Former Bridgeport EASYPLUS 2?

Former Bridgeport EZ Trak Plus 2?

i just purchased a Bridgeport mill that was formerly an EZ Trak Plus 2. Most of the CNC parts were removed before I got it. While trying to repair the Y-axis leadscrew the previous owner lost all of the ball bearings in the ball sockets. Apparently the leadscrew was slightly bent on the operators end by something (forklift?) bumping into it. Any suggestions on getting this machine up and running?

You probably won't like my answer, just junk it.

Don't know what you paid for it, but a non-running CNC is worth it's weight in scrap. You can buy a decent running machine for less than $8K. You'll have $1K in a replacement ball screw. BTW, there is no such thing as a "slightly bent" lead screw.
JR

JRIowa said:

You probably won't like my answer, just junk it.

Don't know what you paid for it, but a non-running CNC is worth it's weight in scrap. You can buy a decent running machine for less than $8K. You'll have $1K in a replacement ball screw. BTW, there is no such thing as a "slightly bent" lead screw.
JR

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You're correct, that's not the answer I wanted to hear. But let me go back and start over with my question. First of all I'm a complete newb to machining. I was looking for a mill to use for occasional hobby use when I came upon a Bridgeport EZ Trak Plus 2 built around 2006 that had all of the CNC stuff removed, which was fine considering I only wanted a manual machine. The machine looks practically new and the table doesn't have a scratch on it. On the bad side the previous owner tried to disassemble the ball screws in order to address the bent Y-axis ball screw. That was over 6 years ago. He got frustrated with effort and let the machine sit until recently selling it to me. Apparently I can get a complete set of X-Y ball screws with sockets and yoke for a little less than $900 but it seems I might do better by just addressing the bend screw and repack the sockets. I can't see scraping a complete Bridgeport for the sake of $900 or less. Any suggestions would be appreciated on which way to proceed.

I guess you can do your best to straighten the screw. Then pull the return tube off the X axis screw and measure the ball diameter. Order some precision balls from McMaster Carr or whomever. Fill the ball nut up with balls and hope for the best.

Not that it makes much difference but the mill is actually an EZPLUS not an EZTRAK. After stripping all of the CNC stuff off of the machine the previous owner installed a Lyman MK7 power feed on the left side, which seems to take advantage of the longer shaft used on the CNC mills. After some research it seems unreasonable and laughable to some to attempt repacking the ball sockets. So that leaves me with replacing the complete ball screw setup unless there are any better suggestions.

I've replaced balls in a ball screw before. It's pretty easy. Just get the right balls and fill it up.

I made a short plug to fill the inside of the ball nut and loaded the balls on the bench. Then I just threaded it off the plug and onto the ball screw. I never even removed the screw from the machine.

After doing more research it seems I have the following options ...

1)Purchase a complete retrofit ball screw kit. The cheapest I found was one for a little less than $900.

2)Purchase a complete standard acme screw setup. I haven't received any prices yet but suspect it will cost about the same.

3)Use my existing ball screw setup and attempt to straighten the bent Y-axis shaft. I recall there are companies that repack ball screw sockets.

Since I have more time than money I plan to take the least costly option whatever that might be.

I have no experience with replacing balls in a ball nut, but if I remember correctly from some research I did a couple of years ago, they typically use two different size balls that vary by only one or two thousandths and are inserted alternately into the nut. If I were you, I'd contact someone like HW Machinery and get some good expert advice. Link below.

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Ted

talvare said:

I have no experience with replacing balls in a ball nut, but if I remember correctly from some research I did a couple of years ago, they typically use two different size balls that vary by only one or two thousandths and are inserted alternately into the nut. If I were you, I'd contact someone like HW Machinery and get some good expert advice. Link below.

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Ted

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Thanks Ted! I did speak with a very pleasant and knowledgeable person at HW Machinery and he gave me a few more options to explore including a source to have the ball screws repaired and repacked.

beeser said:

Thanks Ted! I did speak with a very pleasant and knowledgeable person at HW Machinery and he gave me a few more options to explore including a source to have the ball screws repaired and repacked.

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These guys do good work, maybe overkill for what your looking for

http://www.threadcraft.com/index.html