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Milling Machine - Repairs & Maintenance
Mill, Bridgeport, vari-speed, bushings, bearing, belt, milling machine
In today's project, we will perform much needed and long neglected repairs and maintenance on the head of my Bridgeport Variable Speed milling machine.
My mill has been rattling, vibrating, thumping, and making noise ever since I brought it into the shop.
The first thing we'll do is take a look at the problem, and talk a little bit about the variable speed "Reeves Drive" and discuss possible issues that could be causing the noise.
Then, we'll open up the head and get a good look at the vari-disc system before taking it all apart and diagnosing several worn and damaged parts that need replacing.
We will replace the variable speed drive belt.
We'll also replace multiple bearings, and we'll replace the plastic bushings in the moveable vari-discs.
We will even encounter the dreaded "teal bushing", and discuss possible solutions for solving this obstacle should you come across it yourself.
After performing all of our repairs and maintenance, we will then re-assemble the head, and compare it's operation to what we observed before making the repairs.
Spoiler alert, it makes a HUGE difference!
Thanks for watching, and please don't hesitate to ask questions in the comments!
******************
Who am I?
I'm a hobby machinist, with a passion for old machine tools and manual machining.
I am here to share and learn.
Being self taught, much of my limited knowledge, has come from others sharing their experiences online, just as I am doing now.
My hope, is that by putting my work in front of much more knowledgeable machinists, we can all learn something new together.
My Lathe: MSC / Prince 9517350 - 13x40 Manual Metal Lathe
My Milling Machine: Bridgeport Variable Speed Series 1 "J Head"
CREDITS:
Music and Sound Effects courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com
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