The Bridgeport looks so much cleaner! Little trick for the chip clean up is to put the magnets in some kind of plastic/ziplock bag, makes it a lot easier to get the smaller bits off the strong magnets.
I am a retired Journeyman Machinist. I enjoyed my 30+ years on a knee mill as well as many other pieces of equipment. Looking at the table ways, knee ways and adjusting gibs, they are definitely in need of scraping and flaking to put the machine back in tip-top shape. I hope you have a reliable contractor with the skills to do it then flatten/true and flake the table top. If you do, it should last you the rest of your lifetime with proper maintenance. Love your channel and woodworking projects. I am retired and do woodworking as a hobby. My grandfather, a carpenter, use to tell me there was nothing worse than a machinist turned woodworker. He would tell me I was too fussy in cutting and fitting my projects. Keep up the good work.
You're such a multi talented guy. Really enjoying your videos. The thing that really sets you apart from just about every other woodworking/metalworking video producer is the production quality of your videos. Outstanding! Lighting and audio are always good and consistent. Your narration is solid. No jerky hand carrying camera, etc. Makes it easy to watch. Thank you. Also fun to see your shop evolve and progress from where you started. Always nice to have great tools, but you're living proof it's the person not the tools that produce great work. And I don't think there's another person on the planet that can get more tools in a 20x20 garage! I thought I had my old shop stuffed, but you've got me beat by a mile. I've since graduated to a 20x46 dedicated shop. Hope you get to upsize sometime too. Thanks again.
This video really scratched my OCD itch. I love tearing things apart, cleaning them and reassembling them. I fully restored a folding chair out of boredom one day last week. I REALLY need to get out more.
There's no way I'd ordinarily spend 30 minutes watching somebody do mundane maintenance or daily chores. And yet, somehow you make it entertaining. Every time. Nice job Matt. Be safe.
Varistors are usually connected over the incoming power, not in line. If you short the varistor you short the incoming power, instantly blowing the fuse. Varistors are made to basically short circuit when the voltage gets too high, blowing the fuse (and often the varistor) to protect the circuit.
Hi Matt. I just finished my rebuild of a Bridgeport clone. I found the channel "H&W Machine Repair and Rebuilding" has very helpful and informative videos. I would suggest replacing all the bearings since you are tearing it down so far. Good luck, the parts are heavy.
I did part of my apprenticeship on a Bridgeport miller, Friday afternoons were spent cleaning oiling and greasing, old toothbrushes were good at getting into the awkward bits.
I like taking things apart to see if I can fix whatever it is. But nothing like this. I glad I get to watch you do it. What fun! I can't wait to see reassembly time.
THAT BRIDGEPORT IS A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF ART!! ANY TRUE MACHINIST OR WELDER WOULD LOVE TO HAVE IT!!! CLEAN AND TAKE CARE OF IT AND IT WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU.👍
The electrical part is an MOV (Metal Oxide Varistor). In theory, take it off and you'll be A-OK (not short it out!!!)... You just wouldn't have any protection against a voltage surge like when lightning strikes nearby or whatever. It's basically the same as the component inside a surge protector. If it did get a surge, there might be other damage to the circuit though, so be careful.
I enjoy your vocabulary. I'm from the Canadian east coast ("The Maritimes"). When you say "goofy", we'd probably say "wonky". When you say "schmoo", we'd probably say "gunk" or "crud". I find myself saying "goofy" more after watching so many of your videos. (Schmoo is a great word.)
I personally don't see anything "gross" about this machine. It looks like a well-used and somewhat cared for a piece of industrial equipment. It's not like it's covered in rust and snot.
Wondered for a while when/if you were going to pull it apart! Opening line "i'll not be painting it as I'd have to take it all apart", 20 mins later, it's no use i can't resist pulling it all apart. So many of my projects start off with a pragmatic plan and soon I find everything in pieces, it's just too hard to resist. Looking forwards to the next instalments.
Thanks for sharing Matt, this brings back old memories!! I use to have a boss that would not allow us to use compressed air to blow off the machine. We had to use chip brushes and wipe it down with rags! A little over the top! He felt the air would allow the chips to migrate into areas that would not be good. I’m interested in seeing how the X,Y nut under the table looks like! On refurbish that is usually pretty junky!
Yep Matt has found another rabbit hole....lol... Is it going back with the same color, or "Matt Red" lol...have a save weekend with the family. Oh yea liked the butter on the pancake,bet butter was very cold! 👍
You sure are not afraid to dive into any project. That Bridgeport disassembly would be too daunting for most. When it gets done it will likely look like a Keith Rucker restoration. I will enjoy watching as it progresses.
Looks like a good machine Matt, I'm no expert on mills but that one looks well cared for. I think you're making the right decision in stripping it down and painting/replacing parts, it deserves a refit!
I think what you are doing is very wise. The unit is full of fines and shavings which is wearing things out. Preventive maintenance is wise. Smart decision on your part.
The red parts that are burned up look like MOV (metal oxide varistor). You can purchase them from Digikey or Mouser. Look at the good one for part numbers. They protect from line surges.
A trick I’ve used when using a magnet to collect chips is to put the magnet in a ziplock bag or even a glove so the chips stick to that and then you jut take the bag/glove off and throw that away and your magnet is clean. In fact. You could probably out a magnet in a glove that you were wearing so you could just pick up chips with your magnet fingers. :)
A tidy unit seeking a shower rather than an entire makeover Matthew. A great viewing video during the current Covid-19 shutdown. Good luck with the circuit boards Not my forte as a failed electrician. Love the machine though.
Hello Matt, Nice mill, I know them well. I was a Journeyman machinist for 32 years. You will have to research how to Tram the head in, after being at an angle, side to side, front to back, a test indicator will be required. A coolant system would be nice. When I said you were an Animal, I meant that in the best sense of the word, a hard worker. Very useful machine tool. Perhaps you already know about climb and conventional milling. Clime, cutter and work moving in same direction, conventional, rotation, direction opposite, best for not grabbing part and pulling it in to cutter. Be good, stay safe, C.
Since you are going to paint you will need to media blast it. I've seen some videos on media blasting with dry ice. Doesn't leave any gritty old sand around to get in the delicate parts. Also glad to see that you immediately sprayed some oil on the bed immediately after the pressure wash. I hopr yo van remember how it all goes back together.
Greg Halligan got one some time back, it had already been taken apart. It might be worth the time to see how he got it all back together. It may also be worth the effort of clearing a path and moving the mill out to the door. The Vermeer would come in handy while taking the turret and knee assemblies down.
"not quite electroboom territory.." Yeah, I was a bit disappointed as well. lol I channeled my inner Marvin the Martian. "Wheres the KABOOM?! There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering KABOOM!"
Just a tip next time working with a magnet and metal filings/chips, etc. If you put the magnet inside a plastic or paper bag, or wrap it in plastic of some sort, you can flip the bag around the chips/shavings instead of having all the tiny pieces stuck to the magnet, pretty much forever :D
The orange disc is a MOV, metal oxide varistor i believe. It is there to stop in rush over voltage :) Maybe it protected what else was behind it - lets hope so! They are designed to stop voltage/current spikes ... not 220vac hookup :) You should be able to get the numbers off the side of the one next to it and those parts should be readily available.
I had a feeling you were headed down the rabbit hole that would lead to the complete disassembly and repainting as soon as you said you weren't going to paint it because you would need to take it all the way apart to do a good job.
Still its nice to have a camera videoing the whole take it apart and clean then put back together. Don't get in over your head as there can't be many people who take stuff apart so you have the vision part to help get it together... scary ground
"Happy woodworking" - And metalworking.. and welding and electronics repair and "Coming soon?" brain surgery, rocket science... Is there anything Matt won't do?
You have just invade Keith Rucker territory. The toasted red disk resembles an MOV, metal oxide varistor which protects electronics down stream from over voltage. If that is what it is, they are designed to blow a fuse and sometimes blow themselves. Good luck on the repair.
