Shipping a mill

Is that quote with rigging / lift gate on each end, or terminal to terminal? Your best price would be palletized terminal to terminal so all they have to do is forklift it from your truck to theirs and back.

I was quoted $500 to go 12 miles.

I'm not surprised, the loading and unloading labor is a constant regardless of the distance.

Very reasonable price. Do not forget crating.

Putting a Bridgeport into a truck is not easy...

Hi, David. We were charged over $1200 to ship less weight from Texas to Oregon last year. Got them down to $600 or so. For a unit that top heavy, they may be pricing it on a flat bed with a tarp over it. I don't think the box sides on most freight trucks will stand holding that much weight tied to them. Most of the stuff I have loaded or unloaded in the last couple of years had to stand in the truck on their own.

Paul

Actually, it is. I've moved my Bridgeport several times.

Remember it is over the mountains. And it might have special issues on it - e.g. low humidity (no rust) added insurance for spoilage (rust/breakage) and fuel costs.

I shipped two surface grinders several years ago about the same distance and it was even more. Has mat. The units were tilted so badly in shipping and jostled the hydrologic pump pool spilled. One shipped by train another by truck from the same pickup.

Train got here first.

Martin

David R.Birch wrote:

I can't help with the shipping problem, although that seems like a reasonable price. My neighbor just moved a 18" American Pacemaker lathe to his shop and it cost a grand to go 40 miles. However, if the sale on the mill falls through I might be interested if the price is right. I live in Wisconsin and would probably go pick it up. Where in WI is it? Tom

Any particular reason you can't hold on and find something closer? Not that I can say when I got the Jones for a BP I didn't drive across 3 states to get it in a terrible winter storm. I should have waited a bit longer, I saw many for sale just after I brought mine home that were far closer.

Time is on your side given current conditions. There is a potential depression in the wings. I'd try backing off and watching a bit longer for a real deal.

Wes

after I brought

I agree with Wes. Every mold shop that closes has at least one Bridgeport.

It sounds like you are the seller not the buyer as some here have surmised. If you break it down and crate it more "square" it will save you some. But you probably won't be able to get it below $500 no matter what you do.

There are different classes of freight. If you get it classed as "general freight" instead of machinery you will get it down some.

JW

If you are at both ends and take the thing apart into smaller chunks (and re-assemble it after) you might be able to do better with a private moving company.

I had a Clausing 100 (lathe) and a B&S Model 0 (horizontal mill), along with a bunch of other stuff - various motorcycles, boxes of machinery, etcetera - moved 60 miles for $300 by local (not chain - family business) movers; the pieces were small-ish and they had two very large young men.

As others have said, the labour was in the handling - the driving is simple.

Taking it out is even worse.

I've ordered stuff from Grizzly (at about 30% of the Bridgeport's weight). If I have it shipped, I'm responsible for unloading it at its destination. Not much of a problem from a pickup truck bed with an engine hoist. But it could be a problem for that hoist if the delivery truck is too high.

For a 1650 lb unit off a full sized truck, figure on renting/borrowing a forklift.

Cheaper and easier to just rent a box truck with a lift gate for half a day. The trick there is to attach a couple of the large 2" ratchet straps between the upper part of the mill and the tiedowns inside the truck a bit back as stabilizers as the lift gates have a tendency to tilt outwards slightly. Rigged properly you can pallet jack onto the liftgate, strap, raise the gate and pallet jack into the truck with no problem, or of course the reverse. Most any box truck lift gate will be rated at 5,000# capacity, giving plenty of margin.

after I brought

I'm selling it, not buying.

David

Germantown, Wi 53022, NW of Milwaukee.

David

Sorry, my bad.

Wes