bridgeport spindle issues, rattling gears

[flutemaker]

Hello, friends. I have this 1967 Adcock and Shipley Bridgeport milling machine. As you can see in the video, there is a pretty bad play in the spindle, I can spin it and it makes a rattling noise. I have had no luck so far trying to fix this. what could this be?
1 bearings are done and need replacement?
2 gears are damaged? ( I know they were grinding against each other a few times for a few seconds because not engaged properly)
3 Gears do not engage properly and possibly need some sort of adjustment in the high/low gear switch or neutral/back gear switch?
please help! really hoping it's an easy fix since the rest of the machine is in great shape. what can be done? I have seen this fixed in minutes on youtube but it was a slightly different model and don't have the same adjustment screws. Please take a look at the images first because the model I have is less common and may need a different approach.
thanks a lot!

video demonstrating the problem:

IMG_1903.MOV

drive.google.com

 

[jackalope]

It needs new bearings and almost certainly gears. Very straight forward. There are videos by H&W on YouTube and it is simple if you watch that. I rebuilt one years ago before videos were available and it was a bit more challenging. I’ve done several though so it’s not difficult anymore.

 

[jccaclimber]

Is the rattle present in both high and low speed (back gear), or just one of the two?
Does it always go smoothly between high and low speeds (with the shift lever on the side)?
Adjusting the shift lever is pretty easy. You put it in the high speed position, loosen the lever screws so the shaft snaps into place, and the tighten the screws again. It’s letting an internal spring press a hirth joint closed.

Given the age, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if a few bearings were shot.

 

[flutemaker]

It needs new bearings and almost certainly gears. Very straight forward. There are videos by H&W on YouTube and it is simple if you watch that. I rebuilt one years ago before videos were available and it was a bit more challenging. I’ve done several though so it’s not difficult anymore.

thanks a lot for taking your time to respond. I am looking forward to change the bearings. Meanwhile i can still get some good cuts out the old machine. If I keep using it the way it is for some time, can it possibly damage something else? hope not.

 

[flutemaker]

Is the rattle present in both high and low speed (back gear), or just one of the two?
Does it always go smoothly between high and low speeds (with the shift lever on the side)?
Adjusting the shift lever is pretty easy. You put it in the high speed position, loosen the lever screws so the shaft snaps into place, and the tighten the screws again. It’s letting an internal spring press a hirth joint closed.

Given the age, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if a few bearings were shot.

Hi, thanks for the reply.
It rattles in both speeds.
I dont really understand what do you mean by going smoothly between high and low speeds. Changing the speeds with motor off, according to instructions written on the head is working fine without any issues.
Thanks a lot for the advice on adjusting the screws, i will try it.

 

[wood2steel]

Flute,
are you sure that noise and looseness is not the result of the spindle spline to bull gear spline wear. Encountered that same problem on a Bridgeport some years ago and it was the result of no lubrication in that area of machine. A dry spindle spline can get very noisy as it wears.. Bearings and gears were OK. Sending a PM

 

[jccaclimber]

Hi, thanks for the reply.
It rattles in both speeds.
I dont really understand what do you mean by going smoothly between high and low speeds. Changing the speeds with motor off, according to instructions written on the head is working fine without any issues.
Thanks a lot for the advice on adjusting the screws, i will try it.

There's a gear in the back of the bull gear assembly. If it slips on its shaft the shift lever sometimes gets stuck halfway. It sounds like that isn't your issue.

 

[flutemaker]

Flute,
are you sure that noise and looseness is not the result of the spindle spline to pulley spline wear. Encountered that same problem on a Bridgeport some years ago and it was the result of no lubrication in that area of machine. A dry spindle spine can get very noisy as it wears.. Bearings and gears were OK. Sending a PM

Thanks for your reply. Idk really, i will look into it. How did you fix it in your case? i will try to lubricate it better.

 

[wood2steel]

The draw bar port/tube above the spindle splines is a common lubrication point that is often neglected resulting in wear between the spindle splines and the bull gear splines . For some reason the noise seems to be more pronounced in step pulley Mills as opposed to vari-drive heads. Adding Heavy Medium oil as guideline by manufacturer will definitely quieten that rattling noise to some degree

 

[michiganbuck]

There used to be a bearing replacement thread here on pm..or the link step-by-step.
Cash might have posted it. Try a search.

 

[wood2steel]

There used to be a bearing replacement thread here on pm..or the link step-by-step.
Cash might have posted it. Try a search.

Not too sure this is a bearing issue at all. The video seem to only show a loose fit between spindle spline and bull gear. I'm thinking the gears and bearings are all fine. Ran through a Bridgeport head a while back and his seems to give the same rattle. Still have an older spare Bport head here with the exact same noise. Heavy oil on the spindle splines and the head goes quieter immediately. Worth checking that before a complete tear down is in order

 

[IceCzar]

I just did an Atrump B6FC
all I had was an exploded view
but it's basically Bridgeport head and a bedmill made in Taiwan
you won't know till you take it apart and see where the evidence is