Bridgeport Tracer?

[To save your eyes and sense of reality this is mainly for people who know about Bridgeport mills or have one]

Hello CNC'ers,

I've been looking about and found a Bridgeport duplicator mill, it comes with the Tru-Trace 3D hydraulic controller and 2 J style heads. I've never seen this particular mill before, I'm very new to the whole idea of mills (I don't own one yet). So, prepare youself as I unlesh an entire universe of questions:

1.)
Is there any possible way to fool the tracer on the mill so's the mill can be controlled by CNC? The tracer runs heavy looking hydraulic cables to the ?pump? that I assume ramps up the pressure for the mill's hydraulics. Does the tracer press into the pattern it's tracing and when the pressure reaches a point the control moves the mill's hydraulics?
I was thinking that maybe I could make something like a brick of metal with little pistons inside that feed into the tracer's hydraulic cables. Then fit a set of steppers, or maybe even ?selenoids?, to control each piston which would then supply the pressure for the mill's hydraulic controller. Then I could put the steppers / solenoids on a cnc controller and have it move the pistons for me, as if the tracer probe was bumping into the pattern.

2.)
If I bought the mill could a wip off one of the mill head and sell it on so I just have one?

3.)
How accurate are hydraulic mills like this? The guy says it's the most accurate tracer they've ever run but they've replaced it for CNC machines.

4.)
How noisey are the controllers if they run a compressor of sorts?

5.)
Approximately, very approximately, hiw much would a mill like this weigh? A few thousand lb's, tens of thousands or simply concrete destroying lb's? The table would be about stomach height from the pictures so I think it might just go in the garage! `.^)

6.)
How much would one of these beauties be new? Are they even still made? If they're not how much would have been when they were? My mum has noticed me reading the Gingery lathe book and has been asking 'How much would it be to just buy one instead?'. She sees lathes being useful artistically because you can make table legs etc. on them but I don't think she has realised what a mill can do yet! I suggested a mill would be of more use and if there is a large enough saving on what it would be new she may... buy it for me and have it sent over here. A few hundred and I don't think so but a thousand or a bit more and she might.

Hmmm.... well that's just about it for this installment. I'm sorry I don't have a model number for you I only know it's a dublicating mill by Bridgeport with hydraulic control and two heads. I'd be willing to have it sent over taking a month or two to get here but if it's going to take a large enough chunk out of the saving I'll forget it. It's going to have to travel from Davenport in the great USA, 3000 or so miles over the blue lake Altantic to rainy England where it will take refuge in my garage with the rabbit, ghost mice and four cans of hammerite. To recap:

Bridgeport dublicating mill with two J style heads, dublicating probe and table. Tru-Trace 3D hydraulic controller. Stylii and hold down set. No mill collets. 220V on 3 phase (We have 220v here anyway, need to get a 3 phase transformer though). I'm willing to pay $2000 or so for the mill which is no where near what they're asking for it right now ($900).

Am I rambling on and dreaming here or is there a possibilty for CNC, and am I going to save anything buying it for under $2000? Sorry for all the questions, anwser as many of them as you feel comfortable doing and if you need to know anything else please tell me.

Every answer is _very_ much appreciated...
John (UK)


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