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Bridgeport 6F Pwr Feed repair questions

70chall440

Aluminum
Joined
Jul 15, 2019
The 6F power feed on my Series 1 BP wasn't working when I got it, I disassembled it and discovered that the circuit board has some issues. As can be seen in the pictures, there are at least 2 resistors burned out. I have done a far amount of research and understand that new boards can be obtained, however many say "upgraded" but offer little information what this means. Given that they all seem to run $220 to $290, I believe the are essentially the same, but I could be wrong.

My questions are;

1. Is there one specific "upgrade" related to these boards or is this some generic term that is related to better components or something?

2. Is it better to replace the board to attempt to have it rebuilt?

3. I see that there are various models of the 6F, how do you determine which model I have?

Appreciate any information

IMG_0546.jpgIMG_0552.jpgIMG_0553.jpgIMG_0554.JPG
 
I guess I should have added that I am not sure if the pwr feed motor is good or not bc the circuit board was fried; however before taking it apart, when switched on the motor acted like it was being switched on/off rapidly. So, it is possible that I could get a new board only to discover that the motor has issues.
 
1. They do not make the old 6F circuit boards anymore. The big difference in price that you see is if you already have an 8F circuit board in your power feed (I think its like $243 or something like that, PN 038-0216) or if you need the pot as well (the $290 cost PN 038-0217) because that is an upgrade "package" that comes with the 8F potentiometer that you need to replace when you replace the board. So simply put, same circuit board, but one comes with extra stuff.

2. I have not attempted to rebuild these as there are many different variations, and I dont have the time to make it fiscally worth anyones while to repair them. The few companies I have tried have have no consistent results. But I stopped trying after like the 5th company.

3. Basically, if your circuit board is mounted inside of a rectangle box that is mounted on the side of your column, you have an A/B, if it is mounted inside of an angled casting under your motor/gear housing, its a C.

There is a small chance that your motor caused the circuit board to blow, but I would go with bad wiring or bad switches being the culprit. Make sure that both of your switches are functioning properly. And not just open/closed according to the NO/NC, but when in neutral, NO/NC should be open/closed. Then when you go in a direction, that switch should flip. The biggest issue with these switches is that if both switches are CLOSED at the same time on the NO side of it, thatll be what kills your board. So what I am getting at is make sure that the switches are properly adjusted so that they are only actuated when they should be. I find this to be the issue more often than the motor.

If it is your motor, it could be 2 main things. Take your motor apart and look for any cracked, brittle, and exposed wiring that could be shorting to something. Secondly, check the brushes and armature area. Make sure that your brushes arent gone and shorted the spring to the arm, and make sure that the commutator area isnt completely gunked up.

Can you explain the whole "switched on/off rapidly" a little bit more? What exactly were you doing and how was it reacting?

Jon
H&W Machine Repair
 
Jon,

Thank you for taking the time to provide such a complete response. Based on this information I have a 6F C model.

I will spend some time checking/adjusting the switches.

As to the on/off of the motor description, I will try and clarify it. When I got the machine and tried the pwr feed, with the power turned on, when the direction lever was placed in either direction, the lead screw handle would appear to "shake", that is moving a slight amount back and forth, almost like it was trying to work but was unable to for some reason. When I took the face plate off where I could actually see inside, I could see that the motor itself (when power was applied and the lever was in a directional position) was for lack of a better term moving back and forth or perhaps better described left and right or on and off. More precisely, the motor was rotating a small amount one direction and then either reversing or loosing power. Somewhat hard to describe. The potentiometer did work as at a low speed (power) the motor would not react or would do so very lightly, when turned up the shake/rotation would become visible.

I see that HW carries boards but cites "other changes" or something that must be done in order to use them in this machine? I am definitely buying a board, I just need to make sure I get what I need the first time.

Greatly appreciate the response.
 
Good luck with your power feed! Just wanted to say that I have the same model and been working on it on/off for quite some time due to other tasks at hand. Jon has been incredibly helpful with my planned rebuild but as he stated the boards are quite a handful.
 
Good luck with your power feed! Just wanted to say that I have the same model and been working on it on/off for quite some time due to other tasks at hand. Jon has been incredibly helpful with my planned rebuild but as he stated the boards are quite a handful.

Thanks, Jon has been awesome. I ordered a new board from HW yesterday. I have to say that the fact that Jon reached out and has been so helpful gave me a lot of comfort in ordering the parts. I will definitely be going back to HW for any needs I have.
 
Thanks, Jon has been awesome. I ordered a new board from HW yesterday. I have to say that the fact that Jon reached out and has been so helpful gave me a lot of comfort in ordering the parts. I will definitely be going back to HW for any needs I have.

Same experience here with H&W. Let us know how the new board works out for ya. Did you order the 6F replacement or going to put in the 8F board and switches?
 
I certainly will post my results.

I believe it is a 8F conversion but to be honest, I am not 100% on that. I bought this board 038-0217 - Circuit Board (With Upgrade Kit) and Jon sent me the wiring diagrams two of which are for the 8F. Looking at the picture on the website, it appears to be more of the 8F than the 6F.
 
The circuit board upgrade kit is just the board and the pot. If you wanted to swap out the switches for the 8F switches, you would also have to replace the cam shaft and at least the little board that the switches mount too. Not totally necessary, but those switches are WAY more reliable than the 6F ones.

Jon
H&W Machine Repair
 
The circuit board upgrade kit is just the board and the pot. If you wanted to swap out the switches for the 8F switches, you would also have to replace the cam shaft and at least the little board that the switches mount too. Not totally necessary, but those switches are WAY more reliable than the 6F ones.

Jon
H&W Machine Repair

Thanks again Jon, I think I will roll with what I have for now, this is a one man hobby deal, doubt the machine will be turned on more than perhaps once a week on average.

Mike
 








 
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