Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Expectations, bridgeport

info.host@... wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I've seen pictures of the BP S1 CNC mill I expected to find waiting at the other end. I arrived grinning, and I start looking for the mill I've seen. No luck so I buy a catalog, find the description and start looking for it's number, it says 'Birdgeport Series 1 CNC' in it. The mills feel to the touch surprisingly heavier than they do in pictures. I arrive infront of a machine with the number I'm looking for, I look up, and up and up and up and somewhere in the sky I can just make out the letters 'Bridgeport'. The series 1 cnc I had been expecting turned out to be about twice the size I had seen them. The machine was fully built by Bridgeport, it's pendant / control was on the head, it had the number, 2RE3 I think, or R23E some combination of those.

That's an R2E3 -- someday, I'd love to know where that model number came from, it sounds
too much like Star Wars characters, but I'm sure this predates those films.

> The table wasn't particularly big but the machine definitely was, the coolant tray would use up a good end of my garage alone, it had a _massive_ footprint and I mean massive. There was what looked like the power supply on one side,
> there were three others around the other side and the back which must have held the drivers and controllers. My mum, who'd driven us up, said but a few words 'Oh my god! That's it!'.

apparently, the R2E3 was made in both Series I and Series II sizes. The Series I had only
18 x 12" table movement, the Series II had 30 x 15".

> I thought for a while, I can trim off the pendant and driver and replace them with my computer but the machine was still far to big to be a normal series one, they had a few there and they were no where near as big.

yes, it sounds like that machine was mis-labeled as a series I.

> We picked up the manual for the CNC and found out its 17 years old, funnily the same age as me soon, as if it was meant to be.... The manual BP mills also had a 'spare' motor at the end of the ram that appeared not connected to anything, I didn't really look at them much. Their ways had been quite a few nicks and custom added corners on them. I did however spot a Beaverpal in the corner. It's also manual but the ways looked in beautiful condition and the table moves smooth. My mum still said the beaverpal was too big but we've only been back ten minutes and I've already been making tea. :) I can only try. The manual for the would-be BP S1 CNC had series 1 / series 2 on the front. I know series 2's are bigger, could it possibly have been a series 2? It was MUCH
> bigger than the manual S1's there.

Yes, I'm sure you're right. The Series I BOSS and R2E3 machines were all built on the
same general castings as the manual Series I. The BOSS had a different head to
accomodate their in-line ballscrew for the quill, but otherwise was pretty similar.

> Hoping to be back at a certain auction tomorrow (Although it's not likely),

Good luck, but I think you should keep looking for a smaller machine. unless
you have a specific need for such a large machine.

Jon