When things slow down in the shop, usually because of money, I always end up finding something to do out there, usually in the morning with my coffee and news on the radio, so even if I only put in an hour every morning, I still feel as though I am "working in the shop".
Lately, it has been polishing all the crank handles and their dials:
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| It is nice that one wrench fits almost everything on the mill |
So long as the handles are smooth so they won't abrade your skin in use, polishing these parts serves no useful purpose. But against the permanently-filthy table, sadle, and knee, they stand out, and make it look nicer. This is just for aesthetics.
I cleaned the column and turret/ram, and the head, about as much as they can be cleaned, and they do look much better. But there is no point in cleaning the table, saddle, or knee, because they are constantly bathed in cutting fluids.
Polishing the parts isn't too hard since I own a buffer with a bunch of wheels and different media.
I did not use the buffer on the actual engraved dial surfaces, because I feared rounding the edges of the engraved numbers and lines. For those surfaces, I laboriously hand-cleaned them with 0000 steel wool, carefully avoiding the already-too-smooth knurl on one edge, and that resulted in a very reasonable surface and shine, with no visible damage to the engraving.
I don't actually use the dials on the table since I have a DRO, but I do need and use the dial on the knee lift.
One very curious thing I discovered was what seemed an overly-complex mounting of the cranks to their shafts, with some springs, no key but a pin engaging a flange with a notch in it... and none of it is shown in the two old Bridgeport manuals I have been able to get my hands on. The crank is apparently intended to "float" on a bronze bearing on the shaft, even after it's installed and the nut tightened (fully compressing the spring so WTF) This is either weird shop mods, or I don't have the right manual for that year. (1972)
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