Re: Bridgeport retrofit servo questions

Brady,

I'm going to be a bit contrarian here (and somewhat parallel in
reasoning to Marriss).

When I got my Bridgeport, it came with similar NEMA 42 steppers to
those that I suspect you have. The table had some modifications
(long story) which significantly reduced its friction. I figured
that it would make sense to invest in some stepper drives and try
things out as the cabling, motors, etc. were already "right sized"
and already there. I was able to get table speeds without lost steps
at about 200 ipm. My advice is you may want to try the existing
steppers (the investment of time and money is MUCH smaller than if
you convverted to servos). If the outcome is unsatisfactory, all you
are out is three stepper drives. If it works out, you'saved a pile.
Depending on your usage, (per Les's experience), it may pay to
convert just the Z axis to servos eventually (you don't have to have
the same motors on all axis).

Just my two cents.

Jeff