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Bridgeport 2J

I figured years ago that if Macuna could paint a Monarch 10EE blazing Red, I could do likewise once I got a chipmaster. That is how long I've been waiting to get one... 15 years. Tempus fugit.

Way more patience than I have.

Macuna and you are both colour blind...... Anything that colour in my shop would end up covered in matching shades of wild turkey poop 15 seconds after I opened the barn doors.......
 
So on the spindle bearings.... H&M Machine remove the oiler and grease ( AHHH!!!) their bearings. What are your thoughts on this? I more prefer to maintain my things, maybe this is meant more for industrial shops where things tend to be neglected? Or is just the way things are now? I'm not sure what to think about it.....
When I refurbished my Bridgeport 1J a couple years ago with parts from H&W Machine (excellent source...and RIP Jon), I didn't need to replace the spindle bearings (luckily) but all the other bearings did get replaced. I went with the sealed/greased versions in the top end with the bull gear so the upper oiler is no longer necessary. Therefore I am only using the lower oil cup for the spindle bearings. I am happy. One can argue that the upper components don't get oiled but I used Teflon grease on all those components and since I don't often use them, it is not something I am concerned about. IMHO
 
since I don't often use them, it is not something I am concerned about. IMHO

If yours is the same as mine, those upper components spin even when they are disengaged. They are just decoupled. I don't think how often you use them matters much.

Hopefully, greasing vs oiling is just an optional preference and both are equally satisfactory.
 
Sorry, yes, you are correct. I am only thinking of the down feed drive and the gears around the downfeed lever that are Teflon greased and have minimal use. The bull gear cavity is filled with grease as recommended by H&W. I can't imagine my use will see the life of the grease met in this section but it isn't tough to get to and replenish if that were the case.
 
The upper oiler just drips oil onto the bull gear teeth so that there is lubrication in the meshing of the gears, so it only needs oil when the low-speed gear is engaged. When in high-speed, the pinion is physically lowered so it no longer meshes with the bull gear and bull gear just spins freely in space with nothing touching it.
 
Great job so far. You will be so proud of it when you are done! I like your writing style too!
Thank you very much! I am looking forward to getting it running smooth, its got a lot of tools to make; to make tools; to make tools, for a job I could have bought a tool for! I'm sure my former college profs would be surprised to hear someone likes my writing! hahahahahaha. Also the Epoxy you suggested is on order, should be here this week or early the next.

paint is this colour
That is a bright colour combo! It's already got a nice coat of metallic deep green on it now. The price was right on the paint so that's what I went with!
I figured years ago that if Macuna could paint a Monarch 10EE blazing Red
Where does one see this blazing Red Monarch??? I like red lathes (look in the background!).

I went with the sealed/greased versions in the top end with the bull gear so the upper oiler is no longer necessary.
I almost went with sealed bearings, but there is something about those things that has always bothered me, I seem to see these fail alot more often than plain old bearings (DEFINITELY and ish-me not and Issue! They are perfect for some application). At work I quite enjoy cleaning up and repacking bearings. Its cathartic for me. Also I think I've talked myself into believing that if I stick with oil lubed bearings, any (very light) debris that gets into them can be "flushed". I may be blowing ghost smoke up my own.... but hey....

The upper oiler just drips oil onto the bull gear teeth so that there is lubrication in the meshing of the gears, so it only needs oil when the low-speed gear is engaged. When in high-speed, the pinion is physically lowered so it no longer meshes with the bull gear and bull gear just spins freely in space with nothing touching it.
Respectfully, you do seem to have this a bit wrong. The bull gear is what moves up and down, and it is grease packed. The pinion cannot move, and it is also grease packed. There isn't an oiler that goes to these, there is only the plug you take out of the back of the housing that allows you to push in grease. There is however an oil cup directed at the bearing under the bull gear, on the "fixed Clutch Bracket". Is this different on a 1J head or M?

2J Head Breakdown.webp
 
Thank you very much! I am looking forward to getting it running smooth, its got a lot of tools to make; to make tools; to make tools, for a job I could have bought a tool for! I'm sure my former college profs would be surprised to hear someone likes my writing! hahahahahaha. Also the Epoxy you suggested is on order, should be here this week or early the next.


That is a bright colour combo! It's already got a nice coat of metallic deep green on it now. The price was right on the paint so that's what I went with!

Where does one see this blazing Red Monarch??? I like red lathes (look in the background!).


I almost went with sealed bearings, but there is something about those things that has always bothered me, I seem to see these fail alot more often than plain old bearings (DEFINITELY and ish-me not and Issue! They are perfect for some application). At work I quite enjoy cleaning up and repacking bearings. Its cathartic for me. Also I think I've talked myself into believing that if I stick with oil lubed bearings, any (very light) debris that gets into them can be "flushed". I may be blowing ghost smoke up my own.... but hey....


Respectfully, you do seem to have this a bit wrong. The bull gear is what moves up and down, and it is grease packed. The pinion cannot move, and it is also grease packed. There isn't an oiler that goes to these, there is only the plug you take out of the back of the housing that allows you to push in grease. There is however an oil cup directed at the bearing under the bull gear, on the "fixed Clutch Bracket". Is this different on a 1J head or M?

View attachment 28377

Macuna posted his 10EE on practical machinist... but there are several other really colourful 10EEs out there. One was done in valspar bright orange implement paint, and another in bright teal, and some other bright deep blues
 
Respectfully, you do seem to have this a bit wrong. The bull gear is what moves up and down, and it is grease packed. The pinion cannot move, and it is also grease packed. There isn't an oiler that goes to these, there is only the plug you take out of the back of the housing that allows you to push in grease. There is however an oil cup directed at the bearing under the bull gear, on the "fixed Clutch Bracket". Is this different on a 1J head or M?

View attachment 28377
Sorry, you are absolutely right, its the step pulley head where the pinion moves up and down, I got the 1J & 2J mixed up. Thanks for pointing that out.
 
So its been a bloody busy few weeks.... Seems like machines break left right and centre right before the holidays.

On a side note, anyone got an injection pump or rebuild kit for a NH33TC? Puked right in the middle of the lane.

But back to what we actually enjoy working on. MY BEARINGS CAME BEFORE THE NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!! And this time the UPS jerks kept their paws off of them. USPS for the win.
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Aside from that I was playing with some body work on the head itself. The standard clean, prep, fill, sand, sand more, think that there is no way you put this much filler on, sand until the cows come home and then leave for college, paint, clear, clear, get mad at clear and sand it, then clear again.
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So that's all I've managed to get done since the last post. As always projects take a back seat to life less fun points. I did manage to finally find a good RPC and transformer

Now, does anyone on this wonderful forum got a lead on a good set of R-8 collets? or any R-8 tooling for that matter. When I got the machine it came with nothing.

This week I'm hoping to get some spare time to start the reassembly of the quill and head. This I will try to document in great detail. The end (of this project) is nigh! Until next time, keep the chips flying!
 
With the holidays fast approaching, I find that I have less and less time to myself. Between work and wife, I'm a bound and wanted man. Alas, I did get a few hours in the shop this past Sunday so I started on the re-assembly. Things are looking up!!!

First things first; I put the worm gear that nodds the head back in, but not before fumbling the spacer into the column... necessitating a forklift to rescue. I dummbed on that one.
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Next was the large casting that holds the head. I'm sure this part has a name, but like a dog, only it knows it lol. The pin the centre was a bit of a bear, but with a dead blow hammer and some choice words I managed. I'll tell you that a second set of hands would have been a boon here!
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At this point, my need for shine got hold of me, as I forgot to polish the angle ring on this part before it was installed so I did that before the head casting install.

Now that head casting.... what a bear. You know how you can get yourself into a spot where if you move anything, bad things are GOING to happen. Well I did just that. I fought with it for about 30 minutes to line up the 4 wandering tee bolts, almost dropping it twice.

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For those with a keen eye, you will notice that while the head casting is on, I failed math. Order of operations was imperative here and the thrill of seeing it together blinded me.


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I had forgotten the worm for rocking the head side to side. At this point, more choice words, and a coffee break.

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Ahh that's better! Next was the shaft that passes through the head for the quill feed.

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And the clutch assembly.

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Then I figured I would drop in the feed drive gears, which was a little premature and I had to pop them back out of the way to get feed transmission assembly installed, but no bother.

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A couple of set screws to lock the bronze bushing into place, and not too tight as to distort them. Then these tiny little locksets.

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I got more and more ahead of myself and wound up starting on the quill depth stop. most of this can stay, but some of it cannot. There is a ring that bolts to the quill and has to slip over the depth adjuster. So that will have to come back off. The power feed/fine feed wheel assembly can stay though.

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This next photo is when I stopped and got myself a cold one. When I was putting together the mechanism that transfers the motion of the depth control up to the lock lever, I managed to slip and hit my paint.... There was pain. I gave up for the day.

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Next I will get started on the spindle bearings. This may or may not happen before Xmas. If that is the case, I wish you all a very happy Ho Ho! I've got some time off after christmas so I should be posting before the new year.
 

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Well, It's been a while hasn't it. Happy New Year to all and I hope it is a healthy and safe one!

I can only explain my absence as getting my ass kicked by life. I'm back now and starting to feel a little bit more like myself, so I'll give you the update on the Bridgeport.

Jan 09, After being sick for almost two whole weeks, I felt up to going into the shop. I unboxed my nice new bearings in the most sterile way. As if I was bringing a new life into this world. I was full of excitement that this new year holds. I pressed my lower spindle bearing stack together on the spindle. I followed all the manufacturer recommended procedures. I was proud. Too proud; because of-bloody-course I put the spindle shield on upside down. I thought "o well, I'll press them off and turn it around", and then proceeded to turn the spindle shield from one part into 10. Sulked into the house and ordered a new one.
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Jan 14, My part has arrived. I went to the shop and pressed the lower spindle bearing stack together without incident. I then proceeded to press on the upper spindle bearing and ensured all the spacers were centred. I had borrowed a spanner from work to put the the nut back on this. With the spindle in the soft jaws of my vise, I torqued the nut as per H&W machinery's instructions. Once that was tight to the point prescribed, I used a punch to bend up the locking tab on the washer. A good job done today. A celebration beer is in order.

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Jan 22, Free from chores and the honey do list, I sneak to the shop.
Today I felt like assembling the upper end. I started by removing all the installed parts I previously installed in the feed assy. This will set the theme. I installed the spindle into the quill. Then the quill into the head. Then took the quill out of the head to reinstall the sleeve up at the top. I then replaced the down drive shaft and clock-spring assy. After this I can only explain the progress as walking in sand up hill. Every step I took made me have to go back. I do not know what was up with my head that day, but wow, I was a dullard. Like wandering through thick fog at night I soldiered on stupidly into more assembly. Things were moving along slowly, but forward. Then I got to the bull gear and quill drive sleeve. I stacked it all up, put the grease shield on and dumped the requisite amount of high price grease into the bull gear area. At this point I noticed that the quill was not all that free spinning, so I consulted master Google about my issue. Turns out I should have stayed in bed. I, for some reason, had a washer from the drive sleeve UNDER the grease shield.... meaning take out grease, remove grease shield, remove drive sleeve. I felt deflated. I dont know if my being sick had something to do with this or what, but I felt like a total idiot. I put this right but didn't to many morephotos. I'm hoping to pick up again this weekend with a clearer head.

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Photo is after I got it back together.... grease everywhere.

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This was it for the day. Please ignore that terrible quill down feed handle. It will be remade, just needed one for testing and this is what was around.

I know this may not be the best update of them but it took alot of effort and ego deflation to get to this point. I will continue through this and hope to post more often with cheerier demeanour.

One last photo. RIP Grizzles.
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Well, It's been a while hasn't it. Happy New Year to all and I hope it is a healthy and safe one!

I can only explain my absence as getting my ass kicked by life. I'm back now and starting to feel a little bit more like myself, so I'll give you the update on the Bridgeport.

Jan 09, After being sick for almost two whole weeks, I felt up to going into the shop. I unboxed my nice new bearings in the most sterile way. As if I was bringing a new life into this world. I was full of excitement that this new year holds. I pressed my lower spindle bearing stack together on the spindle. I followed all the manufacturer recommended procedures. I was proud. Too proud; because of-bloody-course I put the spindle shield on upside down. I thought "o well, I'll press them off and turn it around", and then proceeded to turn the spindle shield from one part into 10. Sulked into the house and ordered a new one.
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Jan 14, My part has arrived. I went to the shop and pressed the lower spindle bearing stack together without incident. I then proceeded to press on the upper spindle bearing and ensured all the spacers were centred. I had borrowed a spanner from work to put the the nut back on this. With the spindle in the soft jaws of my vise, I torqued the nut as per H&W machinery's instructions. Once that was tight to the point prescribed, I used a punch to bend up the locking tab on the washer. A good job done today. A celebration beer is in order.

View attachment 29996
View attachment 29997

Jan 22, Free from chores and the honey do list, I sneak to the shop.
Today I felt like assembling the upper end. I started by removing all the installed parts I previously installed in the feed assy. This will set the theme. I installed the spindle into the quill. Then the quill into the head. Then took the quill out of the head to reinstall the sleeve up at the top. I then replaced the down drive shaft and clock-spring assy. After this I can only explain the progress as walking in sand up hill. Every step I took made me have to go back. I do not know what was up with my head that day, but wow, I was a dullard. Like wandering through thick fog at night I soldiered on stupidly into more assembly. Things were moving along slowly, but forward. Then I got to the bull gear and quill drive sleeve. I stacked it all up, put the grease shield on and dumped the requisite amount of high price grease into the bull gear area. At this point I noticed that the quill was not all that free spinning, so I consulted master Google about my issue. Turns out I should have stayed in bed. I, for some reason, had a washer from the drive sleeve UNDER the grease shield.... meaning take out grease, remove grease shield, remove drive sleeve. I felt deflated. I dont know if my being sick had something to do with this or what, but I felt like a total idiot. I put this right but didn't to many morephotos. I'm hoping to pick up again this weekend with a clearer head.

View attachment 29998
Photo is after I got it back together.... grease everywhere.

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This was it for the day. Please ignore that terrible quill down feed handle. It will be remade, just needed one for testing and this is what was around.

I know this may not be the best update of them but it took alot of effort and ego deflation to get to this point. I will continue through this and hope to post more often with cheerier demeanour.

One last photo. RIP Grizzles.
View attachment 30000

Nice work on the Mill. I'm letting you make all the mistakes before my brother and I tackle ours.

Sorry for your loss.
 
I will continue through this and hope to post more often with cheerier demeanour.

As far as I am concerned, you get extra points for telling us all what happened so we can all learn from it, and you lose none for being human. We all do it.

I lost two dogs last summer. We have decided not to replace them. Sorry to hear about your loss. Looks like a cool dog.
 
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