwanese, to very good spanish (lagun) machines. Again, prices can go from 500 bucks for a worn out chinese one, to $25,000 for a new cnc Lagun or Sharp.

[HWooldridge]

Almost anything can be fixed on a Bridgeport, too. I have owned several - buy them at auction, fix what's broken or worn, fresh coat of paint and resell them. I kept the last and best one for myself - it was made in '63 but was in the maintenance shop of a large company and seldom used. It has the V-belt stepped pulleys so changing speeds takes a minute to do but that's OK with me. The half nuts had some wear but the table and ways still had the scraping marks left. It's a solid machine and does everything I need it to. I installed a power feed on the X-axis and highly recommend this addition to anyone who doesn't have one. All it needs is a DRO and I'd be set for life...

[dvmcmrhp52]

Originally posted by Ries
Bridgeport is not out of business. They were bought by one of the few american lathe companies still in biz, Hardinge, and they shut down the old factory in Bridgeport Ct.
But Hardinge moved the manufacturing to their factory, and they are making shiny new bridgeports right now. They cost $12,400 for a brand new one. And you can still get parts for most of the old ones- I think there may be some problems with the oldest, round ram machines from the 50's, but even they are basically fixable.
Bridgeport prices vary wildly depending on which part of the country you live in- in the rust belt, or northeast, you can often find a used one for as little as 1500 to 3000. Out here on the west coast, expect to pay double that for good ones- there just arent as many machines out here, and there is more money chasing them.
Then, there are lots of imported copies, ranging from crummy chinese, to decent taiwanese, to very good spanish (lagun) machines. Again, prices can go from 500 bucks for a worn out chinese one, to $25,000 for a new cnc Lagun or Sharp.





True enough, They were bought out, twice now..............
Parts are not available as easily as once was the case..........
They will have a tough time regaining loyalty among the folks that have used them for many years because their last years as a "true" "bridgeport" the company produced a bunch of lemons..................
We had them.