Moving a Bridgeport in bits.

[Keith MathesonParticipant @keithmatheson47708]

I’m shortly in the process of moving house which gives me the opportunity to sell my lathe and mill and replacing them with a pair of more substantial proportions. I have my heart set upon a second hand Bridgeport. A few house options have easy access so delivery and movement is not an issue. However, some properties tick many other boxes but moving a big mill into place is not one of them! My questions is, if say I buy somewhere that has a side return about the width of a pallet could I buy a Bridgeport, have in dismantled on to pallets, transported, moved along a wide path and then reassembled in the workshop at the bottom of a garden workshop. Has anyone had experience of a supplier who is happy to dismantle a Bridgeport (with the customer/helping/ recording/paying) having it transported on pallets then reassembling said bits with the appropriate lift etc. hopefully this makes sense.

[larry phelan 1Participant @larryphelan1]

I doubt it, but worth a try.

[Julie AnnParticipant @julieann]

Can’t say for sure as my Bridgeport was delivered assembled since the garage door opens directly onto the drive.

However, if there is enough room for a pallet you only need to remove the table. Everything else is slimmer than a pallet. It is normal to lower the knee and invert the milling head, supporting it with the table/knee so as to lower the CG.

Julie

[Clive FosterParticipant @clivefoster55965]

Moved mine down a 3 ft (ish) wide path on a very heavy duty dolly I’d made some years before with 2″ x 2″ (ish) castor wheels. Small diameter but wide made for heavy load capability.

Removed table, head and ram first. Not a lover of pallet trucks on relatively narrow paths alongside buildings as wheels tend to be very near the edge due to pallet overhang. Far too easy to bash drainpipes too!

Dis-assembly and re-erection with engine crane is pretty straightforward given room to manoeuvre. Head is much easier to handle if you have an R8 taper spigot on a solid base that you can bolt to the table giving screw controlled movements for refitting. I sat my table on a pair of workmates for preliminary alignment then two guys and a spotter job to heft into place. Both head and table can be refitted swinging from an engine crane but I’ve never gotten on well with swinging things.

If you do shift on pallet truck with the table still on I’d advise making some timber supports to bolt under the table  close to the ends and adjust knee height so they skim the ground with just enough clearance for moving. That way if it does tilt it will be stopped before it goes over or slides off the pallet and will be safely parked whilst you figure out how to continue the shift.

Clive

[PeteParticipant @pete41194]

Yes it can be done without much more than some common hand tools and something like an engine crane for removing and replacing the heavier parts. As far as moving the individual parts from the vehicle the parts were transported in and to where the machine will be situated. That would be specific to each location. I disassembled mine right out of it’s shipping crate, moved it a few miles, then through my home and into my own shop.

Basically you’d remove the drive motor, the head, tilt and nod knuckle, ram, turret cap, table, Y axis assembly, and then the knee. The bare column and base would then be the largest and heaviest item to move. I’ve read the bare column and base weighs somewhere around 450-500 lbs. However, the head with it’s various controls would be the most delicate. If it were me, I’d go to the extra trouble to build something like a heavy plywood angle plate to then bolt the head through it’s mounting holes and keep it upright and prevented from rolling around during transport. I didn’t know that and had great difficulty replacing a broken spindle feed direction knob. The rest of the parts should also be protected and treated as if there very delicate as well. Even minor dings and dent damage to feed screw threads, dovetails etc will affect the machines reassembled accuracy.

That disassembly into it’s major parts isn’t a bad thing either. With a new machine it gives an ideal opportunity to solvent wash the anti rust preservative off the feed screws and dovetails, and then a light manual re-lubrication before it’s reassembled. Or with a used machine, doing exactly the same to remove and properly clean the parts from years of built up wear particles,congealed lubrication and swarf. And I’ll guarantee that’s exactly what you’ll find. But any Bridgeport type mill is a fairly simple combination of parts. Finding a used machine tool dealer willing to do that disassembly, moving them all to where the machine needs to be and then the proper and careful reassembly? Doubtful in my opinion. I think you’d be better off planning and arranging whatever it takes to do so yourself.

Doing the same for my own machine took a bit of thought, planning and a fair bit of time to end up with a fully assembled and operational mill. But what I gained for machine size and capability made it more than worthwhile. And I wouldn’t hesitate to do the same again. It’s also extremely easy to find off the shelf tooling and accessories that may be difficult or were never available for many of the smaller and more bench top sized mills. Those standard Bridgeport dimensions and what’s available for them has turned out to be something very valuable and convenient to myself. However and for a used machine, I wouldn’t be using the machine price as my main criteria. I’d be wanting the absolute best condition machine I could find to justify the extra it’s going to take to move one in pieces.

[Keith MathesonParticipant @keithmatheson47708]

Lots of useful comments – thank you all very much for taking the time to reply to my question. Let’s see what house comes out on top. I’m hoping for a wide drive and a flat run into a double garage!🤣 let’s see!

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