Bridgeport Series II mill for block and head work?

If a guy who is a hobbyist like me wanted to do all his own machine work instead of farming it out, Stuff like block squaring, cylinder boring, cylinder head work, etc. but not buy a whole slew of different machines, would a Bridgeport series to mill be a good choice? I could make up some good fixtures, or buy some BHJ stuff. Has anyone done something like this? I have a Bridgeport series I, but it's not big enough for doing blocks. Thanks, Joel

Bridgeport Series II specs

I dont think it will open up enough for the block.. it didnt on my SB stuff.. not with the bits needed
I have the same mill

Head work you're okay.
Block work not so much. Quill travel is only 5" (not enough to bore most cylinders). You would have to have a riser between the base and head to fit a block under it and I don't think the spindle is rugged enough for an 8" shell (insert type) milling cutter for surfacing a block or a head.

unless your going to start a business doing it, it wont save you any money. machine work is not a place to cheap out. and buy the time you buy the machine, 2000-3000. fixtures 2000-3000, tools 1000-1500 maybe more. you'd be further ahead just getting it done and making sure its done right. btw the measuring tools needed to even verify another shops work you would need buy just to make sure you own work is correct.

I have a series II. As mentioned, the quill travel limit and opening without a riser block is not enough for most blocks. There are a few operations like caps that you can manage. The series II does have enough table travel to tram the full length of V8s. I made these caps for my early hemi with my series II.

You did a nice job on those main caps.

Short answer, no. But a few things can be bought cheap right now. A Storm Vulcan Blockmaster 85B would be one. It can deck blocks and cut heads. You might pick up a good one for $5,000. Maybe less. And it will last longer than you will. You might find a good Rottler boring bar for $5,000. But really, it you had a good Sunnen CK-10 for cylinder honing you could use it to bore out if you had to. $10,000 for a 85B and CK-10 would give you a lot of fun. And that's probably a lot less money than you've lost in the stock market in the last 3 weeks.

Agree - answer is no in my opinion.

The R8 holder is a limiting factor on what tooling you can run, and the machine is not really rigid enough for block work. You can scrape by and do head work if you really wanted to.

My new machine is a much more rigid bed mill with BT30 holders and I would never consider boring an engine block in it - with 23" of travel I doubt a boring bar would even fit on the machine with a mounted block. Some other operations yes - but boring is not one.

My series II has a 30 spindle. Not r8. Not sure if this is standard or option, but agree that it is not the machine to use for most of the OPs needs. Great machine. The most versatile tool I have, but it has it’s limitations.
My machine is a bit rough. A friend of mine buys up property at auction and comes across this type of stuff from time to time. He found an absolutely cherry standard size Bridgeport brand mill. He offered me the machine for whatever I could sell mine for. Very tempting, but I won’t give up the table travel and collet system. Its a bit large for a home machine, but comes in very handy when needed. I’ll do some work with it over a weekend, then go back to work on Monday... the standard machine I use there looks and feels like a toy.

Also wanted to add... finding a riser block for a series II is less likely to happen than winning the lottery. If you find a machine that has one make sure you grab it. I made the mistake of passing on the one that was with my machine when I bought it. Been looking for one for 12 years now.

in my opinion, the series 2 bridgeport is a very nice machine, but not near rigid enough, nor heavy enough in the spindle head for block work.
as has been stated, there are a few things you can do such as fabbing main caps, but for boring or decking, not the machine for the job.
just my opinion as a machinist of 42+ years before retirement.
i would, however, love to have one of those in my shop someday before i croak.

Thanks for the info, guys. It's good to know so I don't buy a machine to do something it can't. I have a series I, and that is not big enough to do blocks. I was thinking if the Series II could do that stuff, I could sell the I and buy the II for not much more in floor space or $$. In my situation, it would be hard to justify single purpose machines, but it sure would be nice to have all that stuff!

have cut many blocks 460 fords, rb mopar ,small blocks , chevy all types. You have to have alot of patience though.

Been looking at this for a long time myself. So, what’s the next step up from a II ? I’ve been watching on line but not sure what to go after, purely as a hobby so I want ONE machine to work with.
Btw I have a Hemi block that needs every surface cleaned up, the purpose of my inquiry

i really am unable to say exactly what machine a guy should be looking for, but in my opinion, you need a machine that has a bigger mass in the head area and base than the series 2 bridgeport has.
the reason for the needed mass [again in my opinion] is the extra mass absorbs harmonics which will give you MUCH better surface finishes across the table travel.
as before, your mileage WILL vary.

to the others that have successfully machined blocks on a series 2, i'm proud of you ! just because the machine in question may not be the best one to use, you are showing you have the needed skills to be able to accomplish your goals with what you have. that is what makes you good at what you do.
i have been forced to do the same thing over my career, and the feeling one gets from pulling off something others say is unlikely or impossible, is very unique to say the least !

WHat is the feasibility of boring the cylinders in a bridgeport series II or similar machine with the quill fully retracted for rigidity and locked, and use the knee feed?

Measure the machine and see if you can get the block into it... I dont think you can

I’ve used mine that way to bore a block that I repaired. My knee is not power feed, but does have air assistance. The block was an aluminum block that had a rod punch through the sleeve. I removed the sleeve (+ the one next to it) by cutting it into pieces, then welding in the portion of aluminum that was missing. After the weld repair, i bored the block as you describe. Not fun or 100% precise. Knocked the sleeve in, then took it to the machine shop to be finish bored and honed. I consider myself pretty careful and able, but not for that operation.

Rick.. you could fit the block in.. I couldnt with a #8 tool holder

Block partially over the table front edge. Two large bars bolted to the deck with spacers down to the table. Set up wasn’t that bad because I was only doing a single cylinder. I have a boring head that fits directly into my spindle with a 30 taper collet. Used the 90° tool hole on the boring head. A8 sprint car block.

I used a Bridgeport to do some machine work on a 340 race block. This machine had a riser block which turned out to be critical. Without a riser block it was a no go. I designed a pair of fixtures that bolted to the block and the table. The fixtures had various hole patterns in them that allowed me to rotate the engine for the work I was doing. This was a very rigid setup but it took a lot of time to get lined in and bolted down.

Ok what’s the next size up over a 2? I’m not afraid of a LARGE unit I have the space and 3 phase

Get a boring bar for boring. They aren't that much used. My opinion. I got a Van Norman 905 for 750$ locally.

Problem is that the mills are just not designed for that. My bed mill has 23" of travel which I do not believe is enough for boring a block and is probably less height clearance than a Bridgeport Series I with a riser. My old Series I had a riser.

The only thing I know of other than a specific machine made for boring/honing a block would be a jig bore. I don't know how big a jig bore you would need, but they were made up to very big. They can be bought reasonable as they are pretty much obsolete today.