It's a new level of maturity to realize, both your passion and emotion about these machines and their place in time. Also the honesty of "I just can't do this". I've had to say no to some stuff but I was better for it. ✌️✌️
When I worked for Pan Am before it closed down in 1991, they sent about a half dozen machines from their closed down SFO base after the United sale of their Pacific routes. In the mix was a pretty big shaper, maybe 36”,can’t remember the make that they transported all the way across the country to JFK that they decided they had no use for. My supervisor tried to donate it to a high school but they did not want it,so he turns to me and says, “ do you want it?” At the time i couldn’t, but even now i think about how i could have saved this, probably historic machine that might date back to the Trans Pacific Flying Boats of the 30s and 40s. We just can’t save everything . 😢 Good video thanks. Jim.
Was that a Marvel vert bandsaw at 2:17? You should get that! It is a bit big (King). I would still get it even if it lives outside oiled up and covered well. Years ago, on a whim I bought a 24" Bullard for $500. A few months later, a local newer shop needed the machine and I did not want to do their work. So they rented the machine and sent a good operator to my shop for about 5 weeks, paid for the machine many times over and I didn't lift a finger with it. Then it sat for 20+ years, a guy kept telling me I need to scrap the Bullard, taking up room, etc. and I almost did. Then the Gas Well people came to town. The machine was suddenly a key player in lots and lots of work from them. They are all gone from the area now but in 4 years, it made me a lot of money. I still use it now, maybe 5-6 times a year. It's for sure a "When you NEED it you NEED it" type of machine. I will NEVER get rid of the machine.
I believe you are correct on the band saw, I think they are moving it to another building. Aside from the investment in time and money I just don't have the space to dedicate to a machine without a purpose. It occurred to me that for the same amount of floor space I could move in something like a devlieg jigmill that I would actually use.
If you can store it and have the money, pull it and slow roll it on the getting her ready. No you don’t need it right now, but once you have it and you find the things you can do with it and a mill at the same time you will never looks back on getting it. VTL with a large chuck can be as good for facing and boring as any mill.
70 years old amateur machinist , watching the death of manufacturing in the west . Australia , like the rest of the world , made virtually everything we needed , now all Chinese or Taiwanese .The waste of scrapping these precision machines is heartbreaking .
Its a damn shame, but, yeah, Nowadays how much use would it get. But its sad, and its a loss. I have run big machine tools, ya bond with them! Love,,Dubs
I sure hope someone saves the handwheels from it They are great knee handwheels for Bridgeport type mills. I'm sure there are other items would be great for other uses.
I'm sure you're right, I tried looking at it from that vantage point while I was there but it was making me feel kind of ill thinking about cannibalizing it.
I understand completely, but is there any other parts you could save as well as the DRO to use in the future? The round machine table etc. It seems a shame to see the complete machine being scrapped. Cheers Tony
That's a bummer. I've watched a lot of older machines leave the shop where I work now. Most of them were still pretty decent, but they went to scrap anyway. Nobody would buy them. I get what you mean about getting emotional over a chunk of iron. They don't make machines like they used to
And by the Murphy’s law - you will need it bad month later. One if my customers just paid a lot of money to restore his. Because he said it was still worth it. He does jobs for paper mills and huge dredger ships.
It really concerns me to see this kind of manufacturing capabilities disappear, tanks and ships aren't built with a computer. I consider the demise of heavy manufacturing to be the greatest national security failure of my lifetime.
It's a bitter pill to swollow, but life is easier when you realize you can't have everything you might want!
It's a new level of maturity to realize, both your passion and emotion about these machines and their place in time. Also the honesty of "I just can't do this". I've had to say no to some stuff but I was better for it. ✌️✌️
You saved what you could, sometimes ya just can save them all, love your channel.
Thank you, just making a living doing what I enjoy.
When I worked for Pan Am before it closed down in 1991, they sent about a half dozen machines from their closed down SFO base after the United sale of their Pacific routes. In the mix was a pretty big shaper, maybe 36”,can’t remember the make that they transported all the way across the country to JFK that they decided they had no use for. My supervisor tried to donate it to a high school but they did not want it,so he turns to me and says, “ do you want it?” At the time i couldn’t, but even now i think about how i could have saved this, probably historic machine that might date back to the Trans Pacific Flying Boats of the 30s and 40s. We just can’t save everything . 😢 Good video thanks. Jim.
A shaper is another story, very usable.
Was that a Marvel vert bandsaw at 2:17? You should get that! It is a bit big (King). I would still get it even if it lives outside oiled up and covered well. Years ago, on a whim I bought a 24" Bullard for $500. A few months later, a local newer shop needed the machine and I did not want to do their work. So they rented the machine and sent a good operator to my shop for about 5 weeks, paid for the machine many times over and I didn't lift a finger with it. Then it sat for 20+ years, a guy kept telling me I need to scrap the Bullard, taking up room, etc. and I almost did. Then the Gas Well people came to town. The machine was suddenly a key player in lots and lots of work from them. They are all gone from the area now but in 4 years, it made me a lot of money. I still use it now, maybe 5-6 times a year. It's for sure a "When you NEED it you NEED it" type of machine. I will NEVER get rid of the machine.
I believe you are correct on the band saw, I think they are moving it to another building. Aside from the investment in time and money I just don't have the space to dedicate to a machine without a purpose. It occurred to me that for the same amount of floor space I could move in something like a devlieg jigmill that I would actually use.
I ran one of these in the 80's. Loved it!
Some real American iron there.
Totally understand. Tough decision.
If you can store it and have the money, pull it and slow roll it on the getting her ready. No you don’t need it right now, but once you have it and you find the things you can do with it and a mill at the same time you will never looks back on getting it. VTL with a large chuck can be as good for facing and boring as any mill.
It's just too much of my floor space in a 2000 square foot shop.
You want it, but you don't need it. I can relate 🙁
Such a bummer
70 years old amateur machinist , watching the death of manufacturing in the west .
Australia , like the rest of the world , made virtually everything we needed , now all Chinese or Taiwanese .The waste of scrapping these precision machines is heartbreaking .
What is even more frightening to me is the realization that I don't know anyone younger than yourself who has the foggiest idea how to run them😳
Its a damn shame, but, yeah, Nowadays how much use would it get. But its sad, and its a loss. I have run big machine tools, ya bond with them! Love,,Dubs
I sure hope someone saves the handwheels from it They are great knee handwheels for Bridgeport type mills. I'm sure there are other items would be great for other uses.
I'm sure you're right, I tried looking at it from that vantage point while I was there but it was making me feel kind of ill thinking about cannibalizing it.
Its an emotional attachment. I have the same dumb thing everytime i buy a car and now i have 23 cars.
I understand completely, but is there any other parts you could save as well as the DRO to use in the future? The round machine table etc. It seems a shame to see the complete machine being scrapped. Cheers Tony
Oh NO!! 😥
Good one . Unfortunately it's just the way of the world these days . 👍
tears are shed for the King........
Only people who have worked with their hands will understand what you express.
These machines end up being old friends...
Did you advertise it? Someone in the surrounding area might be interested
It’s tough watching things like that getting dismantled and scraped.
It feels like I'm watching our country get scrapped out one machine at a time.
That's a bummer. I've watched a lot of older machines leave the shop where I work now. Most of them were still pretty decent, but they went to scrap anyway. Nobody would buy them. I get what you mean about getting emotional over a chunk of iron. They don't make machines like they used to
It's almost like you can feel all the hours that men just like us spent building then running these machines, and now we are erasing that story.
And by the Murphy’s law - you will need it bad month later.
One if my customers just paid a lot of money to restore his. Because he said it was still worth it. He does jobs for paper mills and huge dredger ships.
I decided I will just have to farm out the work if it exceeds my equipments capacity. Thankfully we still have a couple of big shops in my area.
Contact cutting edge engineering in Australia, they’ve got a presence here on TH-cam. Right on for them.
The cost of transporting a 32,000# machine half way around the world would undoubtedly exceed its value.
Where are you located? I'll take it if you're on the west coast.
Edit:
Just saw you're in Michigan. Damn.
I think you made the call brother.
Unfortunately time and money are both finite resources.
You saved the bus , and that means a lot to me.
Thanks for sharing her🙂
No worries we can always get machines like that from China. /s
Exactly 😡
Ill buy the jaws if they are scrapping it
I'll find out what the plan is.
probably get sent to china to make into wobbly brake rotors; sad.
Ain't that the truth 😞
Give it away its pretty simple
It's not mine to give.
The audio is sub par
I lost my normal camera 😡
They had a place in Jackson, Mi called " Bullard City" and they had 30 or 40 of these machines. Verticle lathes. End of an era.
It really concerns me to see this kind of manufacturing capabilities disappear, tanks and ships aren't built with a computer. I consider the demise of heavy manufacturing to be the greatest national security failure of my lifetime.